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JPSmit

JPSmit

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The heritage of the donor is obvious, even from this angle.
 
That one's not half bad for what it is......but at the end of the day it'd still Bug me it wasn't real. :smile:
 
If you're going to build a Bugatti lookalike, for heaven's sake why not on a decent chassis, not a Beetle?
 
As far as I can tell, their are only two "good" Bugatti T35 replicas.

~Pur Sang~, a company is Argentina builds what looks like an exact replica: they build their own inline eight engine, hollow axle, the works.

Tim Dutton also builds a pretty good copy in England.

The Pur Sang is about $250,000
 
One of the best VW based kits I've ever seen. most look like some horrid morphed fiberglass speedboat, or one of those rides in front of K Mart that somebody ripped off the base. For the price, I'd be happy to have that car. old car looks, and the availability of beetle parts.
 
Banjo said:
One of the best VW based kits I've ever seen. most look like some horrid morphed fiberglass speedboat, or one of those rides in front of K Mart that somebody ripped off the base. For the price, I'd be happy to have that car. old car looks, and the availability of beetle parts.
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Pretty much my point exactly - price is cheaper than you could do yourself and even though I'd dream about dropping it on a spitfire or TR4 frame, I still think it would just be fun as is. Now if you combined it with a super 7....
 
I think that distinctive VW engine noise would be a big turn off. Still I bet its a pile of fun to drive.
 
I bet that would be fun.

I've no problems with replicas/kits, but I'm less of a fan when the engine isn't in the right spot. Something like that car but done up on a Spitfire/Herald chassis would seem to fit better.
 
A friend had a VW powered 30's Alfa replica in his shop, nothing seemed to fit right, I particularly did not like the lumps in the glass to simulate rivets, well, that and the small dia. tires made it look somewhat goofy. With the engine hanging our the back and ones behind right in front of axle, I would think it would not turn on a slick road. I am sure the fiberglass could be used as the start of something decent, the VW bit doesn't do anything for me. But then again I am in a bad mood, have a deck half done, it is raining and I have to leave town on business for a week. The only good thing is I am not flying.
 
I used to like Beetles; in fact I still do (the original ones, anyway). Beyond that, the occasional Meyers Manx or possibly a Fiberfab Jamaican conversion, I'm not really a fan of any "replica" built on the old Beetle pan. To me, the worst one of all was the MG-TD replica; again, though, I've always been a big fan of the original! :wink:

Simple enough to explain: we had Triumphs in the family from the time I was five years old. In high school, several of my best friends had Beetles, and two other best friends had TDs!
 
actually do love vw products though generally not VW based kit cars - do like the proportions of this one though, better than most.
 
Recently gave a daughter our Mustang Mk2 based Gazelle kit car. I "think" the dimensions were the same as the VW frame, but since my now deceased father-in-law had it built I don't know if the Stang donor is an easy option. FWIW
 
Muffle the VW engine till you can't hear it...then record a real engine and blare it through some good speakers....come on guys...it's a toy>>>
 
Most of these kits are truly horrid creations that rattle and crack and fail to handle, or brake, or a combination.

It is very hard to create an inexpensive kit car that results in an end product with any quality at all, and none of the VW based ones I've seen have ever come close.

The best of the lot (and the one I own) is the Fiberfab Jamaican, and the quality is there because of their use of decent weight fiberglass material (no panels flapping in the breeze) and glass and latches etc. from other cars, so that it actually looks like it might be a normal car and the doors close with a thunk.

The sad excuses for real cars continue today with kits like the Lamborghini you can bolt onto your Fiero.....
 
billspohn said:
Most of these kits are truly horrid creations that rattle and crack and fail to handle, or brake, or a combination.

The best of the lot (and the one I own) is the Fiberfab Jamaican, and the quality is there because of their use of decent weight fiberglass material (no panels flapping in the breeze) and glass and latches etc. from other cars, so that it actually looks like it might be a normal car and the doors close with a thunk.
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Didn't Fiberfab make something called the Aztec GT? I remember seeing one in my neighborhood back in the 60s, and it was close enough to a Ford GT for my young mind back then. All the kids thought it was the coolest car in town and the stories were that it actually had a Porsche engine in it. WOW!! It sure did make a lot of noise, which made it even mo better. Now I have an un-built Jaguar, XK120 sitting in the driveway and not a clue as to how I'm going to build it. Except for the frame being over built, and made to accept a Ford Mustang II engine & drive train, it looks as though it could turn out fairly nice. The layup looks fairly strong.
 
aeronca65t said:
As far as I can tell, their are only two "good" Bugatti T35 replicas.

~Pur Sang~, a company is Argentina builds what looks like an exact replica: they build their own inline eight engine, hollow axle, the works.

Tim Dutton also builds a pretty good copy in England.

The Pur Sang is about $250,000
Click to expand...

Great article, I had to stop everything and read the entire thing.
 
equiprx said:
Didn't Fiberfab make something called the Aztec GT? I remember seeing one in my neighborhood back in the 60s, and it was close enough to a Ford GT for my young mind back then.
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It was just another of the nasty VW floor pan based quasi-dune buggy creations, but it didn't look too bad. I always figured that to spend all that time and money and end up with what was nothing more than a car that went and handled like a VW Bug, albeit with snazzier clothes was a bit of a waste.

They went on to do other models in similar form like the Valkyrie.
 
Awww what the heck, lifes a blast with the top down, no matter what you drive!
 
Fiberfab Avenger GT was Mid engine and the Avenger was rear. A guy had both in my hood w/ one being mid engine Olds 455.
 
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