Fiberfab FT Bonito, a kit-car on a VW beetle chassis.

Locost frame and body panels.

A kit-car is an automobile that is available in kit form, i.e. you buy a set of parts that you have to assemble yourself. Usually many major mechanical parts such as the engine and transmission are taken from one or more donor vehicles. Kits vary in completeness from as little as a book of plans to a complete set of all the components required. The definition of a kit car is usually taken to mean that a number of examples are produced by a manufacturer for sale to the public. A car built at home as a one-off to the designs of its builder is termed a Special. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Canadian built example using running gear, engine, transmission, diff and brakes from Toyota Corolla GTS Twincam, uprights from a Hyundai Stellar and steering rack from MG B. Locost spaceframe. ... “Car” and “Cars” redirect here. ...

History

Kit cars have been around from the earliest days of the automobile. The Englishman Thomas Hyler White developed a design for a car that could be assembled at home in 1896 and technical designs were published in a magazine called The English Mechanic.^[1] In the United States the Lad's Car of 1912 could be bought for US$160 ($3000 in 2006) fully assembled or US$140 ($2600 in 2006) in kit form.^[2] The Lads Car was an American automobile built between 1912 and 1914. ...

It was, however, not until the 1950s that the idea really took off. Car production had increased considerably and with rust proofing in its infancy many older vehicles were being sent to breaker yards as their bodywork was beyond economic repair. An industry grew up supplying new bodies and chassis to take the components from these cars and convert them particularly into sports cars. Also, in the UK up to the mid 1970's, kit cars were sometimes normal production vehicles that were partially assembled as this avoided the imposition of car tax as the kits were assessed as components and not vehicles. The Lotus Elan, for example, was available in this form. Often the cars could be taken home and completed in as little as a weekend. Lotus Elan is the name of two convertible automobiles and one fixed head coupé produced by Lotus Cars. ...

Current kit cars are often replicas of well-known and expensive classics and are designed so that anyone with a measure of technical skill can build them at home, to a standard where they can be driven on the public roads.^[3] The AC Cobra and the Lotus 7 are particularly popular examples. These replicas look like the original, but their bodies are usually made of fiberglass mats soaked in polyester resin instead of the original sheet metal. These kit cars enable vintage or classic car enthusiasts to possess a vehicle of a type that, because of their scarcity, they may not be able to afford, and to take advantage of modern technology. Shelby Cobra redirects here. ... The Lotus Seven is a small, simple, lightweight two-seater open-top sports car, which have been called a motorcycle on four wheels. It is characterised by very good acceleration but a low top speed, handling is lively and the ride is uncompromising. The drag coefficient is around 0. ...

Many people are unaware of such vehicles although the Volkswagen based dune buggy appeared in relatively large numbers in the 1960s and 1970s.^{[4] [5]} Many car drivers react sceptically when they first hear about kit cars as it appears to them to be technically impossible to assemble a car at home and also use it on the public roads. They may also be worried that such a car would not subsequently pass the mandatory quality inspection (road worthiness test) that is required in most countries.^[6] Dune buggy George W. Bush in a Dune buggy A dune buggy is a recreational vehicle with small wheels, and thin tires, designed for use on water dunes or beaches. ...

Several of today's sports car producers such as Lotus and TVR started as kit car makers. 1963 Jaguar E-Type, a classic sports car 1963 Chevrolet Corvette was based upon European sports cars A sports car is an automobile designed for performance driving. ... Lotus Logo with monogram of its founder, Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman Lotus Cars is a British manufacturer of sports and racing cars based at Hethel, Norfolk, England. ... TVR 280i TVR S series 1986 TVR 280i Coupe 1984 TVR 350i 1986 TVR Chimaera TVR Cerbera TVR Sagaris, one of the many TVR cars manufactured in Blackpool Two TVRs at the Northampton and Lamport Railway during a Car show held at the railway TVR No. ...

Kit car manufacturers

Dutton Sierra kit car chassis and GRP bodywork prior to installation of mechanical components.

Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (784x814, 466 KB) Summary Dutton Sierra Kit Car Chassis and Body prior to fitting mechanical components from a Mark 1 Ford Escort Photograph taken by Dave Sumpner in 1980 Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby grant the permission to... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high resolution version (784x814, 466 KB) Summary Dutton Sierra Kit Car Chassis and Body prior to fitting mechanical components from a Mark 1 Ford Escort Photograph taken by Dave Sumpner in 1980 Licensing I, the creator of this work, hereby grant the permission to... The Dutton Cars badge/logo The Dutton Phaeton Series 3 The Dutton Melos The Dutton Rico The Dutton Sierra Series 2 Dutton Cars, based in Worthing, England, was a maker of kit cars between 1970 and 1989. ... It has been suggested that Fiber-reinforced plastic be merged into this article or section. ...

Australia

• Alpha Sports
• Bolwell
• PRB
• Pellandini Cars

Alpha Sports is an Australian kit_car manufacturer. ... Please wikify (format) this article or section as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... PRB is a Australian builder of Clubman-style sportscars (ie. ... Pellandini Cars is a manufacturer of kit cars during the early 1970s that was located in South Australia. ...

Canada

• Badland Buggy
• Lemans Prototypes
• Pigeon Performance
• Spex Design Corporation

Spex Design Corporation was a kit car manufacturer based in Montreal, Canada. ...

Netherlands

• Burton
• Charon
• Dakar
• Deauville
• Voglietta

Estonia

• ESTfield
• Rexer

ESTfield is a Lotus Seven-style car manufactured by RaceTech in Estonia either as a kit car or in key ready form. ... Rexer is an automobile manufacturing company in Estonia. ...

Germany

• Apal

Apal Phase 1 -APAL - s. ...

Mexico

• Unidiseño Mastretta

The Unidiseño Mastretta was a Kit-car coupé designed and manufactured by Mexican Kit-car maker Unidiseño. ...

New Zealand

• Almac
• De Joux
• Fraser Cars Ltd

The De Joux was a New Zealand kit car maker based in Auckland and active in 1970 and 1971. ... Fraser Cars Ltd is a privately, completely NZ owned company that operates out of Beachhaven, North Shore, Auckland and manufactures Component based cars in kit and complete form since 1988 Fraser Clubman. ...

Poland

• EAS Sterniccy[1]

South Africa

• Kit Car Centre

Sweden

Dala 7, is a sevenesque kit-car made in Stora Skedvi, close to Säter in Dalarna.

Technically kit cars are not allowed in Sweden, but provided that most of the components and material are sourced by the builder personally it is possible to register them as amateur built vehicles. Before the law requiring a mandatory crash test in 1970 there was a booming kit car industry in Sweden with most companies basing their kits on the VW Beetle chassis. When amateur built vehicles again were allowed in 1982 all kit car companies in Sweden had disappeared. Image File history File links Metadata No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links Metadata No higher resolution available. ... Stora Skedvi is a part of Säter Municipality located by the Dal River. ... Säter is a Municipality in Dalarna County, in central Sweden. ... There is also Norwegian region called Dalane. ...

The inspection (SVA equivalent) in Sweden is handled by the car builder's association SFRO who make two inspections. One when the car has reached the rolling chassis stage and the other when the car is finished. Amateur built cars are limited to 15 kW (20 hp) per 100 kg. Earlier the limit was 10 kW (13.4 hp) per 100 kg so for very light cars (like a Lotus 7 type car) it was a problem to find a suitable engine. SFRO (Sveriges fordonsbyggares riksorganisation) is a Swedish national organisation founded in 1982 with the goal of making it possible to register amateur bult vehicles. ...

• Boes Motor & Mekanik[2]
• Dala7
• Esther
• GOX Teknik, make a Ford GT40 copy[3]
• Hult Healey
• Mania Spyder
• Mascot
• Ockelbo
• Pagano
• Racing Plast Burträsk (RPB)
• Roadline, Porsche Speedster and Porsche Boxer RS replicas[4]

Boes Motor & Mekanik is a Swedish kit car company in Färjestaden selling a Lotus 7 replica called Boe 7. ... Dala7 is a taller and wider Lotus 7 inspired design using Volvo parts. ... Esther is a Lotus 7 type car made in Ugglerum, Sweden. ... GOX Teknik is a Swedish company in Strömstad acting as consultants in various types of industrial development, but they also make kit car replicas of the Ford GT40. ... GT40 Mk II front. ... Hult Healey was a make of kit cars in Sweden. ... Mania Spyder was a swedish kit car company in Falköping selling a sports roadster based on either VW Beetle or spaceframe chassis. ... Mascot was a car made by AB Rååverken in Helsingborg around 1920. ... Ockelbo-Lundgren, or Erik Lundgren as his real name was, firs became known during the 1940s when he became known as Trollkarlen från Ockelbo (The Wizard from Ockelbo) when he in a Ford 38 powered by a V8 engine with eight carburettors producing 280 hp participated in several races... Ockelbo-Lundgren, or Erik Lundgren as his real name was, firs became known during the 1940s when he became known as Trollkarlen från Ockelbo (The Wizard from Ockelbo) when he in a Ford 38 powered by a V8 engine with eight carburettors producing 280 hp participated in several races... Racing Plast Burträsk (RPB) was a swedish company in Burträsk that made racing cars and kit cars. ... The Porsche 356 was a sports car produced from 1948 through 1965. ...

United Kingdom

Vehicle regulations in the UK allow the production of up to 200 vehicles a year without the extensive regulation and testing requirements applied to mass-market vehicles. This has led to an expanding industry of small producers capable of offering partial and complete kits, some for export, and finished vehicles for domestic use.

According to figures given to the magazine Total Kit Car the most popular kit in the United Kingdom is made by Robin Hood Sportscars who sell 700 kits a year.^[7]

AKS (Auto Kraft Shells) of Southmill Road, Bishops Stortford, Hertfordshire produced GRP bodyshells to chiefly fit the Ford 8 and Ford 10 chassis, although other ladder frames of 7 foot 6 inch wheelbase could be used. ... The Arkley was an English automobile, manufactured by John Britten Garages workshops at Arkley in the London Borough of Barnet. ... The Ashley was an English automobile manufacturer from 1954 to 1962. ... Automotive Design and Development Ltd (ADD) was an English company that was responsible for the creation of the futuristic-looking Nova. ... Banham Conversions (Banmoco) was a maker of kit cars from the late 1970s until 2004. ... Beauford is a British automobile company originally based in Upholland, Lancashire but later moving to Stoke on Trent. ... The Buckler Cars company founded by Derek Buckler and based in Reading, Berkshire, England produced approximately 500 cars between 1947 and 1962. ... GCS Hawke, originally sold as Burlington SS. Burlington Arrow Burlington Cars made a kit car (or rather a plan and pattern car) similar to the JC Midge and sold by Haydn Davies who ran The Burlington Motor Company Ltd. ... Cover of Car Craft magazine, showing a T-Bucket Car Craft is a magazine devoted to automobiles and auto racing. ... 2007 50th Anniversary 7 logo Caterham Cars is a manufacturer of specialist lightweight sports cars based in Caterham, Surrey, England and part of the British motor industry. ... The Clan Crusader was a fibreglass monocoque British sports car using a rear mounted 875cc Hillman Imp Sport engine. ... The Dakar 4x4 is a kit car - though unlike many is based on a Range Rover chassis rather than the more usual sports car style. ... Davrian Cars The Davrian marque was conceived by structural engineer Adrian Evans when he first saw a Hillman Imp in 1963, prior to its release for sale to the public. ... Diva was a British manufacturer of sports cars from 1961 to 1966. ... The Dutton Cars badge/logo The Dutton Phaeton Series 3 The Dutton Melos The Dutton Rico The Dutton Sierra Series 2 Dutton Cars, based in Worthing, England, was a maker of kit cars between 1970 and 1989. ... Elva was a sports car manufacturer in the United Kingdom. ... Fairthorpe cars were made in Chalfont St Peter, Buckinghamshire, England between 1954 and 1976. ... Falcon Shells was a British company that produced specials/kit cars from 1956 until 1964. ... GCS Hawke GCS Cars Traded initially from Orpington in Kent, UK and produced the Hawke. ... The Ginetta logo (1990) 1967 Ginetta G15 1990 Ginetta G32 1990 Ginetta G33 1996 Ginetta G27 series 3 2005 Ginetta G20 1997 Ginetta G4R 2006 Ginetta G12 by DARE Ginetta Cars was founded in 1958 by the four Walklett brothers (Bob, Ivor, Trevers and Douglas) in Woodbridge, Suffolk, England. ... GKD Sports Cars, is a British company that builds sports cars based on Ginetta Cars G27. ... A 1978 GTM. GTM Cars is a kit car manufacturer located in Coventry, Warwickshire (although the composite body parts are made in Sutton Bonington, Leicestershire). ... In 1960 Heron Plastics of Greenwich, London was well established as a manufacturer of GRP bodyshells for Austin 7 specials. ... 1979 Hustler. ... 1998 JBA Falcon JBA Cars or JBA Engineering Ltd is a company that makes kit cars based on the Ford Sierra. ... A UK producer of traditionally-styled, motorcycle-engined trikes in kit form. ... Canadian built example using running gear, engine, transmission, diff and brakes from Toyota Corolla GTS Twincam, uprights from a Hyundai Stellar and steering rack from MG B. Locost spaceframe. ... Locust is a Lotus 7 inspired kit car. ... // Look up Mac, mac in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... 1971 Marcos Mantis Marcos is a British sports car manufacturer. ... The Clan Crusader was a fibreglass monocoque British sports car using a rear mounted 875cc Hillman Imp Sport engine. ... A Midas in 1979. ... Mk Sportscars[1], situated in Langold, Nottinghamshire, offers lotus seven style kits, recently manufacturing Le-Mans style cars, GT-1 and GT-R. The kits offer the option of various engines, from cars and motorbikes. ... Onyx Sports Cars Ltd is a UK kit car manufacturer. ... Opperman was a tractor manufacturer in England that after he saw the Bond decided to build his own microcar. ... Peel Engineering Company was a manufacturing company based on the Isle of Man. ... The Peerless was a British car made by Peerless Cars Ltd. ... Piper Cars was a United Kingdom manufacturer of specialist sports cars (an associate company of a camshaft and engine tuning parts manufacturer of the same name). ... Quantum Sports Cars is a UK based kitcar manufacturer. ... Westfield Cars are manufacturers of both factory built and kit versions of several two-seater, open top sportscars. ... The Rochdale Olympic was a glass fibre monocoque British sports car made by Rochdale Motor Panels and Engineering in Rochdale, England beween 1957 and 1973. ... Sylva Autokits is a kit car manufacturer based in Derbyshire and Lincolnshire, England. ... Tiger Racing is a British kit car manufacturer formed in 1989 specialising in Lotus Seven type cars and racing cars. ... Tornado Cars was founded in 1957 by Bill Woodhouse and based in Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, UK. The first model was the Typhoon Sports, available either as a body for fitting to Ford 8/10 chassis (following a then current market trend for specials based on these mechanical components) or with a... Trident Cars Ltd was a British car manufacturer based in Woodbridge, Suffolk between 1965 and 1974 and after being restarted in 1976 from premises in Ipswich. ... The first Turner models were produced in 1954 by a company established by Jack Turner near Wolverhampton, England. ... The Unipower was a British specialist sports car first shown at the January 1966 Racing Car Show, and produced until the company closed in early 1970, by which time around 75 are believed to have been made. ... Westfield Sportscars are manufacturers of both factory built and kit versions of several two-seater, open top sportscars. ...

United States

• La Bala
• Bradley Automotive
• Devin Cars
• Factory Five Racing
• Fiberfab
• Frese Motorcars
• Superformance
• Brunton Automotive
• Sterling Sports Cars
• Lad's Car
• La Dawri
• Meyers Manx
• Chuck Beck Motorsports
• Wombat Car Company
• Aldino Car Company
• McBurnie

An editor has expressed a concern that the subject of the article does not satisfy the notability guideline or one of the following guidelines for inclusion on Wikipedia: Biographies, Books, Companies, Fiction, Music, Neologisms, Numbers, Web content, or several proposals for new guidelines. ... Bradley Automotive created and sold the Bradley line of kit cars based on the old style (pre-1997) Volkswagen Beetle chassis. ... Founded by Bill Devin, the Devin company produced a variety of race and kit cars in the 1950s and 1960s. ... Factory Five Racing Inc. ... Fiberfab FT Bonito Fiberfab was a kit car manufacturer founded by Warren Bud Goodwin. ... Frese Motorcars, Inc. ... Superformance, LLC (Superformance Replicars) is a small American automobile company that builds, designs, and imports supercars and replicars. ... Stalker V6 Clubman The Stalker V6 Clubman is a facsimili/replica of a Lotus Seven. ... Sterling Sports Cars is an American automobile company that designs and manufactures assembly kits for replicars and supercars. ... The Lads Car was an American automobile built between 1912 and 1914. ... La Dawri Daytona La Dawri Coachcraft based in Long Beach and later Los Alamitos, California, was one of the largest fiberglass sports car body companies in the United States during the rebody/specials craze of the 1950s and 1960s. ... The Meyers Manx dune buggy, shown in its natural environment at the New Jersey shore. ... Replica Ferrari Daytona Used in Miami Vice McBurnie is a US bodywork company mostly known for their replicas of Ferrari Daytona Spyder. ...

See also

• List of Mini based cars

The British Motor Corporation Mini has been used as the basis for numerous kit cars and specials. ...

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Kit cars

• Kit Car Megasite
• Kit Car
• Kit Car Magazine
• Newark Kit Car Show
• Kit Car Discussion Forum
• Kit car at the Open Directory Project
• Open Directory for Kit and Replica Cars
• United States kit car information
• Registering a kit car in the United Kingdom
• Video Clips of Kit Cars
• Kit Car blog with hundreds of pictures
• Kit Car 'Locost' with Engineering Analysis

Image File history File links Commons-logo. ... The Open Directory Project (ODP), also known as dmoz (from , its original domain name), is a multilingual open content directory of World Wide Web links owned by Netscape that is constructed and maintained by a community of volunteer editors. ...

Notes and References