I hear about kit cars a lot. From my understanding (I could be wrong), a kit car is a car that is put together by an average person, with the parts shipped to them. I notice people selling kit cars have them at cheap prices. $18k for a Lamborghini seems pretty good for me. My question is this: assuming I have the money and I check out the car beforehand, would a kit car be reliable to buy and use on a daily basis?
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You may be able to buy a plastic body kit that will make your old beater Camaro look something like a Lamborghini, but underneath, it's still an old Camaro. You can't buy a kit to build your own real Lambo, or Ferrari or Maserati or any other exotic sports car.
Most really cheap kit cars you see advertised for sale are unfinished cars, and the main reason the seller is letting it go for cheap is because he's been fighting with the parts/kit supplier for three years, and still doesn't have the right parts to finish the project.
Good luck with that!
A kit car, also known as a "component car", is an automobile that is available as a set of parts that a manufacturer sells and the buyer then either assembles into a car themselves, or retains a third party to do part or all of the work on their behalf. Usually, many of the major mechanical systems such as the engine and transmission are sourced from donor vehicles or purchased from other vendors new. Kits vary in completeness ranging from as little as a book of plans to a complete set with all components included.
You're not buying a Lamborghini is you buy a kit car. You're basically buying a do-it-yourself replica. They are only as reliable as the donor cars you get the rest of the parts from and the person putting the thing together.
Unless you own an auto garage or know someone who does, you're also going to be spending a lot on the tools required to do it.
First, I would not say they can be put together by the average person. It does take quite a bit of mechanical skill and lots of tools. Most of them do not ship with an engine or frame. You will need a donor car. And you will basicaly sac at least a few months putting it together.
Daily driver? sure if you build it right.
Safe? Not as safe as a production car, most of those will have little to nothing in the way of safty features.
Also they only look like the cars they are kits for. It will not drive like a lambo!
Your definition of a kit car is completely wrong.
A kit car is a a kit that you build but a skilled mechanic has to be involved. A novice would never be able to do this on his own. It takes skill and the right tools. Most kit cars are built from actual cars to make them look like something they aren't.
Like that Lamborghini. It's probably a Chevy Cobalt or a Toyota MR2 under the fiberglass body. It isn't a Lambo. Nowhere close to a lambo. It's a Toyota that's made to look like a Lambo.
They are only as reliable as the chassis and the engine under the fiberglass. Unless you are spending a lot of money for a professionally built high quality kit most of them fall apart within a few years.
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First off I would never take advice from someone not skilled on the subject. Which obviously is the case above. With that being said, a kit car is just that. A car that comes as a kit. There is a difference between a kit car and a REPLICA kit car. I say this because there are many cars that come only as kits to begin with. My question too you when determining which one you want. Do you want to tell people your driving a fake Lamborghini or would you rather tell someone you have the fastest 0-100 MPH car. If you don’t want to pull up and have someone tell you that your “lambo” sounds like a Toyota then expect to spend another 15 thousand on the drive train. I personally would rather own a well built replica kit car than the real thing. Many people don’t realize a lambo wont hold up on normal city driving, repairs will be costly, and insurance will annually cost just as much as a kit… that’s if you can even get the permit to drive one in your state. Yes. You have to have a permit. A well built…. I said… well built… replica will hold its starting price value for a very long time, repairs will be cheap, modifications endless. Now… my personal suggestion. Look for a non replica kit car. I currently own the worlds fastest 0-100 car… its available as a full kit. I paid 23000. Its faster than the stock lambo to that speed, sounds better, insurance is cheap, and I don’t get made fun of for driving a fake car. In fact just the opposite BC the car was designed frame up for performance. So as far as falling apart… ya right. But. Do not expect to spend any less than 20000 for a unfinished kit car. And close to 25000 for a finished one.