Big John Mazmanian was one of the earliest proponents of the form of drag racing known as the 'funny car'. These cars were originally steel bodied cars that had wildly shortened wheelbases that often put the rear wheels several feet closer to the front ones. This was while keeping the rest of the car its normal length. These were often powered by the largest and most powerful engines they could find, generally from rail dragsters. Because the cars looked so odd with the shortened wheelbase and nearly normal bodies, they were called funny cars.

The genre then advanced to the next step which was full fibreglass bodies and that is where this kit enters the scene. His 1968 Barracuda funny car went from design to the race track in three months and was the car to beat for quite some time. The first run of the car was in the high sevens at a top speed of nearly 200 mph. Today, that is what pro stock cars have been running for several years while funny cars are nearing (if they have not already exceeded) the 300 mph top speed. However, it was cars like that of this kit that got the show really on the road.

  Polar Lights is a company that started out by reverse engineering Aurora kits. Having achieved some success and capital by doing that, they have embarked upon doing some new mold kits. Included in that have been some car kits including some old time NASCAR and NHRA dragster kits. The Barracuda and Charger have been done as dragsters. Polar Lights then decided it might be neat to do a clear bodied version of the Barracuda and Charger kits. This is the Barracuda version.

In terms of parts, there is no difference at all other than in the material used for the body. There are a number of sprues to this kit in white, black, clear and chromed plastic. The chrome bits are very well done as are the other parts. The highlight of the kit are the clear body parts. The idea is a great one as it offers the builder the chance to display the car with the body down and still see the work that went into the chassis.

The downside is that the builder will have to do a lot of work on the clear body to get it perfectly clear. The reason for this is that there are a number of mold lines and ejector pin marks that are not a problem on a painted body, but have to be removed for a clear bodied model. Getting these removed and the body polished again will be quite a bit of work, but worth the effort. For those who don't want to do all that work, an option is to just leave sections of the body that are free from blemishes clear. That way one can get a glimpse of the chassis parts. The final option is to treat it as a regular kit and just paint the body, but then why bother with paying the extra for the clear one!?

The kit itself is very well detailed with a large number of parts for the engine and framework. I'm sure that all are in the right place and properly detailed. I know little about these cars, but am impressed with the number of parts in the kit. The instructions are also very well done showing not only the construction sequence but also the color needed for each part. The decal sheet is superbly done by Slixx decals, a company that is well respected for doing NASCAR aftermarket sheets.

It looks like a really superb car kit. I have not done many car models, but will have to add this one to my collection. Those who like funny cars and especially those of an earlier age will be very happy to have this one available.

Review kit courtesy of Polar Lights. Thank you for your support!

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