The Kellison J6 Is The American Muscle Car You Probably Didn’t Know Existed

While the Kellison J6 Panther might look similar to another big cat of a car, as in the ’60s Jaguar E-Type, it’s actually based on the frame and engine of a Chevrolet Corvette from the same era. Of course, the body itself was still something Kellison fabricated out of fiberglass himself. One of its early buyers claimed that purchasing a J6 straight from the automaker allowed customers to customize it to their liking (via Hemmings). Despite the buyer opting for a factory 1961 Corvette frame instead of a custom-built drag-racing one, his 1963 Kellison J6 Panther was still quite fast. How fast?

Well, a compact car with fiberglass components that weigh next to nothing will likely be quick, but his particular example was later fitted with a small block Chevrolet 350 crate engine. This gave the Kellison J6 an estimated top speed of over 180 mph. Keep in mind that Kellison J6s were kit cars, which lets owners build and customize things like, obviously, fitting in a bigger engine. Another Kellison J6 owner — TV personality Danny “The Count” Koker — was able to install a more modern Chevy LS3 engine, as seen in this YouTube video. In that case, the Kellison J6 Panther could probably go even faster. The question is, should you even be doing that in a car that’s as delicate as it is valuable?