HEAD TO HEAD Ferrari 360 Replicas

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HEAD TO HEAD Ferrari 360 Replicas
Rain or
SHINE
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JULY 2008
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One may be a coupé, while the other’s a convertible, but there’s a lot more to
help separate these Ferrari 360 replicas than simply their weather
protection. DNA Automotive and MR2 Kits have taken two very different
routes to one of today’s most popular body conversions.
ADAM WILKINS PLAYS SPOT THE DIFFERENCE
JULY 2008
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HEAD TO HEAD Ferrari 360 Replicas
I’VE ARRIVED AT our rendezvous
point an hour early. I’m at Shakespeare
County Raceway to meet the makers of
two Ferrari 360 replicas, and the rush
hour has been kinder than usual. Rather
than a tedious wait for the others to
arrive, though, I’m surprised to see DNA
Automotive’s Roland and Brian already
here polishing their car in readiness for
the photoshoot. Blimey, that’s keen!
It’s a chance to refamiliarise myself
with a car I’ve seen (and driven) a couple
of times before, refuel with bacon
sandwiches and discuss what this feature
could have been. You may remember
Stent’s leader column from a few months
ago where he said we were planning a
group test of all the 360 replicas currently
on the market. Some made excuses while
others simply didn’t show. So it’s been
whittled down to a twin test between the
DNA 3Sixty and the MR2 Kits GTA. It’s
an intriguing duo.
Dave Jones of MR2 Kits arrives right
on cue, and as a result we have a
fascinating comparison between the two
cars. They represent two very different
ways of approaching Ferrari replication.
There’s a Toyota MR2 Mk2 pitched
against the Mk3; a cabrio against a
coupé; handling finesse up against
ballistic turbocharged pace. Oh, and
there’s a bit of price difference, too.
DNA 3Sixty is
based on the Mk3
Toyota MR2 so has a
convertible roof.
Mk2 MR2 based GTA
benefits from a cheaper
donor, but proportions
aren’t as accurate.
With a turbo, it’s
seriously quick!
before and, parked alongside the 3Sixty,
the difference in ethos between these cars
is immediately exposed. Where DNA
Automotive has worked hard to make the
looks of its Toyota MR2 Mk3 based car
as close as possible to the genuine car,
MR2 Kits’ approach placed emphasis on
making a Ferrari replica body fit the
proportions of its chosen donor, the more
affordable Mk2 MR2.
ROUND 1: THE LOOK
I haven’t had a close look at the GTA
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JULY 2008
When viewed in profile, the upright
windscreen, tall glasshouse and
apparently short wheelbase would
instantly give away the car’s replica status
to a serious petrolhead. In its front and
rear three quarter views, though, the
GTA does a pretty good job of disguising
its proportions. However, it’s important
to remember that the vast majority of
people aren’t car nuts, so in any typical
high street scenario, most passers-by will
believe they’re looking at a car from Italy
when their gaze falls upon the GTA.
It’s fair to say that the 3Sixty stands up
to scrutiny beyond a casual glance in the
high street. The general stance looks
correct, while panel gaps closely emulate
those of a genuine car’s (pehaps with the
exception of the doors). I’m not talking
just about the uniformity of the shutlines
(which is generally very good), but also
how many and where they are. For
example, where the GTA’s front bumper
is incorporated into the moulding for the
wings, the 3Sixty has a separate panel,
therefore having the correct panel joins.
There are pros and cons either way; the
former eases the manufacture and build
process, the latter aids authenticity.
DNA also goes to town on detailing.
A whole catalogue of genuine Ferrari
parts make it on to the demonstrator (and
the majority of customer cars). Rear
lights, grilles and even wheels are the real
thing. The headlights are DNA’s own,
while the fake brake discs complete with
dummy calipers are a cheeky way of
disguising the MR2’s smaller stoppers.
All this is backed up by DNA’s quality
mouldings. The surface quality of the
GRP is very high, while the doubleskinned bonnet (which comes pre-
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Interior of coupé has
had a light makeover
with new colour to make
it look a little more
‘Ferrari.’ Chrome
gearlever gate is a nice
touch.
optional door cards to disguise the
insides of the MR2 doors. Like the GTA,
you need spacers on all the wheels, but at
the front DNA makes its own A-arms to
widen the track. Final jobs will include
paint, wheels and other detailing.
Neither car will be too ambitious a
project for the amateur to take on at
home, and it seems a reasonable
assumption that matching the respective
quality of each factory built car here
should be possible.
ROUND 3: PRICING
Front three quarter
angle is where the GTA
looks at its most
convincing.
bonded) has a production car feel about
it. There’s no sense in trying to fool
people into thinking a dressed up MR2 is
one of the world’s finest supercars and
then skimping on quality.
ROUND 2: THE BUILD
The build process for the two cars is quite
different. The main fork in the road is
obviously the choice of donor. The Mk2
for the GTA is cheaper to buy and
potentially a lot quicker than the Mk3
thanks to the option of a turbocharged
engine on imported cars. In favour of the
Mk3, there’s a reputation for sweeter
handling and a convertible roof. Once
you’ve sourced a donor, the build process
for each car is relatively straightforward
given that these are body swaps. Some
body conversions on the market require
heavy modification work to the donor
before the kit can even be fitted, but that
simply isn’t the case with either the GTA
or the 3Sixty.
With the GTA, you’ll need to cut the
corners from the bottom of the doors and
trim away some of the inner rear
wheelarch to allow for the replica’s wider
tyres. The new door panels are added
first and the rest of the bodywork fits
around it. The simple one-piece front
end makes life easy, while the panels are
fitted with a mix of bonding, screwing
and riveting. The Toyota’s roof is
retained, with the GTA bodywork being
blended into it across the rear.
Suspension modifications include
80mm spacers at the rear, 25mm spacers
at the front and a drop in ride height of
40mm. This can be achieved merely with
lowering springs, but using aftermarket
coil-overs (available as part of the higher
spec kit package) will result in a less
compromised ride quality. From there
on, you’ll need to add detailing like
lights, wheels and a paint job, plus any
interior upgrades.
It’s a similarly simple story with the
3Sixty. Here, you start with the rear
bodywork and sills (which are one piece)
and build the body up around that. DNA
provides its own ‘carriers’ for the front
and rear bodywork. The advantage of not
relying on pick-up points from the donor
is that if you use a crashed car, the
locations for the GRP panels won’t be
affected. Some slight trimming of the
door tops is needed before the new panels
can be fitted, and there’s also a fabricated
carrier to bolt onto the Toyota’s bulkhead
to mount the roll-over bars.
With the DNA kit, you also need to fit
the hood arrangement, and there are
Black rear glass
conceals a fake engine
cover that’s currently in
development. Once it’s
finished, clear glass will
show it off.
USEFUL CONTACTS
DNA Automotive (3Sixty). T: 0121 360 1390.
E: info@dnaautomotive.com
W: www.dnaautomotive.com
MR2 Kits (GTA). T: 01453 542666.
E: mr2kits@tesco.net W: www.mr2kits.co.uk
JULY 2008
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There’s no escaping the fact that the
3Sixty is a more expensive car to
assemble than the GTA. A later donor
vehicle, the need for a soft-top,
fabricated parts under the skin and more
developed panelwork see to that. DNA
claim you can build a budget car from
£14,200, helped along by a recent
£1500 price drop of the kit price. The kit
now costs £4995.
A detailed price breakdown backs up
the claim, with major costs including:
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HEAD TO HEAD Ferrari 360 Replicas
JOIN IN
Italian Replica Club, Roy Kelly, Stoneleigh, 50
Teal Street, Ossett, West Yorkshire WF5 0NY.
T: 01924 273619. E: royglyniskelly@aol.com
W: www.italianreplicaclub.co.uk
get you a factory built car. Build one
yourself, and you’ll either start with the
basic kit at £3950 or the full £5995 kit.
The basic features the 16-piece GRP
panels, engine cover, fixings and
hardware, lights, rubber trim and rear
window. The full kit adds to that
adjustable suspension, wheels and tyres
and spacers. Factor in a £1000 donor car,
a £1500 paint job and other details and
you could be on the road for around
£9000. The GTA certainly offers a way
into Ferrari replica ownership when
budget is critical.
rear springs (£120), front suspension
arms (£350), spacers (£350), exhaust
(£350), roof (£525), genuine Ferrari
lights and grilles (£880), door cards
(£280), wheels and tyres (£795), paint
(£1500)... and so the list goes on until
that £14,200 estimate is reached. While a
cheaper car won’t quite match the one in
the photos (the wheels won’t be genuine,
for instance), it will still have all the high
quality panels and even a leather retrim.
In other words, it will still be a car to be
proud of.
Over at MR2 Kits, your £14,000 will
MR2 Roadster
basis means DNA feels
like a modern sports car
in action.
Quality of
mouldings is very high.
Lots of genuine Ferrari
parts, like lights and
grilles, are used.
Hood is neatly
hidden below engine
cover.
feels like an older car. An enclosed roof
and largely dark interior give the car a
more serious ambience, although it is
balanced by the addition of some light
trim to the seats and lower half of the
dash. Again, Ferrari style dials hide the
Toyota origins to some extent, and I
really like the optional £140 chrome
H-gate for the gearlever. It’s a nice
touch.
In motion, the Mk2 derived GTA
doesn’t have the same finesse as the Mk3
based car. But it makes up for it in
another way: ballistic straight line pace.
No Mk3 will ever be as quick as this
300bhp-plus turbocharged powered
import. It’s reasonably motivated before
the turbo cuts in, but when it does it’s as
if it has sprouted another engine and an
extra pair of driven wheels; it digs into
the tarmac and catapults itself in
ROUND 4: DRIVING THEM
I drove the DNA first and, since I drive a
Mk3 MR2 as regular transport, I had a
rough idea as to what to expect. The
retrim has been successful in hiding the
car’s origins, with tan leather found on
the dashboard, gearlever gaiter and seats
while tan carpets complete the picture.
The centre of the steering wheel is also
masked and three Ferrari style dials sit
behind it (within the stock Toyota
binnacle). This car has actually been sold
and, as the buyer is 6ft 6in tall, the seat
has been lowered. It still has its runners,
though, and I actually preferred it to my
own car’s driving position.
Off the line performance is slightly
dulled by those wide tyres, but the car
remains brisk. It’s in the corners that the
big wheels really alter the dynamics. In a
standard MR2 Roadster, oversteer is
fairly easy to achieve (sometimes
unintentionally). Here, you feel the car
will just keep on sticking.
The delicacy of the controls remains,
though, with responsive steering, light
pedals and a sweet gearchange still
shining through.
Hop into the GTA and immediately it
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THANKS TO
Shakespeare County Raceway for the location. It’s
one of the UK’s few drag strips, running a number
of events during the year. T: 01789 720180.
W: www.shakespearecountyraceway.co.uk
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whichever direction you’re facing at the
time.
The surface at Shakespeare County
Raceway generates a lot of tyre squeal –
even my Treka van can emit a small
‘chirrup’ as you snatch second gear. With
the GTA, the screech doesn’t happen
when you select the next ratio, but
actually halfway through the gear when
the turbo cuts in. Just think about that for
a moment. I’ve never experienced
anything quite like it! It’s more than a
little addictive.
CONCLUSION
What has become clear is that these two
cars, while being similar in appearance,
fill two very different gaps in the market.
The 3Sixty is superb. It’s a thoroughly
developed kit package which sits atop a
modern, highly capable production car
platform. It’s also backed up by the
engineering behind the scenes (the
bodywork ‘carriers’ and location for the
roll-over bars) which appears to be of
equally high quality. OK, it’s not the
cheapest car here today, but you can see
where the extra cash is going.
But this in no way detracts from what
MR2 Kits has achieved with the GTA. It
opens up the 360 replica market to an
audience which couldn’t previously have
considered one. The company should be
JULY 2008
Retrimmed seats in
DNA look great, as do
matching tan dashboard
and carpets.
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applauded for bringing the genre into the
realms of such affordability.
In the end, though, it’s the DNA 3Sixty
which is the more polished product. Quite
neatly, that’s how today began.