Fantastic Plastic: 1957 Byers SR-100 Project
Jim Byers crafted a car brilliant enough that Road & Track made it a cover car – quite an accolade for a fiberglass special. The Byers SR-100 was featured in the magazine’s February 1957 issue, with a story all but advertising it to prospective DIYers. Whether it qualified as a kit car is questionable; the “kit” consisted of a body and instructions. Everything else was up to the builder, leaving a lot of scope for personalization. Made to fit a 100″ chassis, the swoopy lines were Byers’ refinement of his previous work with a partner on the Meteor SR-1. Despite the exposure provided by R&T, only 25 Byers SR-100s were sold through 1961, and far fewer have survived. Thanks to heavy personalization as the cars were built, several have become known by the names of their builders – the Snedeker Byers, for instance. RichardinMaine found this project Byers for us. The car is located in Orono, Maine and it’s nameless as yet, but you could change that!
The seller notes that this car comes with a 283 cu. in. Chevrolet engine and a four-speed transmission, both of which need rebuilding. No photos of the drivetrain are supplied. The bodies were built to accommodate a front mid-engine layout, balancing the weight distribution as close to 50/50 as possible. This chassis is from a Henry J, which measures exactly 100″. Byers bodies were made of hand-laid fiberglass, and frequently customized at the behest of the new owner; with a V8 in the engine bay, the cars weighed in at about 2000 lbs.
The interior is partially assembled, with a sporty three-spoke wood steering wheel, a full set of gauges, and high-back seats (I’d probably switch those out for low-back buckets). Byers designed the cowl of his car to receive a first-generation Corvette windshield frame; virtually every other component could also be sourced from American makers. The company briefly made a hardtop, but other than that, no weather equipment was supplied.
The seller indicates that this is a ’57 Byers but there is a complicating factor. Once Jim Byers moved on from car craft, the molds for the SR-100 were acquired by Kellison Engineering. Another 25 bodies were produced by Kellison. I don’t know if there’s a value differential between Byers bodies and Kellison bodies, but either way, documentation confirming the production date would be desirable. This car is listed here on facebook Marketplace, marked down from $24,000 to $22,000. Is the prospect of finishing this rare kit car intriguing to you?
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Comments
Got to wonder how many buyers would want what’s left of this car or pay that kind of money for it. Michelle, you do wonders with your meticulous research and coverage of your subjects but I disagree with your comment about changing out the high back seats. I’ve flipped an MG Midget, broadsided a Plymouth, totaled a race car against a concrete barrier, etc. I was lucky in the first two and fully prepared for the last one. Survival is a wonderful thing but things like headrests can go a long way to insuring it. We even changed the seats on our ’67 MG Midget to Porsche 914 seats to get a better feeling about a possible accident.
Forgot the after picture….
Drive it with a Hans device!
That would look weird with the T-shirts l usually wear. Hans did work just fine during the 65 mph hit on the jersey barrier. moved it back 4 inches.
Where are the doors?
I’d love to finish this, right up my alley. The price is outrageous however. Paint and body will be $20+K.
Optimistic seller that seems to think buyers will flock to buy his “Buyers” (sic).
Would make a great project but not at that price.
I have a restoration shop in So. Cal. 20 years in this location, and with my gang, body and paint on a fiberglass car is not a favorite of body shops. Mine will do them, but only as a favor. …………Jim.
You’re rubbing knuckles with the dash even without the pad installed.
I like how the seller has the 1st photo you see on his facebook ad. It’s a beautiful mint condition completed car. Apparently it hasn’t worked for him as the ad is now 4 weeks old. His asking price probably has something to do with that.
Not so sure about the buy in price but the great thing about cars of this nature there’s no “restoration correctness” you need to be a slave to. It’s your car, build it how you want and there’s no one to say, “by jove, that bolt doesn’t have the correct lettering…”. I do like the fact there’s a 283, period correct.
Automobilia at its best , park in on lawn and fill it with dirt , flowers and plants …
YOLO