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MPC Dodge Sport 1978


Jonathan

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I have the '77 and '78 versions of the Monaco, but don't have the custom parts so I can't comment on those, but it is unlikely it will be reissued since they reworked the tooling to do the 4dr version that has been reissued many times.. IIRC, there were 3 issues of the 2dr--the '77 and '78 annual and the Force 440 2dr cop car version. 

Edited by Rob Hall
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12 hours ago, Rob Hall said:

I have the '77 and '78 versions of the Monaco, but don't have the custom parts so I can't comment on those, but it is unlikely it will be reissued since they reworked the tooling to do the 4dr version that has been reissued many times.. IIRC, there were 3 issues of the 2dr--the '77 and '78 annual and the Force 440 2dr cop car version. 

What Rob said :)

The annuals were produced for 1977 and 1978. Promos were offered as well (I think in silver, dark blue, dark red metallic and green metallic).

The "Force 440" kit used the same basic car, but instead of custom parts, police parts and super wide steel wheels, NASCAR tires, and dog dish hubcaps were added. Force 440 bodies had small holes in the roof for mounting the light bar. The light bar was a very nice Twinsonic, which only appeared in the Force 440. All of the later 4 door Monacos got a vastly inferior lightbar, but it looks like the Twinsonic is making a comeback in the upcoming CHP Monaco. All of the other police parts (push bar, gun rack with guns, radio, spotlights, computer) have carried over to the 4 door kits.    

Before these kits, the same tool was used for the annual 1975 Plymouth Road Runner (which was based on the 2 door Plymouth Fury that year). The 1975 kit came with optional skis, roof rack, snow tires, and very nice Cragar mags. Another Fury-based Road Runner was offered in 1976, although Plymouth did not base the 1976 Road Runner on the Fury that year. It was essentially a carry over kit but instead of optional ski parts, it came with a six pack manifold, hood scoop, slicks, and some other custom parts.

The Monacos varied a little in custom parts from 1977 to 1978. The cars themselves were unchanged. One year (I think the '78) came with a custom wraparound "motorboat" windshield. One or both years came with a mini bike (with carrier mounts for the rear bumper), much like the one that recently came in the Dodge Pickup kit. Cragars were the optional wheels both years.

Both years came with custom scoops for the c pillars and fenders. The ones for the fenders looked a lot like the stock ones used on the '77-'78 Firebird Trans Am. I think these were the same ones that came in the MPC Monza kits. Custom front and rear pans were supplied to replace the bumpers. Racing bucket seats were carried over from the '76 "Road Runner" kit.

The chassis is more or less a carry over from the '71-'74 Road Runner kits, except that it was revised for single exhaust & catalytic converter. It's the same big block engine that came in the older Road Runners, except that a crossover pipe was supplied to make the exhaust manifolds connect to the single exhaust.

Appliques were supplied for the opera windows- they look like the stock ones for one of the higher trim Monaco models from those years. These only came in the annual kits, the Force 440's did not have these parts.             

 

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  • 1 month later...
9 minutes ago, Can-Con said:

Hood and other parts should fit. Back bumper and tail lights are completely different between the 2 door and 4 door though.

Thanks. The hood is the big thing. I can rig up something for the back end. 

Now, to think of something to do with it....:unsure:

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