AMT 1966 Ford Mustang GT Fastback 2+2 Kit

[Jim B]

I have been looking at this kit:

and wondering what it would take to actually make it into a SCCA race car.  I've looked at the instructions, and I see that it has some "race" parts called out.  I know that the interior tub has a rear seat, so that should probably be removed, right?

[vamach1]

Should be an easy search to find B production rules of the era to figure out what was allowed.  The main drawbacks of the kit are the toylike chassis and that it has an almost 60 year old basic 289 engine with stock intake and exhaust manifolds.  Street cars converted to a competitive production race car for that time period would have used the Hipo 289 engine, headers, larger carb, export brace, Koni shocks, larger and lighter wheels and racing tires, of course a roll cage, extra gauges, fuel cell or larger gas tank just to name a few things.  Forum member AFX has made several coupes using a mix of the AMT 66 coupe which shares the majority of parts with the reborn fastback kit and the “newer” 67 Mustang GT to GT350 kit that has  the far superior engine and chassis so when he chimes in he can point you into the right direction to build a replica of a specific SCCA car or just a weekend racer.

Edited May 27, 2023 by vamach1

[Rodent]

Being inherently lazy, I think I would start with one of the Revellogram fastbacks if I was going down the SCCA route. As Rex pointed out, you would have to throw away most of the Round 2 kit to make an accurate B Production racer.

[vamach1]

Just now, Rodent said:

Being inherently lazy, I think I would start with one of the Revellogram fastbacks if I was going down the SCCA route. As Rex pointed out, you would have to throw away most of the Round 2 kit to make an accurate B Production racer.

You are 100% correct - a much better kit and would require very little mods if the 65 or 66 GT350 version was used.  There is also the stock RM 65 fastback version which of course lacks most of the Shelby “racing”  parts.

[Jim B]

Thanks for the input. I appreciate it.  I kind of had a feeling about this kit.

[oldcarfan]

I wonder if the AMT 1967 Mustang chassis would work under this kit? It is pretty well detailed.

[Rodent]

3 hours ago, Jim B said:

Thanks for the input. I appreciate it.  I kind of had a feeling about this kit.

This kit should be bought and built as the timepiece it is. If you want to kitbash it with the '67, it can be done. The shock towers and underhood area is a bit different on the 1:1s, but most onlookers won't know that.

[deuces wild]

Revell did up a B production racer using the '65-'66 1/24 scale kits... It also has the GT-350R front bumper...

[Jim B]

9 hours ago, deuces wild said:

Revell did up a B production racer using the '65-'66 1/24 scale kits... It also has the GT-350R front bumper...

Thanks.  Didn't know that.  That would probably save a lot of aggravation.

[deuces wild]

Here you go.... I don't know if I have the Monogram or the Revell version of this kit... it's packed away in a box somewhere....?

A lot of the parts fit the convertible version of this series....?

Edited May 28, 2023 by deuces wild

[Jim B]

That's pretty much what I'm looking to do. Thanks for the box shots. ?

[deuces wild]

Hey, no problem!....??

[Jim B]

What's the difference between the GT-350R & the GT-350H?

[espo]

The "H" suffix denotes a Hertz Rent a Car model. 

[Jim B]

So there are probably a lot of difference between the R & the H.

[vamach1]

30 minutes ago, espo said:

The "H" suffix denotes a Hertz Rent a Car model. 

Only 85 came equipped with a 4 speed but since they were made to be rental cars the other 900+ came with automatics.

[espo]

Just now, vamach1 said:

Only 85 came equipped with a 4 speed but since they were made to be rental cars the other 900+ came with automatics.

Don't recall the exact production numbers, but many of the Hurtz cars were in fact 4-speed cars. They did have a high attrition rate as you might expect. In the mid 1980's I lived in Sacramento and shared a back yard fence with a lovely widow lady who had an old Hurtz 4-speed car that her husband used to play with. So, they were out there, but I have no idea of how many. 

[vamach1]

6 minutes ago, Jim B said:

So there are probably a lot of difference between the R & the H.

Yes - the 36 1965 R models were modified for Shelby racing and Independent race teams and the Hertz cars were for Hertz club members to have a nice ride for the weekend.  With the amount of clones and street and rental cars made to look like and/or perform like the original R model the only way to tell if it’s one of the original 36 is by the Shelby VIN and SAAC registry.  As the Hertz car were not produced until 1966, none of them were true R models but that did not stop them from being modified within the rules to be able to compete with other in their class.

[vamach1]

23 minutes ago, espo said:

Don't recall the exact production numbers, but many of the Hurtz cars were in fact 4-speed cars. They did have a high attrition rate as you might expect. In the mid 1980's I lived in Sacramento and shared a back yard fence with a lovely widow lady who had an old Hurtz 4-speed car that her husband used to play with. So, they were out there, but I have no idea of how many. 

I found two articles that mention the 85 number.  It’s one of those myths that persist because we would like it to be true since many of the restored cars featured in media have a manual or more likely the automatic was replaced by a later owner.  If you think about it handing the keys to someone renting a car with brakes that required a lot of effort was not the best combination for someone renting a car and then driving in a unfamiliar area.  Some customers took the rent-a-racer slogan as a invitation to see how it did on a racetrack.

Edited May 28, 2023 by vamach1

[deuces wild]

....and let's not forget that some were  rented for a weekend engine swap... by thieves!...☹️

Edited May 29, 2023 by deuces wild

[Jim B]

On the plus side, it looks like Revell will be reissuing this kit some time in 2003 (according to Scalemates).

Box art painting looks nice, anyway.

[MrMiles]

I have the r kit and the h kit. The rear window is different. The r doesn't sit flush. It's like it's vented. I can take pictures tomorrow if the difference 

[espo]

14 hours ago, deuces wild said:

....and let's not forget that some were  rented for a weekend engine swap... by thieves!...☹️

22 hours ago, vamach1 said:

I found two articles that mention the 85 number.  It’s one of those myths that persist because we would like it to be true since many of the restored cars featured in media have a manual or more likely the automatic was replaced by a later owner.  If you think about it handing the keys to someone renting a car with brakes that required a lot of effort was not the best combination for someone renting a car and then driving in a unfamiliar area.  Some customers took the rent-a-racer slogan as a invitation to see how it did on a racetrack.

Strictly hear say, but there used to be many stories written about these Hurtz cars having engine swaps with SCCA cars on curtain weekends and returned with their original engines after the racers were done with them.  Did any of this actually happen?  I really don't know, but it was a pretty common legend at the time. Really wouldn't be that hard to do with a knowledgeable crew of a couple of guys. 

[MrMiles]

2 hours ago, espo said:

Strictly hear say, but there used to be many stories written about these Hurtz cars having engine swaps with SCCA cars on curtain weekends and returned with their original engines after the racers were done with them.  Did any of this actually happen?  I really don't know, but it was a pretty common legend at the time. Really wouldn't be that hard to do with a knowledgeable crew of a couple of guys. 

I read that they would be rented and come back with different engines

[espo]

3 hours ago, MrMiles said:

I read that they would be rented and come back with different engines

The stories I recall from that time was that they would rent a GT350H and R&R the engines in the pits and return the original engine to the rental before turning in the car. This made sense in that if Hurtz ever verified the engine ID they would know that the engine had been switched.