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Cord Automobiles Might Return In 2017 Thanks To Low-Volume Replica Law

A law introduced in December 2015 might bring more replicas of retro cars on American roads, complete with drivetrains.
1937 Cord GTO Westchester at the Auto & Technik Museum, Sinsheim, 6/11 1 photo
Photo: Hugh Llewelyn on Flickr
We are referring to the Law Volume Motor Vehicle Manufacturers Act of 2015, which has been pursued by SEMA since 2011. The strict rules enforced by this law will only allow manufacturers to sell designs of vehicles that are at least 25 years old without improving them to meet modern crash safety standards or state pollution tests.

However, those cars will have to pass federal emissions rules, and only 325 reproductions may be sold by a company each year. Evidently, the potential manufacturers of these replicas will have to own the rights to the design they want to use, or they must reproduce a design that is part of public domain.

The benefits of this law are tremendous for kit car makers, which could not sell turn-key vehicles like regular automakers, and had to ship engines separately to their clients for a DIY installation.

Thanks to the changes, the customers of these replicas will be able to get insurance, financing, and registration in a streamlined process, just like with a new vehicle. The best part will be the ability to sell turn-key cars, which was a significant deterrent for some potential clients.

The companies that will offer these vehicles will be considered low-volume automakers, and will even be able to export those cars to other markets. While 325 units a year is not abundant, it is still better than nothing, and most kit car makers do not expect to reach the limit.

Only the biggest companies in the industry might have a shot at the 325 vehicles-a-year target, but they might not complain about that aspect in light of new business opportunities.

The law might bring back the Cord brand, which is the first American automaker to introduce front-wheel-drive and pop-up headlights. The company tanked in 1937, after only eight years of manufacturing, including many months of interruptions in the production process and other delays.

Autoblog was first to publish the news regarding the return of the Cord brand, which has been announced by Texan entrepreneur Craig Corbell, who stated his intent of relaunching the brand. He said that these vehicles could not be sold profitably until the introduction of this law, and that next year should bring a new Cord available on the market.
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About the author: Sebastian Toma
Sebastian Toma profile photo

Sebastian's love for cars began at a young age. Little did he know that a career would emerge from this passion (and that it would not, sadly, involve being a professional racecar driver). In over fourteen years, he got behind the wheel of several hundred vehicles and in the offices of the most important car publications in his homeland.
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