NO ASSEMBLY REQUIRED

A NEW KIT-CAR LAW COULD SPAWN
A REPLI-MOD INDUSTRY. by Jeff Sabatini

300 TO DAY T H E DELORE AN MOTOR COMPANY I S JUST A R E STORATION SHOP SPECIALIZING IN THE ICONI C GULLWINGED SPORTS CAR. B Y N E X T
YEAR, IT COULD BE BUILDING THE FIRST O F 300 REPLICAS WITH MODERN MECHANICALS.

 

WOULDN’T IT BE GREAT if the coolest cars in history could go back into production? The currently finite supplies of fragile vintage metal could be augmented by reproductions updated with modern engines and technology. Well, fantasize no longer; a provision in last year’s FAST Act highway funding law lays the groundwork for such a reality. Originally introduced as the Low Volume Motor Vehicle Manufacturers Act of 2015, the law allows manufacturers to apply for an exemption from NHTSA safety and crash-test standards for up to 325 “replica motor vehicles” annually. These repli-mods will still have to meet current-year emissions standards, which will require new EPA-certified production engines and emissions controls. NHTSA will grant a waiver only to companies building fewer than 5000 vehicles worldwide annually, and the replicas will need to be licensed from the original manufacturer. That last detail is exciting, as it creates a potential profit motive for carmakers to sanction revivals of their most memorable designs. The immediate beneficiary is today’s kitcar industry, which will be able to sell turnkey Shelby Cobra clones and Ford hot rods with engines already installed. While that intent is clear, the language concerning what constitutes a replica opens further possibilities. Apart from requiringa new engine, the law merely states that a replica be “intendedto resemble the body of another motor vehicle that was manufactured not less than 25 years before.”“That definition is a gray area,” admits Stuart Gosswein, senior director, federal government affairs at the Specialty EquipmentMarket Association (SEMA), which helped draft the legislation. Another issue that remains unresolved by the federal law is how states might change their registration processes for thesecars. While SEMA is officially focused on shepherding the law through its initial implementation, others hope the new legislation leads to a cottage industry of specialty-car builders similar to that in Great Britain. One of the first ventures announced in the wake of the law is a plan to build new DeLoreans. Texas-based DeLorean Motor Company intends to use its cache of millions of new old-stock DMC-12 parts to build 300 copies of the iconic gullwing coupe, with prices in the $80,000-to-$100,000 range. The cars will be upgraded with modern instrumentation and largerwheels and brakes to handle up to 375 horsepower. Vice president James Espey says his company will start production in the spring of 2017, “assuming the EPA and NHTSA stay on point.” The agencies have a December deadline for finalizing rules related to the law, though the industry is still cautious of possible bureaucratic delays. “As we know, NHTSA has a lot of things on its plate,” says SEMA’s Gosswein.