The automotive aftermarket lobby (which exists!) got the “Low Volume Motor Vehicle Manufacturers Act” attached to a highway funding bill that passed on December 5th. Now companies selling Cobra, Ford GT and the other kit cars you recognize can effectively become mini dealerships of turn-key cars.
Superperformance, one of the shops that sells things like this devastatingly beautiful Daytona Coupe replica, explains what this means to consumers:
“This bill allows for manufacturers of replica vehicles, like Superformance, to build up to 325 vehicles per year under oversight of both the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as long as they meet current model year emissions standards.”
So the “some-assembly-required” crowd will still get to buy in parts and build if desired, but those who just want to drive a “new” “Cobra” or similar can get one right off the showroom floor.
This will eliminate all the legal hassles and awkward conversations with your insurance company about “what exactly are you trying to get plates for?”
It’s probably still going to be way cheaper to buy a kit car somebody’s already made, registered and selling used. But then you have to trust the assembly skills and service records of whoever the original owner was.
Anyway Superperformance CEO Lance Stander is stoked: “Customers can walk in, buy a car and drive away just like any other new vehicle purchase, which will also streamline financing, registration and insurance options.”
As our man Jason Torchinsky pointed out when this bill was first floated, it’s not going to be any easier for people cooking up crazy one-off car ideas to get their projects on the road. (They’ll just have to move to a state with lenient registration rules.) But it seems cool that enthusiasts who don’t feel like building a car by themselves can get in on that sweet, sweet replicar action.
If you need me I’ll be pricing out that Daytona Coupe kit again.
Image via Superperformance
Contact the author at andrew@jalopnik.com.