Ghost Kits - Shown But Never Released

[niteowl7710]

"Resin lump" is exactly right. I have a Toyota 4Runner and a Range Rover with American SATCO resin LHD dashboards. They're pretty awful.

But their tires were very good.  At the KCI swap meet in Buena Park CA a few years ago, one vendor had a bunch of different 1/25 aftermarket stuff they were dumping cheap.  Got a few sets of SATCO red-line/blue-line tires and several different sets of off-road tires.  Also a couple of Ross Gibson resin engines.  All for a lot less $$$ than the current arm-and-a-leg eBay prices. 

The "4Runner" (aka HiLux Surf) should also have a styrene LHD dashboard as did the Nissan "Pathfinder" (Terrano), as the kits still carry them, American SATCO just provided the U.S. Spec decals (4Runner/Pathfinder).

[Mike999]

The "4Runner" (aka HiLux Surf) should also have a styrene LHD dashboard as did the Nissan "Pathfinder" (Terrano), as the kits still carry them, American SATCO just provided the U.S. Spec decals (4Runner/Pathfinder).

Thanks!  Memory Fail as usual. I have 2 open Range Rover kits with the resin LHD dashboards.

The HiLux is still shrink-wrapped. For anyone else who runs into one at a swap meet etc.:

Boxtop info:  Aoshima "Toyota HiLux Surf Down."  Kit #021163, or #15 in the "Exciting Tuning Vehicle (ETV)" series), whatever that is  It has a clear sticker on the boxtop with the following info: 

"01393 - '92 US Toyota 4Runner - includes left-hand instrument panel - SATCO 319-634-3999"

From the "includes left-hand IP" sticker, I just assumed that was a resin dashboard.  But your post indicates that it's plastic. That's good news.

[Dave Van]

Location of AM Taurus molds is unknown.......Korea last itme seen.....bet they are now part of many folks Kia's. 

AM Cobra.....there was to be a Cobra and a Daytona at some point. ZERO mold work was done. Drawings were adapted from other projects to 1/24 scale and that was as far as it ever got.

AM no.2 in Concord closed for a number of reasons. My brother in law was in product development and art director. He died at age 49 very unexpectedly and that started a chain of events.  I and even my kids 'worked' there from time to time. (if you have a B-25 we packed it!) It was great to see how a model company worked. And helping in a small way was fun. A tiny bit of luck and we'd be sitting here talking about new AM kits........but that's fate.  

[niteowl7710]

Thanks!  Memory Fail as usual. I have 2 open Range Rover kits with the resin LHD dashboards.

The HiLux is still shrink-wrapped. For anyone else who runs into one at a swap meet etc.:

Boxtop info:  Aoshima "Toyota HiLux Surf Down."  Kit #021163, or #15 in the "Exciting Tuning Vehicle (ETV)" series), whatever that is  It has a clear sticker on the boxtop with the following info: 

"01393 - '92 US Toyota 4Runner - includes left-hand instrument panel - SATCO 319-634-3999"

From the "includes left-hand IP" sticker, I just assumed that was a resin dashboard.  But your post indicates that it's plastic. That's good news.

Yeah the current HiLux Surf and Terrano make no mentions of the LHD stuff, but it's still in there.  The ETV Series was all of their "SUVs" - I put that in quotes because the RAV4 and CRV are in there too - that they put roof lights and brush guards and all sorts of other ridiculous "off road" parts into...which made them "tuned" and "exciting".  Those kits were later all reboxed into a series called "The RV"...cause their idea of a Recreational Vehicle and ours, are a wee bit different.

[Dave Van]

I made a new post for the complete photos of the Accurate Miniatures NASCAR Taurus kit. Thanks

Accurate Miniatures Taurus test shot.

[Greg Myers]

Thanks Dave

[ChrisBcritter]

Does anyone here (Art, Tim...?) know how far AMT got with the '69 Continental Mk III before it was canceled? I'm guessing it would have been based on the tooling from the Thunderbird?

[Bob Ellis]

Does anyone here (Art, Tim...?) know how far AMT got with the '69 Continental Mk III before it was canceled? I'm guessing it would have been based on the tooling from the Thunderbird?

I never heard of this one. I know AMT made a dealer announcement for som 1970s that never happened like a 70 Elcamino and 70 Corvair

[Paul Hettick]

A customer of mine has a 1/12th scale 59 Mercury Voyager wagon prototype that AMT  was going to produce in their annual line up. It would have been 1/25th and a fantastic kit.

[ChrisBcritter]

VERY interesting! Is this the solid wood prototype that would have been used to scale down to 1/25 for the molds? I thought AMT worked in 1/10 scale for those.

[tim boyd]

Does anyone here (Art, Tim...?) know how far AMT got with the '69 Continental Mk III before it was canceled? I'm guessing it would have been based on the tooling from the Thunderbird?

First I've ever heard of this.  Sounds unlikely to me; by the late 1960's luxury branded annual kits (Lincoln, Cadillac, T-Bird) were not selling very well, and development capital was tight, particularly at AMT.  But as we all know, never say never......TIM 

[Dave Van]

VERY interesting! Is this the solid wood prototype that would have been used to scale down to 1/25 for the molds? I thought AMT worked in 1/10 scale for those.

All the wood bucks I have seen are 1/10 scale so when they use a 2.5 reduction.....1/25 scale! 

I own one myself.....

[Paul Hettick]

You guys could be right on the 1/10th scale and wood. Been a long time since we discussed it. I'll ask him about it next time we talk and let you know.

[Casey]

Never seen the garbage truck kit in person..have read in several articles that it was announced but never released.

From the 1978 AMT catalog:

Edited March 4, 2017 by Casey

[Casey]

AMT's Ahren's Fox Pumper. Listed in the 72 catalog.

[stavanzer]

I wonder how far AMT got on the Ahrens-Fox Pumper? Drawings only, or did anything make it into actual Wooden Model Form?

Would have been a nice, if parts intensive kit.

[Luc Janssens]

You guys could be right on the 1/10th scale and wood. Been a long time since we discussed it. I'll ask him about it next time we talk and let you know.

Paul, if possible aks him for photo's and if you may show them here.

TIA

[Casey]

 

I'm sure MPC could've also released some type of ambulance variant had this kit been produced:

[Dave Van]

I wonder how far AMT got on the Ahrens-Fox Pumper? Drawings only, or did anything make it into actual Wooden Model Form?

Would have been a nice, if parts intensive kit.

If anyone knows it may be Art Anderson......

[Mike999]

Almost a ghost!

For years on the Internet, I saw this story repeated:  the old ESCI 1/24 Ford Transit Van had been commissioned for promotional reasons by Ford Motor Co. After the first run of the kit in the 1980s, Ford insisted that the molds be destroyed.  IOW, a story similar to the AMT 1911 Chevy, though that one was certainly true.

ITALERI recently re-issued the Transit, so I'm glad the Internet version was false.

   

[Atmobil]

Almost a ghost!

For years on the Internet, I saw this story repeated:  the old ESCI 1/24 Ford Transit Van had been commissioned for promotional reasons by Ford Motor Co. After the first run of the kit in the 1980s, Ford insisted that the molds be destroyed.  IOW, a story similar to the AMT 1911 Chevy, though that one was certainly true.

ITALERI recently re-issued the Transit, so I'm glad the Internet version was false.

   

Yes, I do belive that the Ford Transit was first issued by Esci in the black-box-with-red-van-and-Ford-ovals-only-box but it was also released by Esci in two different versions. One with a yellow van with Hertz logos and one white and red with Canon livery and supposed to be a Paris-Dakar rally vehicle. All three of these are going for silly money on Ebay.

[disabled modeler]

From the 1978 AMT catalog:

That Gar Wood Refuse truck kit would be AWESOME to have...shame they never did bring one out..they would sell.

[Junkman]

Why was the Coors set banned in Virginia?

[Mark]

Why was the Coors set banned in Virginia?

Liquor/beer laws, perhaps relating to advertising.  I knew a guy who lived in Virginia (he passed about twenty years ago), he once said that Virginia's liquor laws "were passed by Carrie Nation in 1912". Some counties there were still "dry" (no sales allowed at all).  There was one New York town that I used to drive through on my way to work that was "dry"; I believe they changed that only a few years ago.  Across the state, we still can't buy a beer before noon on Sundays.

[Dave Van]

Why was the Coors set banned in Virginia?

The start of the laws protecting children form beer and cig advertising.