AMT '75-'76 NASCAR Matador question

[Monty]

Is there any truth to the rumor that the AMT '75-'76 NASCAR Matador kit also has the factory stock grille?   I'd heard this from someone who claims they saw a YouTube video that showed the stock version as well as the race unit on the chrome tree.  

Pics etc would be appreciated.

 

[Mark]

Of the annual kits, only the '77 had the grille on the plated tree.  

With the NASCAR version kits, only the earliest ones made by the original AMT company are actually NASCAR kits.  Lesney made some changes to the kit to make the Bobby Allison Sportsman class racer around 1979.  All Ertl and Racing Champions reissues are actually the Sportsman version.  None I am aware of include a stock grille.

[Bainford]

The 1995 reissue. 

 

 

 

As Mark has said, no chrome grill in the kit in, and the one that's there is not stock. 

[bobss396]

To this day it is staggering that Penske got these cars to go fast and WIN...

[Mark]

 Not so surprising, really.  The AMC V8 engine was about as good as any of the others (Ford had better cylinder heads), the AMC Trans-Am program had already gotten the engine ready for competition.  The chassis was the same as what the Ford guys were using.  NASCAR allowed the fabricated chassis (including the front stub) by then.  As long as the suspension had the same configuration as the showroom car (coil springs all around) it was good to go.  When Penske switched to Mercury around 1976, all of his Matadors were reskinned as Montegos.  The Matadors that Bobby Allison ran were different cars built by him.

Edited August 30, 2024 by Mark
Spell check

[Dave Van]

This issue of the Matador NASCAR kits had the stock grille on the chrome tree. All other versions DID NOT.  Owning a reall 74 Matador coupe I have every model Matador I know was made including some 1/64 die cast that had a short run.

 

BTW: These cars were and are ahead of their time. Mine has the 304 / 727 combo, big disk brakes and fat sway bars front and rear. The car still drives much like a modern car considering it's FIFTY years old!!! The 304 is about as good as the 302 Ford....and very much alike with lots of FORD parts. All from the factory. Thx

 

[bobss396]

Re-skinning older cars was a common practice back in the day. All of that is out the window with the new Cup cars.

In 1966, Bobby Allison petitioned NASCAR to be able to use a Holman Moody front clip under his 1964 Chevelle, they said NO. So he laid one out on the garage floor in chalk and built his own. This was The #2 car. It won quite a bit over some fast "factory" built cars.