Kits Which Were Once This, Then Became That

[iBorg]

On 1/29/2021 at 8:37 PM, Oldcarfan27 said:

Apparently this....

Became this...

I'm certain that both kits still exist. Not only is this available as both a t-top and standard roof car, but the differences between the Camaro and the Trans Am seem quite minor.

[1972coronet]

4 hours ago, doorsovdoon said:

The good thing about the Econoline is, as far as I know, body wise it remained unchanged. I think its the Coca Cola van now?

The AMT Econoline is different from the MPC version . The MPC E-150 was last issued in c.1981 . 

[Oldcarfan27]

5 hours ago, iBorg said:

I'm certain that both kits still exist.

I can only hope.

[doorsovdoon]

1 minute ago, 1972coronet said:

The AMT Econoline is different from the MPC version . The MPC E-150 was last issued in c.1981 . 

ah, ok. I wish they facelifted the MPC Econoline instead of the Dodge! Lol

[Can-Con]

5 hours ago, doorsovdoon said:

The good thing about the Econoline is, as far as I know, body wise it remained unchanged. I think its the Coca Cola van now?

The AMT and MPC kits were completely separate and different kits Gareth. 

I don't think those vans were permanently changed to anything else and maybe they still can be reissued in "Sunrunner" form. My bet is though if the MPC van is reissued, it will be in 4X4 form.

[Can-Con]

5 hours ago, iBorg said:

I'm certain that both kits still exist. Not only is this available as both a t-top and standard roof car, but the differences between the Camaro and the Trans Am seem quite minor.

Sorry, no. The black '77 is a completely different tooling from the turbo birds. When the '70 came out it was even stated in the kit review in SA that it was a modified tool based on the turbo bird.

[doorsovdoon]

1 minute ago, Can-Con said:

The AMT and MPC kits were completely separate and different kits Gareth. 

I don't think those vans were permanently changed to anything else and maybe they still can be reissued in "Sunrunner" form. My bet is though if the MPC van is reissued, it will be in 4X4 form.

yeah, I didn't know there was an MPC version, but like you say they remained relatively unchanged, unlike the Dodge. I'm thinking of using the Chevy fire rescue van for my WLS radio van, although very different it has a much more classic look than the facelifted Dodge.

[slusher]

6 hours ago, 1972coronet said:

Typical 'Annual' updates is all . By c.1979 , MPC showcased the customised version of the fill-in-the-blank annual ( e.g. , the 1979 Ford Econoline Van was called Sunrunner , and the stock parts were included ) :

I remember those..

[Plowboy]

Can't believe this one hasn't already been mentioned. 

I've always kinda had my doubts about the SS being turned into the '65. I have both. So, I want to compare them. I could see the chassis being used. But, that's about it.

Edited February 9, 2021 by Plowboy

[Sledsel]

14 hours ago, Plowboy said:

Can't believe this one hasn't already been mentioned. 

 

I've always kinda had my doubts about the SS being turned into the '65. I have both. So, I want to compare them. I could see the chassis being used. But, that's about it.

Not a big Corvette fan, but I loved those when  I was young. Would love to see them released in original form

[Richard Bartrop]

An aside about the ZZR.  The movie it was built for, "Out of Sight" is on Youtube, and in the opening credits is what's either the Dick Flint roadster, or a close copy.  There's also a cameo by the quadruple Allison engined Quad Al.

Edited February 9, 2021 by Richard Bartrop

[tim boyd]

On 2/8/2021 at 7:59 PM, Can-Con said:

When the '70 came out it was even stated in the kit review in SA that it was a modified tool based on the turbo bird.

I haven't checked the entire kit but I believe Steve is correct here.

What I can tell you for sure is that the same engine is used in both kits, which is of course entirely incorrect as the Turbo 305 had significant external appearance differences vs. 400 RA III and RA IV used in the real1970 Trans-Am, yet the basic Turbo 305 engine tooling was carried over, incorrectly, in the 1970 T/A kit. 

I discovered this when I was doing the engine buildups for the old "Muscle V8" article series for the other mag.  And as I pointed out in the "Collecting Muscle Car Model Kits" book a couple of years ago, one of the most glaring omissions in the 1/24th - 1/25th scale world is that to this day, we STILL do not have an accurate scale replica of the Pontiac RA-IV engine!  

Cheers...TIM

[Casey]

58 minutes ago, tim boyd said:

What I can tell you for sure is that the same engine is used in both kits, which is of course entirely incorrect as the Turbo 305 had significant external appearance differences vs. 400 RA III and RA IV used in the real1970 Trans-Am, yet the basic Turbo 305 engine tooling was carried over, incorrectly, in the 1970 T/A kit. 

The '55+ Pontic V8 architecture is the same, differing in bore, stroke, and accessories, so an early 287 block, heads, etc will look much the same as the largest 455 V8. No idea if the Monogram '80/'81 Turbo 301 T/A's engine was accurate in the first place, but the base is accurate for a '70. Good info here: https://www.enginebuildermag.com/2018/01/history-lesson-pontiac-v8-power/

It was mentioned long ago here, in a topic likely no longer in existence, but the MPC Boss Bike kit...

 

...was heavily modified and turned into the Ice Cycle:

 

I recall pickup up the mis-labelled RC2 era reissue of the Ice Cycle, posting images of the contents, and someone mentioning some of the extra/unused parts (the frame IIRC) were from the Boss Bike.

 

[slusher]

I have never seen that boss bike before...

[tim boyd]

Casey said "The '55+ Pontic V8 architecture is the same, differing in bore, stroke, and accessories, so an early 287 block, heads, etc will look much the same as the largest 455 V8. No idea if the Monogram '80/'81 Turbo 301 T/A's engine was accurate in the first place, but the base is accurate for a '70. Good info here: https://www.enginebuildermag.com/2018/01/history-lesson-pontiac-v8-power/"

Casey, you are of course totally correct about the overall architecture and appearance of all the Pontiac V8's.  However, the 301 engine had changes vs. the earlier V8's that did result in some visible exterior changes between the two.  Those changes (not big ones, but noticeable upon close inspection) do manifest themselves in the 1970 T/A kit engine being a copy of the 301 rather than the 400 that was in the actual car....TIM

Edited February 11, 2021 by tim boyd

[Plowboy]

15 hours ago, tim boyd said:

One of the most glaring omissions in the 1/24th - 1/25th scale world is that to this day, we STILL do not have an accurate scale replica of the Pontiac RA-IV engine!  

Cheers...TIM

What engine is in the Revell '68 Firebird? I was thinking it was a 400. But, I've never built or looked at it closely.

[Daddyfink]

And don't forget, that all these cars started as Stock issue kits, some modified to the point that they will never come back unless totally retooled. 

[NOBLNG]

1 hour ago, Plowboy said:

What engine is in the Revell '68 Firebird? I was thinking it was a 400. But, I've never built or looked at it closely.

It is a 400 I believe.

Edited February 11, 2021 by NOBLNG

[tim boyd]

1 hour ago, NOBLNG said:

It is a 400 I believe.

Correct....probably not the best scale replica of a big block Pontiac, but certainly among the better ones, at least in my view....TIM 

[Jordan White]

My submission for this topic would be the MPC 1988/89 Chevy C1500 which became the USA-1 monster truck. The monster truck seems to be re-released almost every year now, but I feel the original 2WD model was better from a build-variety standpoint. Yes there are the shortbox and stepside kits as well, but the former is rare-ish, and the latter is more common but still hasn't been released since the late 90s. 

Edited February 11, 2021 by Jordan White

[slusher]

5 hours ago, Jordan White said:

My submission for this topic would be the MPC 1988/89 Chevy C1500 which became the USA-1 monster truck. The monster truck seems to be re-released almost every year now, but I feel the original 2WD model was better from a build-variety standpoint. Yes there are the shortbox and stepside kits as well, but the former is rare-ish, and the latter is more common but still hasn't been released since the late 90s. 

We need the 1500 Chevy back..

[Oldcarfan27]

10 hours ago, NOBLNG said:

It is a 400 I believe.

I find it to be the best 400 Pontiac available in kit form. The Monogram and MPC engines have valve covers that are way too small.

67 and later Pontiac covers are quite large and square - almost like BBC, but have a beveled edge around the top. Monogram and MPCs look small, like V6s.

[tim boyd]

1 hour ago, Oldcarfan27 said:

I find it to be the best 400 Pontiac available in kit form. The Monogram and MPC engines have valve covers that are way too small.

67 and later Pontiac covers are quite large and square - almost like BBC, but have a beveled edge around the top. Monogram and MPCs look small, like V6s.

Good points.  For the 400/455, I think you may be entirely correct.

My reticence in sighting it as the very best was that I was thinking of the entire family of Pontiac V8's.  The AMT-Ertl 1962 Catalina 421 Super Duty kit has the very best one overall, in my view.  I haven't built the  Moebius 1961 Ventura/Catalina but I would suspect that they are close to the AMT-Ertl in accuracy.  The other one I would view highly is the Revell 1966 GTO 389. 

Best....TIM 

[Daddyfink]

Nice stock El Camino

Crappy SS nose version

[Luc Janssens]

15 hours ago, Daddyfink said:

Nice stock El Camino

Crappy SS nose version

If Round-2 wants to trow some funds towards a retool, I would prefer a stock '82-'87 version, IMHO the best looking Elky Ever!

I have a Mpc '82 (red light bandit I think its marketed as) but sadly the chrome is lousy.