This Ghostbusters Ecto-1 Replica Is a Super-Expensive, Super-Endearing Labor of Love

The Ecto-1 is essentially an '80s icon, emerging as a proper character with the first Ghostbusters film in 1984. It was the vehicle of choice for the small group of ghostbusters that patrolled the streets of New York, ridding the good people of unwanted evil spirits and was equipped accordingly.

Even though only two Ghostbusters films came out that decade, the Ecto-1 became a classic, entering a very select group of movie cars that had been turned into movie characters and, in the process, earned a loyal following.

Variations of the Ecto-1 appeared again in 2016 in the ill-advised all-female remake and then in the rebooted franchise that launched in 2021 – still underwhelming by most accounts, but a bit more successful than the female version. Three separate releases, all of them underperforming at the box office, confirm that there's still a very high demand for the Ghostbusters universe, but as of right now, nothing has been able to match the initial appeal of those characters, including the Ecto-1.

This Ecto-1 replica comes close to it, though. It's perhaps one of the most faithful and surprising fan-made DIY (do it yourself) replicas out there, and the fact that it cost a small fortune and spanned several years makes it all the more impressive. The only thing about it more impressive than this is that it's being used to raise money for a children's charity.

This is the work of Dorset teacher Austyn Brown and his team of helpers, including family members, friends who also happen to be fabricators and "electric wizes," and friends who had no relevant set of skills but were equally happy to learn and help. To further save costs, Brown spent years before he had the car collecting items that he would use once he had the perfect donor vehicle.

His Ecto-1, which goes by the official name Ecto-1 GB, is the photo you'd find in the dictionary next to "labor of love," if dictionaries included photographic support.

The actual work on it started around the 2020 lockdowns when Brown finally got word that a worthy Cadillac starter vehicle had popped up on the used market. As you probably know if you're reading this, the movie Ecto-1 was based on a 1959 Cadillac Miller-Meteor Sentinel hearse / ambulance end-loader. Miller-Meteor-made professional chassis are rare, and Brown couldn't afford one even if it did come up for sale, so he had to settle for the next best thing.

And the next best thing is what he got: a 1963 Cadillac Superior, which was being offered for sale out of New York. In a recent interview with the local media, he admits that buying it was an incredible leap of faith – not only because it implied sending a lot of cash overseas to some guy he didn't know but also to assume that the vehicle would reach him in good condition.

It took over six months just for the hearse to arrive in the UK, and at the end of the journey, Brown was £8,000 ($10,200 at the current exchange rate) poorer. That's the only figure he's willing to put on the conversion, saying that he's been able to cut costs elsewhere by building stuff on his own or with help from his impromptu team. Still, the total cost of the project is in the thousands – and Brown isn't even done yet.

Work included the most obvious stuff, like stripping the rusty floor to replace it and a new paintjob to turn the classic hearse into the Ecto-1, to repairing and restoring the powertrain. A Cadillac Superior of that model year came with a 390-cu.in. OHV V8 engine that produced 325 hp and 430 lb-ft mated to a 3-speed automatic transmission that sent power to the rear wheels. Brown doesn't say what, if any, modifications he made to the engine, but he does document every step of the process of turning a standard professional Caddy into the Ecto-1.

As Ecto-1, fans will recognize some of the smallest details on it. There's a ladder, and there's the ghost trap that no ghostbusting can happen without, there are lights and sounds, and all the right decals in all the right places. The replica even gets its own Ecto-1 front license plate, and, according to Brown himself, it's still road-legal despite the modifications.

As of this moment, the Ecto-1 is still not complete, but Brown and his team have been using it on appearances throughout the country. Its main goal is to raise awareness and funds for children's charity The Rainbow Trust, and Brown continues to drive it on all occasions while still working on the interior. He reckons he's spent thousands of work hours on the project alone, but he has the best motivation for it.

“Dan Ackroyd once said the thing about this car is it's the classic clown car," he says. "Everything was jumbo on it, it had way too many lights on it, it was the original clown car. It is, it just makes a lot of people happy. You can't help but look at it and smile."