This is a picture-perfect reproduction of the Knight Industries 2000. Unfortunately, after all that money and man-hours, the gooey center is still an '80s F-Body. Canadian seller zapper80 has done an awesome job putting this car together, and claims a cost of over $40,000 CDN. Zapper80 cites original molds as the source for some of the body parts, which leads us to believe that the car was put together from the wealth of parts and information available from the enthusiastic Knight Rider fans on the web. The amount of information, and lines of communication back to KITT designer Michael Scheffe are truly astounding. No matter where everything came from, it's a hoot to see it all lit up, and even better, it all works. Well, maybe not the "Turbo Boost" function that'd send 3000 pounds of Trans-Am hurtling over bad guys. This car probably has more mojo under its hood than the original KITT the Hoff tooled around in while doing good for FLAG.
Still, even with all the effort expended, we think the reserve of $19,000 and the buy it now of $30,000 are kind of loony, even in Canadian dollars. Original fans of the series (some of us Autobloggers included) don't have the deep pockets boomers are using to push vintage musclecar prices sky-high; and perhaps our memories of Michael, Devon, and the gang aren't fond enough that we'd want to be extremely conspicuous. Perhaps the value of these cars will rise to meet zapper's hopes when the Weinsteins debut their Knight Rider movie. For the ulitmate 1984 smackdown, we envision a drag race between one of these, and a Delorean that's been defiled with all the time-machine crap. KITT would so totally kick McFly's ass.
More pictures after the jump
London 2008: Honda OSM concept roadster says, "Cheerio!"
London 2008: Lotus unveils the Evora
2010 Chevy Camaro - Official Details and Images
2010 Chevy Camaro - LIVE from the reveal
Volkswagen unveiling two-door Elise fighter in LA, new sports car
First Drive: 2008 MINI Cooper S JCW
In the Autoblog Garage:2009 Nissan GT-R
North American Exclusive First Drive: Alfa MiTo
First Drive: 2009 Kia Borrego
In The Autoblog Garage: 2008 Mercedes SLK55 AMG
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
felipe @ Jan 30th 2007 10:54AM
that dash is too cool.
did KITT actually have those head/fog lights in the bumper?
some of the pics I see have it and some dont?
Jos?le @ Jan 30th 2007 10:57AM
I'd only buy it if the Turbo Boost button actually functioned.
Tim UF @ Jan 30th 2007 11:24AM
does mr belvedere come pre installed in the dash too?
roadside observer @ Jan 30th 2007 11:38AM
I'd love to have that car. Knight Rider was a fantastic show. Now if Rebecca Holden(April Curtis) or Patricia Richardson(Bonnie Barstow) came with it ...
Jorge Arellano @ Jan 30th 2007 2:37PM
A flying Delorean would kick a jumping firebird ass´s any given day.
"Roads?, where we´re going we don´t need roads!!!!"
Doctor Emmet Brown to Marty Mcfly (Back to the Future Part I)
Jorge
Hoosier One @ Jan 30th 2007 2:46PM
Roadside Observer: you mean Patricia McPherson.
Steve @ Jan 30th 2007 8:14PM
Tim, it wasn't Mr. Belvedere, it was William Daniels from 'Boy Meets World' fame (http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0200122/). :)
conspire @ Jan 30th 2007 8:36PM
Actually, the voice of KITT wasn't the guy who played Mr Belvidere, he was Mr. Feeny on Boy Meets World.
roadside observer @ Jan 31st 2007 9:33AM
Hoosier, yes, you are correct. Thanks.
Justin @ Jan 31st 2007 1:26PM
So...40,000 CDN...*does math*
Sweet, $10 American. hehe...
I don't see the appeal of reproductions. Unless you could get the actual show prop for collector value, this is just useless.
Get me a flying DeLorean and we'll talk.
Vinay @ Jan 31st 2007 1:31PM
I thought KITT's fuel filler door was behind the rear license plate.
It would suck to have to drive it with no friendly voice banter from KITT or turbo boost button to make up for the AUTOMATIC transmission.
Pete @ Jan 31st 2007 2:09PM
"Sweet, $10 American. hehe..."
Does some more quick maths, about £1 UK. hehe ;o)
dawneb @ Jan 31st 2007 3:36PM
OMG! Could you imagine David Hasselhoff getting run'd down by this car?! hehe, I want it!
Doc @ Jan 31st 2007 11:33PM
As much as I love KITT, I'm going to have to dissent. KITT has scrolling lights... Doc Brown has The Flux Capacitor and Mr. Fusion, not to mention the fly-i-ness. I'm with Jorge on this one.
Kieran @ Feb 1st 2007 12:03AM
Personally, I never really liked Kitt's dash board or the front end in the early seasons of KR--the dash looks cheesy with those white lines on the displays, and those obvious filler panels below the headlights look like they'd come loose in a strong breeze (actually, if you watch really early episodes of the series, they DO come loose in the wind when the car goes fast enough; the front end flies apart during jumps in a few episodes, too).
The problem with using the original molds for the front end is that the original molds sucked. I've seen replicas with far more solid-looking front ends, with lines that match the hood better to boot, and the nose of the car was custom-molded. That said, this particular replica -is- extremely accurate, and while I wouldn't personally prefer it over a different one, I have to give the guy who built it kudos for that.
On a final note, I wouldn't want one of the original prop cars, either--they aren't street legal (Universal removed the VINs and replaced them with prop ID numbers), and only have two-gallon fuel tanks.
Ken @ Feb 1st 2007 4:14PM
The 'turbo boost' should be a 100 wet shot of nitrous
Crazyfast'79TA @ Feb 3rd 2007 12:15AM
Wow! That's a lot of work he put in that car! Oh yeah it's cool and all, but does he drive it? I've got a '79 that I built up from a piece of crap. I traded the nose and tail for '77 pieces and painted on the bird and all the stripes to make it look like the Bandit. Now I know mine isn't all "picture correct", but every time I take it out I get the same "hey it's Smokey and the Bandit!" from all ages. And yes, I do drive it like the Bandit! There was nothing "special" done to that car for the movie. That was just Pontiac Power at it's best! So I guess if someone would want to dish out that kind of cash for a KITT replica and get similar reponses like I get, it's all good.
gerald @ Feb 5th 2007 5:14PM
To answer the first comment, there were 2 different styles of KITT used in different seasons. One had the lower front lights and one did not. There were also changes to the interior depending on the season.
Fred @ Feb 8th 2007 10:23PM
I would buy this if it came with the portable home base truck and trailer! Oh, and the truck driver, too. And one of the Knight Rider chicks. You can leave Devon Miles out, but I'll take his Merc.
Armen @ Feb 17th 2007 8:03PM
Shoot, if I had the money to spare I would buy that thing :) That's sweet!
The only thing missing is the mod to make it a hardtop convertible.