Stef

Thank you, everyone at Round 2, for making this happen! There are a whole lot of us that have been dying to make one of these AWB Olds kits!

I'm young enough to have missed the whole parts pack/Ed Roth stuff. Despite reading/learning so much here from you cats, most of it still goes over my head. Better box art and side panel photography/marketing would educate and sell the contents of the kits better, manage expectations, and build trust, especially with normies like me.

Looks like the custom wheels on the 57 Ford Del Rio Ranch Wagon box art are the same ones Revell used on their 56 and 57 Chevy kits.

Agree 128%; all of the box art produced by Atlantis for all car subjects has been lacking vision, beauty, excitement, brand focus, and have failed to manage expectations. So many people were really upset over the ex-Revell 57 Cadillac, and it didn't have to go down that way. Design-wise, changing the box art logo colour, size, and placement, using photos of a real car here, illustrations there, lots of white, no detail shots, questionable typography, and more, and it's not working. Awhile back, I created this mock box art for the Green Elephant. I would love love love to see Atlantis succeed, and if they can just pull it all together with their graphic design, I'm sure people would know what they're in for, and sales would soar. I should reach out to them again.

Agreed; the Streaker should be/could be an easy lay-up. Awhile back, I screencapped HPI Guy's parts reviews of both the convertible and 442 hardtop kits, and IIRC, 99% of the specialized parts needed for the Streaker are included in either the convertible, the 442 hardtop, and for some parts, either kit. Pop out the hanger AWB body, and grab a chassis from one of AMT's other AWB kits (Edsel, Mustang, Nova, Chevelle, Tempest, Falcon, Cyclone, etc.), and booyah. For everyone's convenience, attached is the comparo I'd made originally in the summer of 2023. The only thing I wonder is, did the convertible and 442 not sell well-enough to justify putting this one out?

I built this MPC Cobra II in the early 90s, and I'd bet my life the side window louvers and front and rear spoilers were all included in it.

FWIW, here's HPI Guy's review of the gasser sedan from 4-5 years ago. Don't think he ever built any of the 57 wagons.

I would love to build one of these big Pontiacs, stock, or otherwise. Wiki says both 77 Monte and 77 Grand Prix shared 116" wheelbase, A-body "Special". Perhaps Revellogram could leverage their 77 Monte Carlo tooling to create a simplified kit. I've not looked into resin or 3D kits. Did the 77 Grand Prix ever run in NASCAR? I'm not seeing any pictures. Salvinos had/has the smaller 81-84 Pontiac LeMans. And I have AMT's Petty 84 Grand Prix in 1/16 scale. Hope this helps, thanks.

Agreed 128%; this classic build has stayed fresh in my mind for years, and when I get mine, Imma do it up the exact same, except flat black instead of flat blue, and I will try the roof in white to match the bumpers and grille.

Well said, dudes. In addition, I would like to add: taking a genuine interest in what kids are into also expands tastes and interest, builds excitement, and strengthens relationships. Little dude got me into Japanese and Euro cars, Mr. Beast, Roblox, and we play several games together. Might even get me into Minecraft next!

Right you are, @Robberbaron. It's a pretty inaccurate custom-only kit, with its separate full-perimiter frame, blob engine, generic 2-seat interior with molded-in spare tire, undersized suspensions, and more. Would not recommend this one for any purist. Kit was reskinned as both a Sunbird and a Monza. Me personally, I'd build it for nostalgia, update it a bit, no doubt, ignore what I can accept, aim to have fun, and hope I don't destroy it this time, heh.

Agreed, @BlackSheep214. Whether Atlantis or Revell, I'm hoping whoever has this kit gets it back out ASAP. Last time it was available, IIRC, was in red in the HOT ROD series, back in the mid-late 80s.

Right you are, @Sledsel. I've built both tubbed and non-tubbed versions of the MPC kit, and pretty sure both ran simultaneously throughout the late 70s into the early 80s. I'd love to build either again; great kits. Let's bring 'em back!

Am super stoked for this tow truck; a perfect representation of the 1970s that has never been fully captured in kit form before.

Oh man, you guys rock, bringing back so many memories! Here are a couple other grails I forgot to mention, plus here's a couple contact sheets of most(?) of MPC's early 80s releases. Many have come back, in one form or another, and here's hoping they ALL come back, as Alan says, "warts and all"!

Got mine, and love it to bits. Modestly restyling it "for modern audiences", heh. At least 5 other guys in my model club got 'em, too. Fantastic kit. Hope they sell a squillion.

Over the past 5-6 years, I've tracked down many of my old MPC grails, through sacred sealed and open originals, decent builtups, tragic gluebombs, dusty promos, and especially, Round 2's loving acts of God. There still remain a few highly elusive MPC gems I would love love love to get my hands on:

I believe the red MPC Omni 024 was the first issue of this kit, in 1979/80. Then the "Silver Bullet" 024 came in 1981, followed by the black "Sidewinder" 024 in 1982. Curiously, the red Omni seems to have optional rear window louvers, while the Silver Bullet does not include them. Instead, side window louvers are introduced (which the red Omni did not seem to have). However, the Sidewinder includes BOTH rear and side louvers, along with a crazy optional "shovel" type front end treatment. Then, in 1983, the Omni was forever modified, slightly, into the Shelby Charger. As others have noted here, the engine is not really a Shelby engine. I have an unbuilt Silver Bullet in my stash, that I've compared to HPI Guy's recent Shelby Charger video. From what I can see, the engines are identical in both kits; even the optional (non-factory) turbo setup. The kits are mostly the same, with a few interesting notes. For example, my Silver Bullet has a smooth firewall, but detail was added at some point. Judging from the silver Shelby's box art, it looks like it has a smooth/flat hood. I cannot confirm/remember whether that kit used the flat Omni hood, or the current power-bulge/vented hood seen in later Shelbys. Also, the front air dam/side marker light area looks "off". Could just be the art. Maybe someone can confirm whether those sidemarker surround/air dam pieces were included in that first version of the kit. The "blue" art on the decal sheet was disappointingly printed in Cyan, rather than a proper blue. After the silver Shelby, came a white version in 1984, followed by the dark blue version in 1985. Finally, under ERTL, in 86-87, the white "rally" version came out. That rally version introduced a couple sets of foglights, clear headlight covers, and rollcage parts. Those parts are preserved in this newest Round 2 reissue. In addition, this newest Shelby includes stunning, all-new WIDE Eagle ZR 45 tires. IIRC, all previous Shelby kits included MPC's smaller, skinnier BF Goodrich "snow tires", with their super-aggressive tread pattern. The taillights appear to have remained unchanged from that first Omni kit, though it seems real Shelby Chargers did at some point use updated taillights. Hope this is helpful!

Agreed, @Bainford it would be super awesome to have a fully updated 73/74 Charger built upon the excellent 71. I'm unsure whether it would be cheaper to go that route, or the cloning route, though most of us would be particularly happy with a clean, modernized body. In either case, I'm sure Round 2 will work their magic!

Agreed. I heard it mentioned here awhile back that the guts of the original 68 Coronet kit ended up in MPC's 74 Super Charger. Several dudes were excited at the thought of bringing back the 74 Charger, so perhaps it could be done economically via scanning, and leveraging the new 68 Coronet chassis and engine?

Kit looks awesome; can't wait to get mine. Surprised the drag version did not include some sort of hirise dual-quad intake, headers and hood scoop, but I don't mind at all. Got more than enough stuff in my stash. Will raid my 75 Dart for its Hemi, throw on a pair of massive Drag 500s, and create a quarter-mile monster.

The Falcon was also reissued recently as part of the Cal Drag Combo, as built by HPI Guy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3G7r9JtbQ8

Judging by the box bottom art, looks like this reissue includes a few rally parts tooled up for the last version, released back in 1986-87. Big and little pairs of round fog lights, and what appears to be a roll cage. Thank you Round 2 for bringing these classics back again!

Agreed 128%. IIRC, Monogram's 85 Fiero GT was one-and-done, so hopefully that kit can come back as-is. MPC's Fiero last appeared as an 88. Recently got one of my grails; a near-mint MPC 82 EXP (molded in blue). This awesome kit seriously needs to come back. We also need Revell's sister kit to their EXP, the Escort. Although I've never seen or built AMT's Escort or Horizon TC3 kits; hopefully they can make a comeback, too. And surely, there's enough interest in bringing back MPC's 82 Cavalier. Lastly, would be awesome if Revellogram could reissue their 85-ish Daytona snapper.

Watching HPIGuy's Switchers 32 Ford video above, something about the parts seemed familiar... so I went back to his Coke 32 Ford Sedan Delivery from a few years back: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8oftQaHdhI And most of the kit is the same; did they ever make a CHOPPED sedan delivery body in the Switchers series?