1/25 AMT Y-193 '69 Camaro Kit History & Evolution

[Casey]

I thought the 1/25 AMT Y-193 '69 Camaro "annual" kit deserved its own, exclusive topic, so here it is. The history of this kit and what it evolved into has been mentioned a few times in various topics on this forum, but to my knowledge, never in one single topic. Hopefully, members can contribute what they know and we'll all benefit from a concise, informative topic.

Here's a look at the original Y-913 issue, using pics I found on the 'net...

That distinct '69 AMT box art, featuring the custom version designed by Gene Winfield, wearing Foresight Ventures Flag "mag" wheels, dual hood scoops, rear quarter panel scoops, and rear spoiler:

 

1969 was the year of "Official Blueprint" instruction sheets at AMT, and the '69 Camaro coupe was no exception:

 

Full scans of the instruction sheet can be viewed here: https://public.fotki.com/drasticplasticsmcc/mkiba-build-under-c/amt-instructions/automotive-cars--pi/chevrolet/1961-1970/amt-1969-gene-winfi/?view=roll#4

 

A somewhat messy look at the included parts is below. Note two hoods are included-- both SS and Sport Coupe (standard) hoods:

Was the Y-913 '69 Camaro kit only issued once?

The AMT T-344 Funny Hugger kit was released next (can anyone verify a release date?), utilizing the body shell, both hoods, grille, bumpers, and the modified "glass" (and likely more) from the Y-913 kit:

 

Below, one of the box's long side show a drawing of the body shell being lifted above the F/C chassis, but the rear wheel openings remain stock-- is this accurate? Did the T-344 Funny Hugger kit's body retain stock rear wheel openings? I can't find a clear pic to determine either way, but the instruction sheet (courtesy of the Drastic Plastic site) shows enlarged, rounded rear wheel openings:

 

Below, dark blue molded parts, including the body shell:

 

Which other parts were carried over from the Y-913 kit to the T-344? Are the supercharger, matching intake manifold, two-piece injector scoop, and blower belt/pulleys/tensioner carried over? Is this where the big block Chevy engine from the Y-913 kit ended up? From the T-344 instruction sheet:

I can't find any clear, large images of the T-344 Funny Hugger kit, so if anybody has some, please add them.

Edited October 12, 2019 by Casey

[Casey]

Using the release date on this flyer, the AMT T-384 Funny Hugger II Camaro Funny Car kit was available in June, 1972:

 

The Funny Hugger II '69 Camaro body now features enlarged and rounded rear wheel openings, as shown on the box top art:

Again, not much luck finding clear images of the T-384 Funny Hugger II kit's contents, so if you have some, please add them.

Finally, the Funny Hugger II was reissued in 1997 by Model King, and included two very full decal sheets: 

 

Below is one group of chrome parts from the Model King reissue, and the original stock cross-ram style intake manifold appears to be present:

 

Below is the body shell from the Model King kit, showing the enlarged rounded rear wheel openings mentioned earlier:

 

Dare I mention the AMT T-333 '69 Camaro Convertible annual kit, too? Probably should, since it shared most of the Y-193 kit's parts. Instruction sheet here for the T-333 kit: http://modelkitreviews.proboards.com/thread/1074/amt-333-69-camaro-convertible

Edited October 12, 2019 by Casey

[Snake45]

Looks like you covered it all, except the promos. Hardtop and convertible promos were made. Does anyone know all the colors? I don't think I've ever actually seen a hardtop promo, but I recently was fortunate enough to trade into a convertible in Rally Green. 

[Mark]

Both funny cars have the enlarged rear wheel openings.  They're way bigger than needed for the first version.

The Funny Hugger II body also has the front wheel openings relocated forward from the stock position, due to the longer chassis which was also used in three other kits.  That change likely killed off any possibility of the '69 ever being reissued in stock form.

The "unblocked" plated tree in the Model King issue also includes the front motor mount from the first Funny Hugger kit.

[pack rat]

Here's the Pace Car version from '69. 

[Bob Ellis]

Were the taillights in the AMT kit correct? They are different than the MPC kit.

[Casey]

38 minutes ago, Bob Ellis said:

Were the taillights in the AMT kit correct?

 

13 hours ago, Snake45 said:

Hardtop and convertible promos were made. Does anyone know all the colors? I don't think I've ever actually seen a hardtop promo

I think I can kill two birds with one stone here:

 

The transparent red tail lights appear very close to correct, but adding the horizontal divider to the body was not ideal for an RS/SS, IMHO.

Seven large images of an orange promo here: https://www.ebth.com/items/4697604-amt-1969-camaro-ss-rs-promo-car

The remaining AMT 1/25 '69 Camaro promotional model images from the above linked listing:

 

One more from another online listing, showing the promo box:

 

[Casey]

4 hours ago, pack rat said:

Here's the Pace Car version from '69. 

That's interesting, It appears the SS faux hood vents had been removed by the time the convertible kit was produced. 

Mike, is that instruction sheet tucked under the box top for the Convertible? I've only ever seen them printed with black ink, but maybe they reprinted them to correct the "69'" error?:

 

Maybe insignificant, but the AMT '69 Camaro Convertible kit's instruction sheet has a "drawn" date of 2-26-69, and was given the kit number T-333:

 

 

[Snake45]

17 minutes ago, Casey said:

 

 

The transparent red tail lights appear very close to correct, but adding the horizontal divider to the body was not ideal for an RS/SS, IMHO.

The horizontal bar is correct for '69 RS (SS has nothing to do with it), but it might have been better to mold separate chrome bezels with the strip, into which the red lenses would fit up from behind, and then the whole thing would slip into the rear panel from behind. But for whatever reason, that's not how AMT did it.

[Snake45]

12 minutes ago, Casey said:

That's interesting, It appears the SS faux hood vents had been removed by the time the convertible kit was produced. 

It's my belief that the vented SS hood was turned into the cowl induction hood for the Pace Car/convertible issue, and it's been that way ever since. 

[pack rat]

34 minutes ago, Casey said:

That's interesting, It appears the SS faux hood vents had been removed by the time the convertible kit was produced. 

Mike, is that instruction sheet tucked under the box top for the Convertible? I've only ever seen them printed with black ink, but maybe they reprinted them to correct the "69'" :

 

Maybe insignificant, but the AMT '69 Camaro Convertible kit's instruction sheet has a "drawn" date of 2-26-69, and was given the kit number T-333:

 

 

I would assume the hood was changed to the cowl induction-style to match the 1:1 pace car.

That is the convertible instruction sheet in blue ink.  The date, kit number etc are identical, and there is no change to the "69'"

[Jack L]

fun fact , the scoops and small rear spoiler were 1 to 1 parts made by AMT SPEED & CUSTOM for the full size Camaro  in 67

[Chris in Berwyn]

The Y-193 kit was one of my first kits.  I still have the hood with the scoops glued on, and most of the decal sheet (it is cracked and pretty rough). Thanks for this write up!!

[Mark]

8 hours ago, Casey said:

 

I think I can kill two birds with one stone here:

 

The transparent red tail lights appear very close to correct, but adding the horizontal divider to the body was not ideal for an RS/SS, IMHO.

Seven large images of an orange promo here: https://www.ebth.com/items/4697604-amt-1969-camaro-ss-rs-promo-car

The remaining AMT 1/25 '69 Camaro promotional model images from the above linked listing:

 

One more from another online listing, showing the promo box:

 

Nit-picky stuff, but this one is a toy-store assembled model as opposed to a promo.  Some collectors prefer promos, which typically come in different boxes (no cellophane window) and are in "stock" colors while the toy-store version sometimes are in non-stock colors.  Like I said, nit-picky and getting more so with each passing day, as collectors will now usually take whatever they can find in good condition.  For a long time, many collectors preferred the "promo" with the associated box and shunned the "toy store" version.  My logic would cause me to think that the toy store versions would be rarer, with a much lower survival rate than the promo versions...

[Casey]

1 hour ago, Mark said:

Nit-picky stuff, but this one is a toy-store assembled model as opposed to a promo.  Some collectors prefer promos, which typically come in different boxes (no cellophane window) and are in "stock" colors while the toy-store version sometimes are in non-stock colors.

I wouldn't consider that nit-picky, just good information.

On that note, I did some more searching and found more pics of Hugger Orange coupes (hardtops), dark green convertibles, and maybe a Pace Car convertible promo?:

 

I believe this is the promotional model box Mark mentioned above:

 

[Mark]

There were pace car promos for both '67 and '69.  I bought a '69 a couple of weeks ago, in a "parts box" purchase, that turned out to be in great shape. 

[Mark]

The photos of all of these different versions might help explain why a model car kit retailed for $2 back then, and $30 now.  In 1969, AMT used one tool (with different inserts, granted, but still basically one tool) to produce promos, toy store assembled models, and kits (sometimes as both hardtop and convertible).  MPC did the same, sometimes fitting in a funny car using the promo model body.  They don't get that same degree of use out of one tool anymore, and aren't producing the kits in the same numbers as in the days of old.  That's where you get a lot of the price per unit increase...

[Pete L.]

I wonder if the Pace Car/Convertible will ever be reissued...

[Casey]

38 minutes ago, Pete L. said:

I wonder if the Pace Car/Convertible will ever be reissued...

I don't think it ever can be-- the convertible and hardtop shared most parts. Other than the parts which migrated to the Funny Car, I would guess the custom Flag wheels may have survived if they were a separate insert for the tool base.

[randyc]

Excellent post and information.  Thanks everyone that is contributing.

[Pete L.]

7 hours ago, randyc said:

Excellent post and information.  Thanks everyone that is contributing.

X2 !!!!

 

[Casey]

[Snake45]

On 10/15/2019 at 11:51 PM, Casey said:

I would guess the custom Flag wheels may have survived if they were a separate insert for the tool base.

Would be cool to see those back in something. I think I used mine on a custom '69 Corvette, which I still have. I should dig that thing out and clean it up sometime soon. 

The wheels I'd REALLY like to see back are the Keystone Kustomags from the original issue '69 Riviera. Best Keystones I've ever seen! I used them on a '66 Skylark build. 

[Dave Darby]

On 10/13/2019 at 8:21 AM, Mark said:

The photos of all of these different versions might help explain why a model car kit retailed for $2 back then, and $30 now.  In 1969, AMT used one tool (with different inserts, granted, but still basically one tool) to produce promos, toy store assembled models, and kits (sometimes as both hardtop and convertible).  MPC did the same, sometimes fitting in a funny car using the promo model body.  They don't get that same degree of use out of one tool anymore, and aren't producing the kits in the same numbers as in the days of old.  That's where you get a lot of the price per unit increase...

Very true, and retailers purchasing fewer and fewer units, the necessary price increases may hit that tipping point where some hobbyists will balk. Last time I brought this up, several people brow beat me. I wasn't complaining. Only putting forth reasoned conjecture and hoping we don't see a death spiral. 

[highway]

On 10/15/2019 at 10:59 PM, Pete L. said:

I wonder if the Pace Car/Convertible will ever be reissued...

It had been (and a much better kit in my honest opinion) by Monogram. 

I'm not sure if later Revell reissues of the same kit still also include the Pace car markings or not, but as I said in my opinion these are far better than any of the early AMT or MPC offerings of a 69 Camaro. I'm sure if nothing else there are aftermarket decals available for the Revell offerings for the Pace Car edition.