Text and Photos by Steve Temple

While Brits might scoff at a few clouds during their kit nats in Stoneleigh, at the Carlisle Kit & Import Show, held in central Pennsylvania in the dodgy month of May, weather is everything. As long as there’s a window of sunshine, open-top roadsters will sprout up like daisies all over the show field. A few sprinkles, though, and they’ll run for cover. Fortunately, there was enough fair weather to keep the cars and crowds a comin’ for what is the considered a key event in the show season for specialty vehicles. 

While some attendees grumbled about the reduced number of manufacturers’ displays, we certainly found plenty of show cars to keep us busy for all three days. The comparatively smaller turnout of companies doesn’t seem to accurately reflect the kit business in general, as we’ve heard a number of encouraging reports that production is in full swing. Perhaps there’s still some apprehension, as many manufacturers are still wary from the downturn experienced a few years ago. And maybe the show management finds that this niche market is more of a challenge to promote than mainstream categories such as its Ford, Corvette and Chrysler events.

Whatever the reasons, we always look forward to attending, and invariably find some intriguing new offerings. Perhaps the most unusual came all the way from Spain, the road-course ready Silver Car CM, and off-road buggy, the Silver Car ST. These motorcycle-powered racers, which weigh less than half a ton, has been sold in Europe for many years, but is just now hitting our shores, and a street-legal version is in the works.

All told, we were able to squeeze in a number of shoots despite the inclement weather, even if we had to use a bit of ingenuity to keep our powder dry. We also spotted several unusual imports, and came away with a hopper full of cool car features, so stay tuned for upcoming issues and check ‘em out.