CornishWesty Posted May 1, 2014 Share Posted May 1, 2014 I know this may be controversial, but why are there so many absolutely terrible looking kit cars out there? I bought Complete Kit Car magazine for the first time (which has some very interesting articles) but some of the creations in there make my eyes burn. The so-called "replicas" based on cheap donors - especially the Ferrari ones, are just awful. The 458 "replica", based on what I imagine is a Ford Cougar, at £35k is just laughable! See below: http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/kit-cars/ferrari-replicas I fully understand that everybody has their own taste and that there's a real appeal of building you own car (my 81 year old Father has been building a Scimitar special for 15 years) but surely the people who design these cars must realise that in order to sell a kit car commercially, it has to look good in the first place? Sorry for the rant but over the years there just seems to be a steady stream of ill conceived rubbish that give decent kit cars a bad name. Anyone agree/disagree? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
s2rrr Posted May 1, 2014 Share Posted May 1, 2014 Beauty is in eye of the beholder. Bob :d Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dibby Posted May 1, 2014 Share Posted May 1, 2014 Each to their own. Do we care that our cars aren't genuine 7's? Do Dax owners cry themselves to sleep because it's not a real Cobra? Hell no, we love our cars Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman Posted May 1, 2014 Share Posted May 1, 2014 I've seen some sights that make my eyes burn. The thing is, I also know how much care, commitment, enthusiasm and damned hard work has gone in to them, these days I tend to keep my peace and go for the live and let live approach. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarmanUK Posted May 1, 2014 Share Posted May 1, 2014 Each to their own, it is just a different side to the industry. There is the kit car side where there is the full build and the hassles of the IVA and there is the panel conversion side. I am not one for the Fezza replicas but the new Enigma which is a Healy replica based on an MX5 looks very pretty. As Dave said above, some of these cars have a shed load of work, time and money put in to them. I personally wouldn't buy or build one but there are plenty of people who do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XTR2Turbo Posted May 1, 2014 Share Posted May 1, 2014 There are some quirky creations that 'shout' kitcar that I quite like for their individuality but they are not trying to be anything they are not. Think Dutton or Midas etc. I agree that some of the reproductions are awful. The worst I have seen are the audi TT thing, the aerial atom copy and worst of all the white Bentley GT that was at Stoneleigh a few years ago. Some of the lambo and Ferrari copies are quite impressive but I just can't see the point. Not least the economics as the real things depreciate quite quickly for the first few years and wouldn't cost much more to run if you take into consideration the likely loss suffered on a newly built replica. Indeed if you had bought a supercar / hypercar carefully in the last 3 years it might have appreciated, Somehow I think 7 copies get are acceptable because most have moved things forward - not least allowing drivers taller than 5'10 to stand a chance of driving them and have their own identity. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pickmaster Andy Lowe Posted May 1, 2014 Share Posted May 1, 2014 I've never seen the point in super car copies with small engines when you can buy genuine for less But the likes of Cobras, stratus, and GT40s done well are are great and most of us would never afford the original I also love the strange like the Scamp mini based as you can fix them at home for buttons without a computer Can't wait till Sunday for my yearly top up on everything someone could imagine to creat What ever they drive you won't see more contented smiling faces in one place Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lyonspride Posted May 1, 2014 Share Posted May 1, 2014 I remember years back all the Porsche 911 replica's at Stoneleigh and I just didn't see the point, they we're replica's that cost as much to build as the genuine car cost to buy second hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stu999 Posted May 1, 2014 Share Posted May 1, 2014 How about this for the next level of fake super car??? http://fb-troublemakers.com/guy-makes-his-own-porsche-from-scratch-49879/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Welly Jen Posted May 2, 2014 Share Posted May 2, 2014 Designing car bodies that look good isn't as easy as it looks. Even the major manufacturers get it horribly wrong. Some of the recent BMW Mini variations for example. If it was easy, then dedicated bodywork design studios wouldn't have a market. One or two blokes in a shed making a prototype kit car are more likely to make a shed than something that looks good. They aren't going to go through two dozen different designs and refine it before they go in to production. They just don't have the budget. The chances are the first one they make is going to have the moulds taken from it. They are also likely to be excellent mechanics, but have no training in design. Some kit car manufacturers have had professional design input to the body. I think some of the GTM's were. Also, compare the professionally designed Marcos, a thing of beauty, with the in house Mini Marcos. An acquired taste! The replica kit cars can suffer too. The ones that reproduce the bodywork well and try to make the underlying engineering as good as, if not better than the original work very well. Some of the Cobras and GT40's, for example. Trying to adjust a body kit to fit an underlying production car can produce distortions that destroy the proportions of the finished result. Considering that the Westfield bodywork was done in a very short time to keep the company going after litigation, the result was very successful. I prefer it to the Lotus, or Caterham 7 shape. I especially like the new FW rear end. Not so sure about the FW front. Jen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Eastwood (Gadgetman) - Club Chairman Posted May 2, 2014 Share Posted May 2, 2014 Very well put Jen. Its easy to mock, and heaven knows I've done it myself But so much harder to do well. I do agree about some of the replica kits though; often wondered why people spent as much as they did on the Covin 911 replicas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dibby Posted May 2, 2014 Share Posted May 2, 2014 Agreed Jen, although I'm not keen on the FW rear end myself, I bet I wouldn't mind it half as much I owned one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SootySport Posted May 2, 2014 Share Posted May 2, 2014 The next thing you know , someone will build a Veyron Kit or replica. Please, please don't tell me someone has. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graham0127 Posted May 2, 2014 Share Posted May 2, 2014 Looks aren't everything ..... As someone else said ...'BMW' have come up with some strange cars recently. I have a 5 series touring and it must be one of the ugliest cars ever ,however, drive it and there isn't a 'normal' car I'd rather have....handles, quick, practical.......but ugly. Apart from the grin factor, it puts my Porsche to shame. Why would some fool pay £40,000 for a mummy bus, when they could have got a 2 year old 'something' estate for a quarter of the price ??...PERSONAL CHOICE. On a very serious note though.....I think Westys aren't .....well ....................pretty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dibby Posted May 2, 2014 Share Posted May 2, 2014 The next thing you know , someone will build a Veyron Kit or replica. Please, please don't tell me someone has. Some of them are indistinguishable from the real thing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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