MPC 1982 Dodge Van "Bad Company"

[Jordan White]

It appears the former thread on this subject was deleted for some reason. I had bumped it to ask if anyone who has the kit would be willing to post some pics of the contents, and the offer still stands.

[MGL]

I recently got 2 of these, I will try to get pictures soon. Any particular pictures or just the normal shots of the trees, body, decals and instructions?

[1972coronet]

I recently got 2 of these, I will try to get pictures soon. Any particular pictures or just the normal shots of the trees, body, decals and instructions?

If you could get the trees at  Franklin Park in some of your photos , that would be great

[Jordan White]

I recently got 2 of these, I will try to get pictures soon. Any particular pictures or just the normal shots of the trees, body, decals and instructions?

Normal shots will be fine, I'm mainly just curious to see what comes in the kit.

[MGL]

Here are the kit contents

The box says molded in black but it is molded in white.

The body.

The decals.

The chrome.

The tires.

The instructions.

Clear and red parts.

The rest of the parts trees.

The engine looks like a generic small block, not too much detail there although the transmission looks to be a manual. I haven't checked on parts fit but there isn't a whole lot of flash, and parting lines are about as to be expected from MPC. This kit is several kits down the line for me so I won't get into building it until January or February at the earliest.

If you could get the trees at  Franklin Park in some of your photos , that would be great

I go past that park to pick one of my kids up from school but I was watching Fast and Loud so my wife went to pick him up today, otherwise I was going to get a picture and put it on here for a laugh.

 

 

[av405]

I thought the kit included stock wheels?

[MGL]

Here are the kit contents

The box says molded in black but it is molded in white.

The body.

The decals.

The chrome.

 

The tires.

 

 

The instructions.

 

 

 

Clear and red parts.

 

The rest of the parts trees.

The engine looks like a generic small block, not too much detail there although the transmission looks to be a manual. I haven't checked on parts fit but there isn't a whole lot of flash, and parting lines are about as to be expected from MPC. This kit is several kits down the line for me so I won't get into building it until January or February at the earliest.

I go past that park to pick one of my kids up from school but I was watching Fast and Loud so my wife went to pick him up today, otherwise I was going to get a picture and put it on here for a laugh.

 

 

I think the stock wheels are the hubcaps on the chrome tree.

[MGL]

I have no idea what happened with the last post. Weird.

[av405]

Ahh yeah, you're right. I was expecting utility-type wheels.

[disabled modeler]

Nice to see they included the old custom parts in this kit...shame they cant backdate it to the 71-76 body style ones...I think they look much better need a couple for some family replica build projects.  if anyone has any of them PM me lats talk.

Edited September 30, 2015 by disabled modeler

[Jon Cole]

Dajiban! 

They actually "race" these vans in Japan. Although the pics I have found, show a later model van. I think they are amused at the bulk of them. Plus, vans (usually mini) are still hot over there.
 

[Joe Handley]

Funny thing about those, there were a few people on a site that had information for the Dajiban stuff that thought these vans were mid engined, instead of extremely cab forward.  Oh, I did pick up one of these kits the other night and one of the wheels was a short shot, so the parts missing Revell  easybuild SRT Challenger kit I got for the steering wheel will be donating at least it's wheels and mirrors to this kit.

 

 

Edited November 20, 2015 by Joe Handley

[gray07]

check out

vannin.com

for ideas

[426-Hemi]

I see a few things wrong with the kit (NOT that those seen things will stop me from buying one maybe 2) BUT, the engine isn't right. Starter is on the passenger side by the looks of the instructions as well as the oil filter, (its like they swapped sides) And the valve covers, are a bit interesting, as they don't look like Mopar small block valve covers (thats what they were trying to make the engine look like with the placement of the oil filter)

Mopar small blocks, 273, 318, 340, & the 360 have the oil filter on the passenger side as its shown here on the drivers side, and the starter is on the drivers side, NOT the passenger side, as its shown here.

The valve covers well, they to me look like a hybrid, between Mopar, and Chevy.... The intake has the distributor on the wrong side of the BACK side of the engine too! AND then the oil pan needs flipped with the sump up front, not behind! -ONE of the nicer details I spotted for the engine is the exhaust manifolds! They'd be PERFECT for ANY of the stock small blocks Mopar. (They would NOT be right if put on a 340 however) as the 340 was considered a high performance small block.

The chrome wheels would be correct for a "stock" kit with hubcaps, NOT dog dish caps! The base model as a "fleet" van would need steelies instead, but its to be a "custom" van anyway. Which I see they included a set of Hurricane rims to be painted as the builder see's fit. (NICE addition!)

Even tho, I see all this thats not right, I'll be buying one when I see it! The only part, I'm not happy with is the fact that the short little hood doesn't open. I got a knife to remedy that issue!

[Casey]

AND then the oil pan needs flipped with the sump up front, not behind

No, it doesn't. Vans have the oil pickup/sump located at the rear:

 

Considering MPC first released this kit in 1971, the first year for Mopar B-van production, they took a few liberties with the parts design when it came to the kit. That doesn't excuse major errors such as locating the starter on the wrong side of the engine, etc., but if anyone is striving to build a more accurate model, they would likely use the SBM from the AMT '71 Duster kit anyway.

[martinfan5]

I see a few things wrong with the kit (NOT that those seen things will stop me from buying one maybe 2) BUT, the engine isn't right. Starter is on the passenger side by the looks of the instructions as well as the oil filter, (its like they swapped sides) And the valve covers, are a bit interesting, as they don't look like Mopar small block valve covers (thats what they were trying to make the engine look like with the placement of the oil filter)

Mopar small blocks, 273, 318, 340, & the 360 have the oil filter on the passenger side as its shown here on the drivers side, and the starter is on the drivers side, NOT the passenger side, as its shown here.

The valve covers well, they to me look like a hybrid, between Mopar, and Chevy.... The intake has the distributor on the wrong side of the BACK side of the engine too! AND then the oil pan needs flipped with the sump up front, not behind! -ONE of the nicer details I spotted for the engine is the exhaust manifolds! They'd be PERFECT for ANY of the stock small blocks Mopar. (They would NOT be right if put on a 340 however) as the 340 was considered a high performance small block.

The chrome wheels would be correct for a "stock" kit with hubcaps, NOT dog dish caps! The base model as a "fleet" van would need steelies instead, but its to be a "custom" van anyway. Which I see they included a set of Hurricane rims to be painted as the builder see's fit. (NICE addition!)

Even tho, I see all this thats not right, I'll be buying one when I see it! The only part, I'm not happy with is the fact that the short little hood doesn't open. I got a knife to remedy that issue!

Just leave it out,  what I would/will do when I ever get one.

[Tom Geiger]

A few thoughts on this kit. First, this is a reissue of an old kit, with all the skeletons of it's heritage.  As far as the engine, this kit is pretty much curbside, with the engine only visible from the underside, so I didn't bother with any details there... I think I may have left off the carb and air cleaner since nobody would see them anyway.  Note that there is little to be gained by opening the hood.  I owned one and it's mostly sheet metal, since the engine is actually between the seats.  If you want to see the engine, you could remove the engine cover in the interior.  I remember doing a tune up on my 318, sitting inside the van changing plugs and wires as it snowed outside.  

The kit itself went went through a lot of changes over many years. MPC was pretty loyal to representing these, as I went through all the versions I own, and a bunch of junkers and found no two to be the same.  They even changed things like the roof ribs.  

I do have a bunch of these vans already but I probably will pick up a few more of the new issue.

[Junkman]

G70-15s on an '82 van?

[426-Hemi]

No, it doesn't. Vans have the oil pickup/sump located at the rear:

 

Considering MPC first released this kit in 1971, the first year for Mopar B-van production, they took a few liberties with the parts design when it came to the kit. That doesn't excuse major errors such as locating the starter on the wrong side of the engine, etc., but if anyone is striving to build a more accurate model, they would likely use the SBM from the AMT '71 Duster kit anyway.

Even so..... The engine being included being seen from the bottom, the underside of it is nothing close to a Mopar engine. Its all switched side for side one, 2, the oil pan in the kit is nothing like that pictured here. The kits has a mid-ship edge not seen on the real one. Which really, if you want the full truth, this engine is more GM then Mopar! BY a LONG shot! I can say only the exhaust manifolds look correctly shaped for a Mopar LA block! In reality I THINK the oil pan this ought to have gotten was the same one I spoke about flipped end for end... So even IF this was true, its still a Chevy oil pan!

Now as far as being a curbside kit, maybe, BUT it has the means to be otherwise, the hood itself needs to open but how many of us cut the hoods open on OTHER models, and this one get nothing different from them? This one however, has more to offer being other then a curbside model. I myself am cutting the hood open on a '77 Plymouth Volare PROMO to make a model of a car my grandfather had, the frame to this particular model is got NO detail what-so-ever on it, I got to cut open the lower half under the engine bay, and add in a LOT. This one on the other hand is made to have an engine, so really, where is this skill level 2, any different?

If it were going to be me, (I speak only for myself here) make it right, the first time, and enjoy hacking and cutting or in this case replacing, with correct parts, after all if your going to make the Van to be a representation of a REAL van out there, then do it right the first time. I can't believe, they at Round 2 would release this van with the Chevy engine it has (UNLESS by "custom" thats what it had put in it) when they have the means to put a CORRECT "LA" engine in this from Mopar from the AMT '71 Plymouth Duster 340..... That one motor could be used in our hobby as any of the 3 Mopar "LA" engine types, the 318, 340 and the 360! Mopar dedicated the term "LA" to the engine tpe for those who don't know. "LA" engines NOT being built in "L.A." mind you was a code. Those engines were as follows: 273, 318, 340, and the 360. The 273, was thee first of the series of engine types, BUT, the "LA" designation means the engine prior to these were known as the "A" engines, they were HEAVY blocked engine, weighed as much if not more then a big block in some cases. The "LA" designation meant "L"ight "A" block..... Hence "LA".

Still for a purist like me, this found issues with the kit wouldn't stop me from buying one, I'll simply swap out the non true Mopar engine for one that is, and hack open that hood to reveal it all as it should be!

[1972coronet]

Even if the engine was a 'correct' LA engine , I'd still dump it . MPC's 'generic' 273-318-340-360 is un undersized piece of junk , whose appearance is more like that of a 3.9 litre V6 ! Okay , to be fair , at least the 1977-1980 Volare kits' LA engines looked better than their predecessors : correct air cleaner assembly , 727 transmission , and just better proportions .

If one is going to swap engines --and they wish to display their van's engine-- then why not go all-the-way and pop the AMT 1971 Charger R/T 440 Mag / TorqueFlite in there ? Yeah , I know that 1978 was th last year for the B/RB series , but that's of no consequence in a customised vehicle .

[Atmobil]

Not really thinking of the van here but since I got that ModelHaus 65 Dodge D100, what is the best source for a correct 318 in scale?

[Casey]

what is the best source for a correct 318 in scale?

The AMT '71 Plymouth Duster contains the best LA-series Mopar V-8 Small Block engine in my opinion. There is no one single kit which provides an accurate stock-type 273/318/340, unfortunately, so you'll need to swap a single carb intake manifold, exhaust manifolds or headers, etc. as necessary.

Edited January 1, 2016 by Casey

[426-Hemi]

Even if the engine was a 'correct' LA engine , I'd still dump it . MPC's 'generic' 273-318-340-360 is un undersized piece of junk , whose appearance is more like that of a 3.9 litre V6 ! Okay , to be fair , at least the 1977-1980 Volare kits' LA engines looked better than their predecessors : correct air cleaner assembly , 727 transmission , and just better proportions .

If one is going to swap engines --and they wish to display their van's engine-- then why not go all-the-way and pop the AMT 1971 Charger R/T 440 Mag / TorqueFlite in there ? Yeah , I know that 1978 was th last year for the B/RB series , but that's of no consequence in a customised vehicle .

To me, from my own Mopar experience the BEST model-made "LA" small block Mopar comes out of the AMT-Ertl '71 Duster 340...... NOT a good "273" BUT anything ABOVE that....318, 340 (respectively), and the 360, its a dang good model-made engine for a Mopar LA small block......BUT the Valve covers could use something...... They too, aren't "exact" models of the real thing, BUT the Monogram '70 Challenger TA 340 has NICELY done "LA" valve covers, ALTHO, they're 1/24th, not 1/25th..... Those supplied in the kit, look more like a Chevy small block to me.....

As for the B/RB comment, the best I have yet to find comes out of the AMT-Ertl '70 Coronet. The heads and the valve covers in that kit are even more close to the real thing then what I have in the '71 Charger R/T I have also from AMT-Ertl They for what ever reason..... Don't seem to get the shape of a B/RB engine's valve covers right, and it sadly, bothers me, those found that are dead-on, actually were found in the AMT-Ertl 1970 Dodge Coronet Super Bee.... Those same valve covers were also found in the MPC '70 Dodge Coronet too! (Same kit really) BUT this has an A833 transmission, not the 727 Torqueflite the '71 Charger R/T has.....(I have ALL these kits BTW)

[Atmobil]

The AMT '71 Plymouth Duster contains the best LA-series Mopar V-8 Small Block engine in my opinion. There is no one single kit which provides an accurate stock-type 273/318/340, unfortunately, so you'll need to swap a single carb intake manifold, exhaust manifolds or headers, etc. as necessary.

To me, from my own Mopar experience the BEST model-made "LA" small block Mopar comes out of the AMT-Ertl '71 Duster 340...... NOT a good "273" BUT anything ABOVE that....318, 340 (respectively), and the 360, its a dang good model-made engine for a Mopar LA small block......BUT the Valve covers could use something...... They too, aren't "exact" models of the real thing, BUT the Monogram '70 Challenger TA 340 has NICELY done "LA" valve covers, ALTHO, they're 1/24th, not 1/25th..... Those supplied in the kit, look more like a Chevy small block to me.....

As for the B/RB comment, the best I have yet to find comes out of the AMT-Ertl '70 Coronet. The heads and the valve covers in that kit are even more close to the real thing then what I have in the '71 Charger R/T I have also from AMT-Ertl They for what ever reason..... Don't seem to get the shape of a B/RB engine's valve covers right, and it sadly, bothers me, those found that are dead-on, actually were found in the AMT-Ertl 1970 Dodge Coronet Super Bee.... Those same valve covers were also found in the MPC '70 Dodge Coronet too! (Same kit really) BUT this has an A833 transmission, not the 727 Torqueflite the '71 Charger R/T has.....(I have ALL these kits BTW)

Thanks for the comprehensive answers guys I already got the AMT 71 Duster and using the engine out of that kit will be the one I will go for. The Duster kit itself is (at least in my plans) going to be Al Bundys "Dodge". I don't know what engine the "Dodge" had but I'm guessing it should be a slant six.

[disabled modeler]

 

Thanks for the comprehensive answers guys I already got the AMT 71 Duster and using the engine out of that kit will be the one I will go for. The Duster kit itself is (at least in my plans) going to be Al Bundys "Dodge". I don't know what engine the "Dodge" had but I'm guessing it should be a slant six.

Yep it was a slant 6cyl car he drove in the show...cool idea too.