This is my 1982 Trans AM KITT Replca. I've had the car since the summer of 2003, and I finished the car within a period of 12 months total. Man, this was an expensive project.

The pictures that you saw above are the most recent ones dated July 12, 2006.

First, here's the story on how it all began.

The transformation started in June 2003.

I've always wanted a KITT replica so I looked around on Ebaymotors to find the right car. I found one that was in good condition, but it's a hardtop and it was from Ohio. I wanted a hardtop because I've heard a lot of issues about the 3rd gen T-Tops that they leak. The car had a tan interior and aftermarket wheels, but that didn't stop me from buying it. I had to make sure that he can ship the car from Cincinatti to Flushing, MI and he said for $500 he can do it so I mailed him the full payment of $3,000 and he delivered it. The exterior of the car when it first arrived to my house from Cincinatti, OH was navy blue with gold trim. It had a 305 motor with 117,000 original miles, flat style hood, big ass aftermarket rims w/ tires sticking out and the late model bubble styled tail lights with blackout covers. I knew that I had a lot of work to do to get this car into shape. First thing I did, I had to find the correct hood for the car. I went to a couple of salvage yards about 30 minutes from my house and low and behold, the right hood was there. There were no dents, just scratches and paint chips so I bought the hood from the junk dealers for $80. I also bought a set of Firebird style tail lights. It had cracks on the edges, but it was just temporary until I can find the Trans Am styles. I brought the hood home and my bro and I took out the flat hood and replaced it with the cowl induction. Now that the hood is in place, I ordered the complete exterior (front nose, scanner, tail light cover) from Don Colie of Advanced Designs. His stuff arrived in a few weeks, and when I put the nose on for the first time, it turned out to be a really good fit. That part is finished, then it's time to buy the 15" rims and caps. Dave Sanchez (OKC Knight) from the KR Message Boards told me he had the original rims and caps for sale so I ordered those. The rims came to my house and needed cleaning so I applied degreaser, let it set for a while, wipe it off, applied gray primer and silver/aluminum paint and it came out great! It was time to swap from the ugly aftermarket rims and tires to the originals with all new tires. Fast forward to June 2003, it was time for the paint and body work.

I e-mailed Rob Louisell and asked him if he could do a paint job. He agreed to it and the cost was about $3,000 at that time. Before making a trip from Flushing to Mt. Pleasant, I had to take the car over to Midas for an engine inspection. They were surprised that the car ran good with the original 305 motor, and all I needed was an oil change, new belts and a heater hose. After doing all of that, I headed up to Mt. Pleasant where I met Rob and his family for the first time and his shop. He showed me photos of all the other cars he worked on over the years, and I knew in my mind that he's the man to do the paint job. I had my car at his facility for about 1 1/2 months. About every week or two, I would visit him and check out the latest progress on my car and snap pics. I told him that I ordered all of the weatherstripping plus the carpet and he said that I can bring that over and him install it at no charge. I had to do some searching for the Trans Am style taillights so I went to the Knight Registries Wanted Ads and posted that I'm looking for a perfect set of 1982-84 Trans Am tail lights. Robert LaMoureux from Connecticut sent me pictures from all different angles and they look brand new! Out with the check, a week later the lights came and it was just immaculate all around with no scratches or cracks. At the end of July, I got my car back from Rob Louisell with all new paint and it's ready to go. One word was on my mind when I saw my car with the all new black paint job..."unbelievable". :) When it was time for me to leave, I went into my car, turned the key over and the car would not start. Worst part is, my Dad dropped me off and he said that he was heading over to his sister's house at Shingle Lake on that day, which is about 30 minutes north from Rob's house. That's not the only worst thing. He didn't have a cell phone on him. The T/A was my only ticket to get home. Rob and I checked out the engine, and found out that the car needed a new solenoid. Goddamn 305! >:( Rob called for a tow truck to take the car over to the shop to get the part installed. While my car was in the shop, he let me borrow his son's 2001 Monte Carlo. What a guy! :) The T/A was in a shop for 1 day so my Dad and I took 2 cars (his Yukon and Rob's MC), went to Rob's to drop off the Monte Carlo, then went into town with my Dad to the shop, picked up the car and drove home in "Knight Rider" style. LOL! I got a lot of looks while driving on the highway on US-27. The motorists went in front of me, whipped out their camera phones just to get a picture of the Knight 2000 they remembered on TV.

Pictures at the bottom are taken from Rob Louisell's shop in Mt. Pleasant, MI.

Wow! The car's original color was magenta when it rolled off the assembly line in 1982.

Here it is! All new complete exterior with a beautiful black paintjob! :D

Just so you know, the reinforcement bar is painted black, and fog lights and turn signals have been mounted on that spot.

To read about the interior, go to page 2. ;)