In recent years, my opinion on some replicas has softened quite a bit from the day and age where I scoffed at nearly all of them. The Porsche 356 and 550 replicas have done a particularly good job of converting me into a fan of these facsimiles, largely because the manufacturers seem to do a better job than most of replicating the real thing. Even while I’ve yet to see a decent Ferrari Testarossa clone after decades of trying, and ditto for the Lamborghini Countach with a few (pricey) exceptions, the builders of these Porsche replicas seem to have gotten the formula down. This Porsche Speedster replica listed here on craigslist is built on a VW Karmann-Ghia backbone and offered for $23,900.

It also helps that I’ve been up close and personal with a few of these cars in recent years and the fit and finish of some kits seems to be particularly good. While I’m certain a Porsche 356 expert could find numerous flaws and incorrect details, to the casual observer cars like this Speedster will look like the real thing. And considering there’s nothing stopping you from dropping in a hot motor that mirrors or likely exceeds the performance of a genuine Porsche-built car, the sky is the proverbial limit in terms of how exceptional you want your copycat car to be. (By the way, thanks to Barn Finds reader Scott for the tip.)

The interior is another opportunity to make a clone car into a genuinely special vehicle. One of the bigger failures of some kit car builders is to cheap out on the cockpit, leaving onlookers with the impression that someone built this car in their garage when time and money allowed. Putting an actual finished cockpit inside with carpeting, leather bucket seats, and a real painted dashboard completely change the impression of a kit car. The seller doesn’t disclose who the manufacturer of this Speedster replica is, but it appears to be a fairly high-end package, that just needs some finish work to be ready for the road (the missing speakers in the door panels and the headlight covers on the nose are some of the details I noticed.)

The Volkswagen-sourced engine will likely not seem all that distant performance-wise from what the original Speedster produced, but I would still use this as an opportunity to perhaps drop in a modified “cheap” Porsche mill, like a 912 engine that needs re-assembly. To me, that would change the perception of this being only a replica into a replica with a Porsche powerplant, which just strikes me as the ideal balance of keeping the project affordable while adding to the perceived pedigree. Overall, there’s a lot to like here, and since you can’t touch a real Speedster for the asking price, it seems like a home-run to me. What is your opinion of kit cars like this Speedster replica?