Knight Rider re-release in 2014

Sweet! I have one of the original MPC model kits in my collection (unbuilt, but not mint in box and out of the bag). Glad to hear this is coming out. :D
 
Or just buy the Aoshima kit, which is more accurate than the MPC kit anyway.

Well, that would be the best way to go! I have the Aoshima kitt (see what I did?) as seen above. It is a great kit and you can get the whichever season you want as the front end and dash layout differed. They are expensive though, but worth it and yes, far superior to the old MPC offering. But, that old MPC kitt has some nostalgia behind it and I may pick one up just for that.

And yeah, that working scanner in the Aoshima is just too cool!
 
...But, that old MPC kitt has some nostalgia behind it and I may pick one up just for that...
I feel the same way about several kits I built when I was much younger than I am now. Fortunately, many of them have been reissued over the years, and/or I've been able to find the original kit on evilBay for a reasonable price, so I'll be able to build them again with the skills I've improved somewhat since the early days.
 
I hope they correct the problem that previous re-issues had. Wrong year body. Missing vents in the fenders.
The interior is also a later version of a Pontiac. Cant add the console in the center because of the wrong year
given in the kit.

Hopefully they correct that before releasing it.
 
The MPC Version with the "Golden Opportunity" explosion bubble Article No.: 01-0675 was the only correct version with the fender vents, after AMT/ERTL bought MPC, the body presumably got retooled and didn't had the fender vents. This makes the MPC version more special…

I found it out with a canadian model builder, he had several versions and posted our findings here:
Knight Rider KITT
 
I hope they correct the problem that previous re-issues had. Wrong year body. Missing vents in the fenders.
The interior is also a later version of a Pontiac. Cant add the console in the center because of the wrong year
given in the kit.

Hopefully they correct that before releasing it.
Doubtful, since it sounds like quite a bit of new tooling would be required to "fix" those inaccuracies.
 
I picked up the Round 2 MPC reissue Knight Rider kit this week. It has some good news and some bad news though...

First, the good news:

It comes with a nice decal sheet featuring KITT's dashboard layout from early season one (featuring the original voice modulator light, not the graduated bars version) and the KNIGHT license plate and you get not just one copy, but TWO so you could theoretically do up two models with it. I'm a little confused by that as I expecting two sets of markings on one sheet to have alternate stuff, such as perhaps a KARR modulator and a KARR plate, but paint can make short work of that. A decal for the scanner eye is also provided for those that don't plan to put a scanner light circuit in the model (in my case I may do a quick and dirty transfer of the circuit and batteries from the Hallmark KITT ornament into the MPC kit).

Secondly, the kit still seems to have all the original bits seen in the previous offerings. The dash, center consoles and overhead switch box are all there, plus many of the custom parts such as the side pipes and the like.

Third, it has BOTH clear and tinted windows, so you can do up your KITT however you want.

Now the bad news...

The body shell is still the late 1980s (1989 Turbo Firebird Indy 500 pace car I believe) version without the side vents and the trim strips. It looks like that tooling was altered when AMT took over and I believe it was due to AMT/Ertl wanting to use the molds to make the Indy 500 pace car from that year (which had a turbocharged Buick V6 under the hood). That being said, I think it should be possible to alter it back. I've got a couple of my early issue trashed KITTS in my stash, so I can Dremel the side vents out of them, cut holes in the new body and do a graft. If one checks out model car swap meets, it should be pretty easy to find a donor MPC Firebird or Knight Rider "glue bomb" for dirt cheap to scrounge, assuming somebody doesn't do a resin set. KITT in the later seasons seemed to have the door strips, so those could stay. But removing them should be pretty easy to do also if one didn't like them.

The interior floor BTW also has the altered center console, so the KITT box won't integrate fully either. But, looking at the two configurations, I think that can be fixed with a little sheet styrene as the shapes are certainly more the same than different.

The short of it is, except for the coloring of the plastic (black in this case), the parts provided are essentially the same as the 2002 AMT offering. Do the extra bits provided make up for the work that has to be done to accurize the model? Well, that is down to individual choice. In my case, I say yes. But your own mileage may vary. One determined modeler CAN made a difference though if they want to accurize their kit and I don't see anything that would totally kill the idea of doing it with this particular version.
 
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The MPC Version with the "Golden Opportunity" explosion bubble Article No.: 01-0675 was the only correct version with the fender vents, after AMT/ERTL bought MPC, the body presumably got retooled and didn't had the fender vents. This makes the MPC version more special…

I found it out with a canadian model builder, he had several versions and posted our findings here:
Knight Rider KITT

Not entirely true. I have an MPC Ertl version in my stash that still has the original style body (bought it at retail). There were some changes added to the kit as the tail light lens piece had some embossing on the back side (the "Pontiac" logo hadn't been added yet though) and the flat hood had the GTA style vents added. But otherwise, it could be done up as an accurate KITT like the 1982-83 MPC offering with the "Golden Opportunity" tokens on the box. Only problem is unless you come across a box with the shrinkwrap off so one can inspect the parts, there is literally NO WAY to tell if the version of MPC Ertl kit #6377 is one of these early MPC Ertl offerings or a late one with an inaccurate retooled body.
 
Ohh… okay. Well, I conversed with Jim and remembered that I only had once this fender vents on the first release, I also had other releases but never with the vents. True was with the retooled vents on the smooth hood and additional tail lights on the later ones with Pontiac. He also had those other boxes from MPC, but they weren't with the side fender vents on the chassis.
 
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