AMT 1993-1997 LT1 Camaro Z28
Remember the days when muscle cars were the hottest thing you could drive? Names such as Z28, Hemi, 6-Pack, and Cobra all ruled the streets in colors such as Hugger Orange, Ermine White, and Plum Crazy Purple. Those days are long gone unfortunately due to emissions, climbing insurance rates, among other things. To young to remember these days? Well the muscle cars aren’t completely gone. Names such as Z28 and Cobra still exist, and are still just as badass. Although they don’t rely on big blocks and carburetors, they still make do with enough Horsepower to lay the smack down on unsuspecting imports. The Z28 Camaro is still one of the fastest cars you can buy for the money. Sub 13-second quarter miles for around $20,000?! Not bad. It all started with the 4th gen LT1 Z28’s, back in 1993.
The best representations of the 4th Gen LT1 Camaro’s are AMT. AMT has made every year of the 4th gen LT1 Camaro. Kits made by AMT are 93 Convertible and T-TOP, 94, 95, and 96 Convertibles, and 97 30th Anniv. Convertible, and 97 SS. The kit I built was the 93 Camaro Z28 with T-Tops.
The accuracy is especially good compared to Revell Monogram Camaro’s of the same Generation. Under the hood, is the 280 horsepower 310 lb ft of tq LT1 350 Iron block with a T56 6 Speed transmission. The engine is especially detailed. It has separately molded starter, unlike most Revell engines that are molded into the blocks. The valve covers also have “LT-1” engraved into them, taking the detail further. It also has a chrome-plated intake. The intake is the only place where theirs a molding problem. The intake and throttle body are molded in 1 piece, and is chrome plated. The throttle body has a dimple in the plastic, which is easily fixable. For my engine, I built mine with a Vortech Supercharger, with custom made belts and pullies, and after cooler core which actually came with the kit. The kit comes with the SS Ram Air box. I trimmed the tubes off of it, and now serves as an after cooler core. The tubes from supercharger-to-core and intake-to-core were all custom built. Surprisingly the radiator hoses were easy to get in, with such little room. Some guess work comes in when putting the belts/fans on the chrome engine front cover/water pump. I put a 1mm gap between the belt and cover.
The suspension is workable, but not perfect. The front track is a little wide, and therefore sticks a little out of the fenders. The rear end is weak. I actually decided to run larger tires out back, and the axles are even weaker. (Kind of like the 10 bolt in the real 1:1 Car
) If you don’t use super glue, the spindles/shock tower need some time to set up in the lower A-Arm.
Interior varies. Some of the kits come with cloth seats, others come with leather seats. Also, the newer ones have an updated dashboard. Seats might come out of place if you don’t use enough glue. There is a minor problem, the transmission hump and back seat. There is a bigger gap between the seat and hump, then in the 1:1 Car. But, at least it has the hump in the passenger floor, a detail neglected by Revell. Lastly, a minor problem is the interior tub may not fit right. Some superglue will easily correct this problem.
Also, AMT got all the body lines right, where as Revell didn’t. The body... its pretty detailed. On earlier kits you’ll find that the “Z28” is molded into the sides, unlike the newer ones. The spoiler may sit a little crooked, leaving a bigger gap then on the other side. The rear taillights don’t quite contour correctly with the body, so you’ll need to hold it in place until the glue sets up. Also, the front spindle/shock tower is to front forward, so the front tires might rub against the front fender. Another problem is with the tires. These tires seem to be universal with all AMT Sports cars. The kit comes with a plastic shiny “P245/50 ZR16s” Good Year Eagle GSC’s. The rear axle is too short, and made the tires stick too far inside the fenders. I compensated this by replacing the P245/50 ZR16s for a pair of P285/40ZR17 from a Corvette kit. The stock Z28 “Salad Shredder” rims still fit in the Corvette tires.Painting the T-Top pillar might be a problem because there is no bodyline to stop the paint from running out of control. Just use masking tape, and you should be okay. Or get a bottle of touch up paint. And since there were only 4 decals, I didn’t bother to use them (3 “Z28” Decals and a license plate)
Value on this kit is good. It’s parts are interchangeable within one and other, and at a price of $13.99 its well worth it, But expect to pay $15.00+ for the hardtop kit because it is much more rare then the convertible. And $17.00+ for the SS Version.
All in all, its about an 8.5/10 Not too bad for an AMT kit.
