This DIY Supercar Became a Hollywood Icon

The 1970s was arguably the golden age of custom cars and one do-it-yourself Californian special was to make more than just a passing impression. This fiberglass-bodied kit car was the exotic to beat all exotics, and a street-legal Chevrolet-engined beast that was to achieve a cult following. This is the story of the Manta Mirage, which in its twelve-year reign became a Hollywood darling and starred in a variety of TV shows and cult films.

Chevrolet

Founded

November 3, 1911

Founder

Louis Chevrolet, Arthur Chevrolet, William C. Durant

Headquarters

Detroit, Michigan, United States of America

Owned By

General Motors

Current CEO

Mary Barra

The Eye-Popping Racer from the Can-Am Scene

Brothers Brad and Tim LoVette just loved the Can-Am race series, and they were so captivated by those sleek cars that they set out to build some street-legal versions. To do this, they founded Manta Cars in 1974 in Southern California to put together a kit car offering. You could build the finished article at home or work through authorized assemblers, but this certainly wasn’t a copycat design like some of the Countach or Cobra replicas from that day. Instead, the Mirage was unique and unmistakable with its long, low, and wide appearance, canopy-style cockpit, and wedge-shaped styling. It was a 1900 lb fiberglass missile that tried to fuse plenty of racing pedigree with some restrained street legality. Best of all, you could easily pair your new kit car with a small or big displacement American V8.

The Mirage Has a Special Place in Automotive Culture

The Manta Mirage became famous due to its appearance in films and shows. For example, it had a starring role in the 1975 cult movie Death Race 2000, starring David Carradine. In the film, Carradine drove a heavily modified Mirage which had a masked and frightening appearance, perfect for the movie’s dystopian theme. It also featured as one of the cars targeted for theft in the 1974 movie, Gone in 60 Seconds, by H.B. Halicki. Today, the Mirage is definitely a throwback to the more experimental times of US automotive history, when the rules were not as tight, and you were able to be creative. It’s certainly a vehicle for fans of obscure exotics and Hollywood movie cars and to many enthusiasts, it’s nothing short of kit car royalty.

True Performance with Mid-Engined Stability

The engine of choice for your Mirage project would typically be a 4.6-liter or 5.7-liter Chevrolet V8. This would sit in the middle of the car’s tubular spaceframe chassis, which gave excellent weight distribution and a low center of gravity to boot. The Mirage had very responsive steering and owners could even fit upscale Porsche or Hewland transaxles, adding some additional motorsport DNA. Some people chose to cannibalize parts from cars like the Corvette, while others might customize their suspension, but either way, the end result was a heady combination of good looks and raw torque. Performance varied according to the specification, but zero to 60 times were commonly less than five seconds, and some owners reported top speeds north of 150 mph.

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The Kit Car Angle

When you consider that the base price of the Mirage was less than $6000, you can see why the idea was so popular. After all, you could access supercar performance as well as looks for a price that you might otherwise pay for a new family sedan. And better still, you could customize it according to your likes, so long as you have a reasonable amount of mechanical dexterity. Still, that customization work wasn’t for the faint-hearted. You’d need to know how to fabricate and weld and the final fit and finish could certainly vary depending on your level of skill. But if you did a good job, the reward was a very capable machine that would turn heads wherever it went.

Many of the cars from this era were just loud, lightweight, and focused, being meant for speed first and showroom duties second. However, others were quite the opposite, where the owner wanted fully customized interiors, luxury trimmings, and even gullwing doors. No two Mirages were exactly alike, and this was a world of pure personalization before some of the big manufacturers cottoned on to that opportunity.

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Can-Am Performance Takes to the Street

In the 1970s, Can-Am cars featured bubble cockpits, open front wheels, and wedge-like bodies, and were unmistakably racy. Manufacturers like McLaren and Lola would battle for honors around American circuits, but the Mirage wanted to take that race to the streets. In so doing, Manta created something that was unique, or a tribute to Can-Am rather than a race replica. The body of the Mirage featured hand-laid fiberglass placed on top of a custom steel tube chassis. The car sat very low to the ground at just 39 inches tall and, with its wide fenders, looked very aggressive. The driver would need to flip up the roof canopy in order to access the cockpit and, in this respect, the Mirage looked more like a sci-fi spaceship. Once on board, there was everything that you would need but not much more. For example, you’d typically get simple bucket seats and a racing car dashboard, but a purist’s car wouldn’t have any luxury trim, sound insulation, or air conditioning systems.

Limited in Production but Lasting in Legacy

By many accounts, only around 1000 cars came out of the factory between 1974 and 1986. This is why they’re fairly rare today and that rarity also adds to their appeal, especially when you consider that each is one-of-a-kind in terms of build and personality. While Manta Cars did have another model in the Montage, (similar to a McLaren M6GT in many respects), the Mirage was still its halo car. However, in the end, Manta Cars fell by the wayside due to a combination of liability concerns, increasing regulation, and competition. But there’s no doubt that the Mirage left a powerful legacy, far beyond the specialist kit car world.

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Owning a Manta Mirage Today

Surviving examples of the Manta Mirage appear occasionally and will typically fetch between $20,000 and $60,000 based on build quality, condition, and history. It’s certainly possible to restore one if it’s seen its better days, but that’s not a job for the faint-hearted. Chassis and body repair may require specialized knowledge and many of the original parts came from 1970s Ford or GM vehicles. However, certain vintage kit car clubs or online communities are around to offer support as needed.

If you’re on the lookout for a Mirage, try to find one with an original Manta VIN tag and a solid drivetrain. But look carefully, as a vehicle that is poorly built could quickly turn into a money pit. Make sure the panels fit well, and the frame welds are sound before going ahead.

The Mirage is Still in Focus

It may have been decades since Manta Cars went to the wall, but the legend of the Mirage endures. Remember that the project was never a commercial juggernaut, but rather an adventure built on passion. Each car was sculpted by hand with personality and performance in mind and the end result certainly had presence. So, in today’s world of supercars and EVs, the Manta Mirage stands out, simply because it was a no-nonsense and fearless exotic with an unbeatable amount of style.

Sources: Bring a Trailer.