Revell has re-issued their Shelby GT500 as a convertible with a new body shell, roll bar, a convertible top which can be modeled up or down with an included boot, and also features two options for the engine. The mill can be built stock, or with a set of dual quads and a high-rise manifold. The hood has a scribed, outlined section to cut out in order to accommodate the custom engine option if that’s the builder’s choice. A set of stock wheels and a set of custom ones are included as well.

The interior is a one-piece tub, with separate seats and instrument panel/dashboard. Decals are provided for the instrument cluster, plus the wood panels on the doors and the dash.

Construction on the chassis was pretty straightforward with only a couple of minor fit issues with the exhaust pipes. I noted the molded-on lettering on the frame said the kit was originally issued in 1988 - I don’t know how many of the original fastback kit parts are common with this new issue.

This was really a fun kit. There’s not many parts but you do get 4 surfboards, 3 figures, 2 garbage cans (fuel tanks), and SCUBA tanks.

Engine

Bottom half of the engine is molded to the chassis.

Chassis

Front ans rear ladder bars hold the suspension. There’s really not much to it.

Interior

Seats, shifter, steering wheel and column, resemblance of a dashboard is all you get.

Body

It’s a real simple body without much detail. I decided my version would resemble a pickup truck turned into a landscaping vehicle. After priming the body with Duplicolor grey sandable primer, I shot a few coats of Dupli-Color dark cherry followed by a coat of Nason 2 part urethane clear. Only a little bit of wet sanding and polishing with Novus #2 was necessary before applying a coat of The Treatment Model Car Wax.

Revell’s ‘65 Chevy Impala hardtop kit first hit the market in the late 1990s as a factory-stock-only offering. It was later released a lowrider, and its tooling was later used as the basis for a ‘65 convertible kit (which was recently reissued as part of Revell’s “California Wheels” series) and a ‘66 hardtop. It’s a good kit and always has been and it does an excellent job of capturing the character of the 1:1 vehicle.

This newest issue of the ‘65 hardtop is the latest addition to Revell’s Chip Foose Series, a kit line based on cars designed by the popular automotive artist and designer and built on the popular cable TV series “Overhaulin’.” All of the kits in the Foose Series have been created by adding new decals, box art and smatterings of newly tooled parts to existing kits, and this one is no exception.

PROS: All-new tooling, exciting subject matter, great engine.

CONS: Too-high ride height, inaccurate wheels.

Revell's 2013 Mustang Boss 302 kit is produced from an all-new tool - only the tires, which originated in the company's 2010 Mustang GT kit, are carried over. However, Revell clearly used the same masters it used for its other late-model Mustang glue kits to produce the tooling for this one, and, as such, this kit retains the same strengths and weaknesses as every other Revell Mustang model all the way back to the 2006 GT.

Round 2 Models, under the AMT brand, has re-released this 1/25 scale 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray. The kit features 1970’s Street Rod Series box art. The Retro Deluxe reissue contains a vintage 3-in-1 kit with a new, full-color decal sheet and pre-lettered drag slicks. Although the kit shows its age in the form of some excess flash, the parts do fit together pretty well.

Engine

The stock 327 engine has several options to choose from: a 4-barrel, fuel injection, three deuces, four Webers or a blown intake setup. You can also select from stock exhaust manifolds or two different sets of headers. These accessories are some really nice parts. I chose the Webers, but used the carbs from a Falcon kit and resin air filters.

Chassis

There’s nothing to the chassis other than gluing a couple of axle blocks into place.

Interior

The interior is just a tub with poor engraving. Though the dashboard is fairly crisp.