Founding Father

From the July / August 2010 issue of The Car Room Magazine

According to personal point of view, the original Griffith sports cars had an either awe inspiring or a truly frightening power to weight ratio. Likewise, they wore styling that could be described as devilishly attractive, or downright quirky.

Powered by a 289 Ford engine, these tiny monsters weighed five hundred pounds less than a 289 Cobra - which, per Jack Griffith, was their intended target. Add in a miniscule 85.5 inch wheelbase, and two things become apparent, should one appear at your doorstep. One: you don’t want to do anything stupid behind the wheel; and, two: you do want to have your life insurance paid up….just in case you forget number one.

Although a few companies have made models of the Griffith 200 before, none were very accurate. All of that’s been changed with the introduction of these little 1:43 gems, which came to us from Automodello, a new manufacturer based here in the U.S.

Looking over these new pieces, it’s clear that Automodello has put forth a great deal of effort planning and researching the models. And it certainly doesn’t hurt that the images were engineered and designed by none other than Raffi Minasian; a name some of our loyal readers will instantly recognize.

You need to spend a little time with one of these cars to fully appreciate all that has gone into them. The body shape perfectly captures the feel of the real auto, and numerous photo etched details are applied, including just-right wire wheels adorned with great looking treaded tires. The comprehensively detailed light tan interior has a wonderful (and correct) three-spoke steering wheel, with an expertly scaled thin rim. The dash is fully detailed, as are the door panels, with separate door handles and just slightly oversized window cranks. The stubby little gearshift sits just right on the trans tunnel; looking up at the hand painted headliner I found twin sun visors. The color choices are refreshing and perfectly suited to the body shape, and all the window glass is thin and super clear. The paint finish is excellent; smooth, and high gloss.

It’s a home run right from the start; the attractive packaging and display case give credibility to the company’s great efforts, and lo and behold, the model comes with a description card telling the buyer/collector about the real car and the model. Can I get a halleluiah?

These are limited edition hand built models, though not extremely limited. The standard edition in Regal Red is a run of 262 pieces priced at $95.00. The Opalescent Silver Blue model is from their “Founders Edition,” limited to 192 serial numbered pieces, mounted to a plinth bearing a great looking embossed plaque bearing the Griffith logo and a serial number. At $195.00 each, these also include a certificate personally autographed by Jack Griffith.

Why 192 pieces? Simple - that was the exact number of real Griffiths produced. Another simple fact: you will not find a better model of this car. I’d say these Automodello fellows are off to a great start. This one comes highly recommended (I think you’ve already figured that out), and I’m already looking forward to their next release - a 1974 Bricklin SV-1.

Griffith Series 200, item AM-GRI-200 (Regal red), $94.95 / AM-GRI-200-FE (Opalescent Silver Blue “Founder’s Edition), $194.95. www.automodello.com

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