Mark

I found it at Advance Auto Parts. Auto Zone and Pep Boys in my area didn't have it, though both do carry Duplicolor sprays. I'd guess both will eventually get it.

The original pre-JJ version (Heavy Hugger) had only the Ford engine. The JJ version added the Chrysler.

Well, they were doing the promos. So, once MPC's designers and planners knew what the car looked like, they could work out things like decals and optional parts.

Not all "annual" kits had the year on the plate...but nearly all of them with promo model origins did. MPC wiped that info from reissues, often replacing it with model info ("Cougar", "Mustang", etc) or license plate detail. AMT annual reissues usually kept the dated plate area the first couple of times, in the Seventies they started getting rid of it. A few here and there never got messed with though.

That's what I said...just wondering if any were produced with '75 bodies. Other than that plate detail, the two Vega kits would have had the same plastic in the box, just different paper...

Weird too, the '74 USA-1 Vega is still in the '75 catalog alongside the '75 fictional American Spirit. Other than decals, the only difference is the molded-in license plate. I have two original USA-1 kits, both are 1974...maybe some were made with 1975 bodies?

The original Firefighter had that low profile Grumpy Lump style scoop, with the low slot in front. Outdated by '74 for Pro Stock, still used in Modified Eliminator though. That scoop was also in the '74 and '75 annual kits. The snorkel scoop was added for the '75 Dyno Don kit, and retained for the '76-'78 annual kits along with the V8 engine. The first pro street issue or two also had the snorkel, later issues had a hole in the hood and no scoop. The most recent issue (Nostalgia Series Firefighter) again has the Grumpy Lump style scoop. The hood opening in that issue was rebuilt back to the '74 only shape, with the wider header panel at the front. Note too, on the Dyno Don kit, the box art is doctored to add windshield wipers.

Late '74, it is a '75. It has the larger '75 hood. The Firefighter was first, it is a '74.

Someone around here has a '50 or '51 full size Nash, commonly called a "bathtub", with the small wheel openings front and rear. I see it every so often when I go to the neighborhood restaurant for breakfast on Saturdays. Those cars are from a way different time, when manufacturers weren't afraid to take a different approach. Unit body (rare here at the time), Uniscope (gauge cluster built onto the steering column, unfortunately they ran the wiring through the skinny column!), seats that folded to form a bed...most of those features available only in a Nash...

MPC used to flip back and forth between versions back then. With most car kits, they liked to get two versions out of one body in any given year. They did that with the Mustang II kits, if you have the stock versions the quarter panels get lumpier around the rear wheel openings every year. After the last stock annual ('78) they seem to have went with the competition version on a permanent basis. Round 2 won't change back to the stock version, as they can issue the AMT kit if they see the need for a stock one.

I have been thinking about this same body style, as my family had one from 1970-77. You've got your work cut out for you. The AMT Torino Cobra is a 1969, totally different body though much of the chassis and suspension are similar. The Revell '70 GT is the best starting point, though you will also need a '70 Cobra and an MPC Cyclone stock car. GT has the grille, Cobra has the hood and taillights, Cyclone has the upper body (roof and deck lid area). Hood will still need a hole filled, grille and taillight panel will need work also. And that's not getting into the interior!

The Dyno Don kit is the '75 MPC issue. The Firefighter was done first, after the '74 annual.

Apparently you haven't seen pre-1955 Chrysler products, or the '53-'54 Studebaker sedans that they tried to make look like the coupes at the last minute...

MPC probably had to plan for that kit alongside the '74 annual, before they knew for certain that anyone would actually run a Mustang II. So they went with a fictional car. MPC was generally a year behind with their drag cars. The first pro stock series (1972) included the Bill Jenkins Camaro, when he was running the Vega. The '73 series included the Motown Missile Barracuda when it was no longer the "factory" car, having been replaced by the Mopar Missile Duster. Someone at MPC must have liked that "Firefighter" name, they later used it on a custom Dodge pickup and a Corvette funny car.

The Cyclone with the overhead cam engine is the A/FX car. The B/FX is pretty much the same except for the 289 engine. Moebius has not issued a B/FX version yet, but it was probably designed into the kit from the start.

A '49 Ford kit I picked up at a show years ago included an attempt at the fastback body. Unfortunately it's just the Ford body with a Mercury roof stubbed in. The bodies taper differently in the middle (Ford is wider towards the front) leaving the roof a poor fit. The Merc's stock height roof looks chopped compared to the Ford's, and the rear window is a different shape from that prototype also (but looks better). That body isn't really fixable (roof swap is a hack job) but it might be interesting to try it again.

The Ford (corporation) shifted a lot of things around for 1949, with some body styles getting lost in the process. Initially a smaller economy Ford was included in the lineup, that car got built in France instead. What finally appeared as the Mercury was originally intended to be the Ford, the smaller Lincoln was originally intended to be the Mercury. Everything got moved up one notch, and the Ford was started fairly late in the game due to the change in plans.

The reason those Ramblers look a bit "old" compared to other 1960 cars, is that the design dates back to 1950. They were built from 1950-55, dropped, then brought back in mid-1958. I'm not aware of any other US manufacturer ever dropping a car for two and a half years, and then bringing it back. Nameplates yes, but not the same actual car. AMC did make some changes, like replacing the die cast grille with a stamped one (cheaper to make), opening up the wheel openings, and installing the taillights upside down to make them look different. But, it was pretty much the 1950-55 car. The '61-'63 American is again the same car, reskinned, but with the same inner body. I'm not positive about these cars, but some of the early Unibody Nash/AMC cars couldn't be put on a chassis lift. The brakes had to be done one wheel at a time.

I'd like to see how the trunk lid is hinged on the Ford fastback.

AMT '65 Galaxie. Only the first two issues, later ones do not have those parts.

The truck is the same one that was released separately a few years ago. In the original release, this version had a promo style engine insert instead of the complete OHC 6 engine, also the clear canopy that covered the load area was not included. The Round 2 issue may however be different.

Even after the new kit touches down, mint originals will still sell for decent money to kit collectors, or people owning 1:1 Mustangs who want everything they can get their hands on. The projects, partial kits, and builtups will come down to some extent (but still not completely, as some people will still want originals even if the new one is better).

Ala Kart never had hub caps, kit or 1:1.

I got fooled too, with a Camaro body. I pieced a couple of parts box bodies together (Revell Heavy Hugger front clip on MPC stock body) thinking the front end was extended a bit (it is, on the Revell body). So the pieced together body ended up a little bit longer than stock. Fitting the body to an MPC chassis, the front overhang wound up longer than needed for the car I'm working on, and didn't look right with the aftermarket decal sheet that was designed to fit some long-gone resin body. I wound up cutting the front end back down to pretty much stock length. NHRA maximum wheelbase for funny cars back then was 115". The subcompact bodies had to be stretched to fit the usual chassis (most were 115") but the Chargers, Satellites, Camaros, Barracudas, Mustangs, and Challengers only needed the front wheel openings shifted forward. They were usually reduced in size to get better aero and tighten the opening up around the smaller than stock front tires. If you are modeling a specific car, give the 1:1 body a good look over. Some of the later Challengers that were built used Barracuda bodies with Challenger grille and taillight detail airbrushed on. I'd guess the 'Cuda body was a bit cleaner.

Revell Ed Roth Outlaw. The kit only includes two, for the rear wheels.