Opinions about kit cars

a.k.a. what do you think about car replicas

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KingAndy
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Opinions about kit cars

Postby KingAndy » Mon May 18, 2015 11:42 pm

Any car entusiast knows about the existance of these. A kit car is a replica of another car (normally a really expensive vehicle, for being a supercar or simply for being rare or luxuous) built from a more affordable car.

Why would you make this? Let's say you dream to own a Bugatti Veyron, or a Lamborghini Aventador, or something like that. But well, you're not rich and facing your future it seems you won't ever be. Even if you could get all the cash to buy your dream ride, you wouldn't be able to pay the gas, taxes and repairs on it. But, if you get a Mercedes Benz 500E from 94 and 25k dollars, the guys from this website will build a Bugatti Veyron replica for you: https://www.srfoosecars.com/bugatti.php

This kind of stuff is more know for the ridiculous dark side, when things go wrong and people waste their money to get something like this:

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But there are great replicas in the internet, they look so real and great, and for really acceptable prices. The main problem of the replicas are the real cars have a mid placed engine, while the donor cars use to have a front placed engine. Meaning most replicas with visible engines, those are in fact fake, while the weaker donor car engine is hiden on what is supposed to be the trunk of it. Even if you replace the engine to a more powerful one, or make it sound like the real thing, it won't ever have the same performance of the real car.

The idea for this discussion came when I found some almost perfect replicas arround the internet. Me, as almost every other car lover, would like to own a supercar but, having no money for that, I would actually enjoy to own a replica. Some day I would like to actually buy one, of coursewith the best quality possible. I will basically have a supercar that drives like a regular sedan but it's not that bad. If it looks exacly like, let's say, a Bugatti, it will still be cool to drive, it will still be great to have it parked in front of your house, or to tke it to go to the beach or to a restaurant or any other place you know people will look at it. It won't get great speeds but, if you owned a 500k + dollars car, would you really drive so dangerously?

If you're not convinced yet, check these replicas:

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What do you think about kit cars? Would you buy one of your favourite car?
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Postby mm2car » Tue May 19, 2015 2:55 pm

I think that if they look good, then they are good.

It is my dream to get a 1982 DeLorean and a 1982-84 Pontiac Firebird Trans-Am.

If I could get a firebird, I am kind of split on whether I should turn it in to replica of the K.i.2.T. or a replica of K.A.R.R. (the season 3 version).

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Postby KingAndy » Tue May 19, 2015 3:00 pm

But don't forget by saying replica I mean building a car that resembles another real life car, from a different vehicle, not a replica of a movie car.
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Postby BIGzee » Wed May 20, 2015 10:48 am

I knew studios in Hollywood used kit cars instead of supercars to imitate blowing up or totaling them, according to the storyline - MI:3, Need for Speed are examples ... but wouldn't replicas/replicating/cloning mean copyright infringement ? In my country it is. Post reading THIS article (I basically worship it), I'd go with the 'avoid all those savings-wretching supers, get a kit car and go green with the less gasoline guzzling engines' thing :| - Fossil fuel hugger.

Even the Auto shows (the TV airing ones like TopGear) show all them exotics, the DEFINITELY-NOT-AFFORDABLEs, those drawbacks, advantages over this, over that n stuff, not everyone who watches it ends up buying a LaFerrari or a Chiron, or do they :P ? They simply watch it cuz it quenches their thirst of which one is the best, or what they think would be. And the fellers who actually buy the supers/exotics, may have never even watched the auto shows on TV, they'd have bought them most probably cuz its their dream car or whatsoever, and Not cuz its better than anything else (maybe even the price tag/range, who knows :)).

I've spoken too much - BTW KingAndy, you haven't mentioned WHY you'd prefer kit cars over the original Supers/exotics of your dreams.. :roll:
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Postby BUGATTIMAN253MPH » Thu May 21, 2015 12:06 am

In the first Transformers film, the Camaro Concept was built on a Holden Monaro chassis, since the Camaro hadn't been produced yet.

I do think having a supercar replica is awesome, but I would more likely go for something more practical, like a Shelby GT500 replica.
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Postby Midtown2 » Thu May 21, 2015 4:10 pm

They would be cool but I'd rather have the real thing :) or at least drive the real one once...

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Postby KingAndy » Sat May 23, 2015 10:31 pm

BIGzee, when I said I would like to own a replica of one of my dream supercars I didn't meant I prefer a replica over the original, what I wanted to say was since I don't have money to buy a half million dollars car and maintain it, and even if I work all my life to it I think that money could be spent on much more useful things like a good house or something, I would instead build a replica that would cost me under 100k and if I used a less powerful engine it would be really cheap to maintain. Really expensive cars are meant for really rich guys.

About the legality of it, I know in USA these kind of stuff is really easy to make, you can even build your own car without much trouble, you just can't sell it saying it's a real Lamborghini or a real Ferrari etc. and I guess the brand may sue you if you use their badges, that's why a lot of replicas doesn't have any badges on them. In Portugal it's different, since tuning is not really well seen by the laws and you can be sued just for using aftermarket wheels on your car. You need to make a project of your custom car, pay and send it to some department to make it legal, and I guess there's a lot of restrictions.

BUGATTIMAN, you mean something like taking a Mustang GT500 and converting it into a Shelby? I've seen a few of those conventions over the Internet and seems to be quite easy, and a nice way to make your Mustang look a few thousand dollars more expensive.
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Postby BUGATTIMAN253MPH » Sat May 23, 2015 11:01 pm

BUGATTIMAN, you mean something like taking a Mustang GT500 and converting it into a Shelby? I've seen a few of those conventions over the Internet and seems to be quite easy, and a nice way to make your Mustang look a few thousand dollars more expensive.
Correct, like if I had an Audi A4 and put an RS4 bodykit onto it.
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Postby e-cobra » Mon May 25, 2015 12:17 pm

Actually it is a great idea unless the result is something like in the first picture. :lol: Such replicas are good only when seen on the highway, but when people would find that what you're driving is fake, they'll be like "wtf is the need to do this" and there won't be a proper reply to that question.
If I had a choice to get a replica of some supercar, I'll rather buy some real SUV something that fits in the cost and have fun with it. That's what think btw. :wink:
Off topic maybe, but in the movie Saving Private Ryan, a Russian T-34-85 was converted into a German Tiger tank. 'Kit Tanks FTW'.
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Postby KingAndy » Mon May 25, 2015 2:55 pm

Cool "kit tank" XD.

About the reaction of people about it, I have a totally opposite opinion of yours. In the highway people would laugh at you when your fake supercar sounds like a random sedan and everybody is passing you. You probably meant the fact people would just have a brief look at it and don't realize it's not a real car, but it's not that simple.

If it's a good quality replica, the most positive people's reaction would be on parking lots or car shows. Most people never saw that supercar physically and don't realize it's not real. Anyways you can always not be smug and directly say it's actually a replica you built from the car X, and surely people will admire your work.
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Postby COOLGUY200 » Mon Jun 15, 2015 5:11 pm

In the first Transformers film, the Camaro Concept was built on a Holden Monaro chassis, since the Camaro hadn't been produced yet.
Eventually, when the 2009 Camaro came out, it was on a Monaro Chassis, which is ironic.
BUGATTIMAN, you mean something like taking a Mustang GT500 and converting it into a Shelby? I've seen a few of those conventions over the Internet and seems to be quite easy, and a nice way to make your Mustang look a few thousand dollars more expensive.
Correct, like if I had an Audi A4 and put an RS4 bodykit onto it.
So does that make it a ricer? But not with a million chassis codes to remember.
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Postby BUGATTIMAN253MPH » Mon Jun 15, 2015 5:43 pm

Never mind, I think it would be better to own the real thing.
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