Best/worst kit cars ever?

I see these show up here from time to time and thought to myself "is/was there a really nice kit car out there?" I'm thinking looks and performance...

Some of my favorites:

RCR GT40:

Hawk GT:

I've always wanted a Lotus 7 Kit:

or a Superlite:

or the K1 Attack:

Lotus 7's (caterhams) have technically been kit cars for a long time now. Well, component cars, meaning technically sold without a drivetrain. (Otherwise they run afowl of federal safety standards)

I like Sterlings, until you find that they are just another beetle pan..

The Deserter GS

The Manta Mirage and the Montage looks like a TON of fun

Apexcarver wrote:

Oh wow! I remember when I was a kid and there was a show on tv about a guy that drove this car and lived with a judge or something. Had forgotten about it.

the factory five '33 is wonderful

A little too big, but not bad looking for something that used to be a blazer


http://www.rodster.com/home.htm

Who saw that Lamborgini kit at Carlisle this year? That might win worse kit award.

Hardcastle & McCormick?

I only watched it to see the car...

Slippery wrote:

Apexcarver wrote:

Oh wow! I remember when I was a kid and there was a show on tv about a guy that drove this car and lived with a judge or something. Had forgotten about it.

In reply to Flynlow:

That RCR GT 40 looks sharp- would be fun on the Acura undercarriage too!

In reply to DukeOfUndersteer:

And oh yeah- the Caterhams are awesome too. Even though Top Gear didn't want to be seen in one.

Apexcarver wrote: I like Sterlings, until you find that they are just another beetle pan..

nothing a good welder of Locust chassis couldn't fix

In reply to paranoid_android74:

http://www.c-we.com/piranha/KitCarVersions.htm

I think I remember mistaking one of these for an amphibious car once...

At this point, anything other than yet another Cobra replica would be good.

paranoid_android74 wrote: And oh yeah- the Caterhams are awesome too. Even though Top Gear didn't want to be seen in one.

The funny thing is that Clarkson's wife actually drove a Caterham down to the Alps and back, then wrote about it in his regular column (she occasionally would fill in for him when he was away). And yes, she mentioned that he'd hate it but she loved the trip.

Don't forget this guy.

For worst kit, it would be anything with a VW chassis & suspension.

They gave kit cars such a bad reputation that even today people sneer at a kit car.

I think a kit car could and should be better than a factory offering, but the VW based ones were so bad that the whole genre still has a black eye.

BoxheadTim wrote: Don't forget this guy.

That little guy? I wouldn't worry about that little guy.

Worst:

Excaliburs and that awful Ford / Mercury creation above have got to be the ugliest things the kit car market has cranked out.

Devin.

In reply to Teh E36 M3:

Love that movie.

Sebring/Saxon. I figure a Supra powertrain donor.

Streetwiseguy wrote: Sebring/Saxon. I figure a Supra powertrain donor.

I like this idea.

Trans_Maro wrote: Worst: Excaliburs and that awful Ford / Mercury creation above have got to be the ugliest things the kit car market has cranked out.

Hah, I grew up 2 houses down from a guy who had one of those. I thought it was cool as hell....when I was 12, in the 1980s :)

On the dreadful side: