By Dean Larson

I’ve always had a soft spot for the Fiberfab Jamaican. It’s more refined and reserved than Fiberfab’s other cars and is all together a cool little super coupe design. This Jamaican II for sale on eBay is just probably the best example you’ll see any time soon, and offers a few interesting musings on Fiberfab history.

It’s not immediately obvious, but the Jamaican was actually inspired by the mid-engine Lamborghini Muira. Take a second look at the bodylines, and the Muira influence starts to show. The upswept the tail edge of the window, the air scoop behind the window, the rear fender profile, the rear glass and deck lid shape, and even the tail panel all resemble the Muira. With a couple revisions to the front fender and the nose, the car would be a close copy of the original. That being said, we love the idea of a Muira-inspired super coupe with a front engine, and the more conventional layout really simplifies things for a home builder.

While many Jamaicans were designed to utilize a MG, Triumph or Austin-Healey chassis, the Jamaican II was a V8-powered car with a chassis designed and manufactured by Fiberfab. The Jamaican II seen here on eBay is a nicely finished example and is quite rare since only 250-300 Jamaican IIs were built. 

We had a case of déjà vu when we first looked at the photos of this car, as the same seller had listed a similarly finished La Dawri Daytona on eBay one year ago. Both cars were definitely built by the same person, a competent craftsman who liked his small-block Chevys, GM Turbo-Hydromatic transmissions, these particular alloy wheels and this lacquer-y red paint. The seller states that the Jamaican was finished in the early ’80s, but does not clarify who built the car. It’s powered by the familiar combination of a 350 Chevrolet small block with a Turbo-350 automatic. The engine looks to be a clean and running 1970s example with a few bolt-ons and some recent service work. Out back, the Jamaican II chassis uses a 1960s Corvette rear axle with independent suspension.

The bodywork was finished well for an old Fiberfab considering these cars required a lot of custom work and hours of panel fitting. It’s pretty well documented that Fiberfab didn’t do its customers many favors in this realm. In particular, the Jamaicans required a lot of work on the door panels and a close look does reveal that the panel gaps could be improved yet. Otherwise the body is nice, and all the trim pieces and exterior lights on this car are a rare luxury with classic glass cars. Speaking of rare luxuries for classic kit cars, this car also has a full interior with carpet, instrumentation and matching upholstery.

The seller states that the car may still need some fine tuning, and there a few things we’d change on the Jamaican, including the four-wheel drum brakes and Turbo-350 transmission, but to each his own. These cars also look really nice with wire wheels, but these do grow on you and almost have a wire wheel look to them. We would, however, eliminate the bumperettes on the front end as they clutter the nose of the car a bit.

For one final musing on this Fiberfab, I’d like to touch on the company’s founder Warren “Bud” Goodwin. It’s tough to find much information on Goodwin, but Wikipedia’s description claims he was arrested in 1967 and charged with voluntary manslaughter over the death of his young second wife, named Jamaica. We attempted to cross-reference that, but information is scant on the subject. Whatever the truth of the matter is, it definitely casts an odd light on this super coupe.

See this Fiberfab Jamaican II here on eBay.