Upkitting Cars | Conversion to higher variants or editions

This enhances the looks of the cars and makes them more attractive. These cars stand out from the rest whether they are running on the road or parked in the driveway.

A new trend seems to be catching on in the automotive industry, both in the supercar world as well as with mainstream cars. While some owners are removing body panels, some are adding body kits to their vehicles to make them look like facelifted models or performance variants of the cars. This enhances the looks of the cars and makes them more attractive. These cars stand out from the rest whether they are running on the road or parked in the driveway.

Here are a few examples of regular versions of mainstream cars and supercars fitted with body kits to make them look like the performance versions of the cars:

Ferrari 458 to 458 Speciale

Image Source

This must be one of the latest supercars to get kitted. It features a carbon-fibre hood (which looks just like the one on the Speciale), and Speciale front bumpers. We don't agree with the addition of the rear spoiler though.

Lamborghini Aventador S to Aventador SVJ

The SVJ is one of the rarest and most expensive cars in the country. Only a handful are available in India. This Aventador gets twin exhaust pipes and a rear spoiler - just like the SVJ.

Lamborghini Aventador to Aventador SV

Image Source

This was the first instance of upkitting in supercars that I came across. This Aventador was first converted to a purple SV and then to the avatar you see above. This one looks rather convincing with the new front bumper, rear wing, and SV lettering and can be mistaken for a proper SV.

Porsche 911 Carrera to 911 GT2 RS

Image Source

This is a regular Carrera fitted with a rear wing, GT2 RS front bumper, side vents, and vents on the bonnet and fenders, just like the 991 GT2 RS.

Porsche 911 Carrera S to 911 GT3

Image Source

This 911 Carrera S has been modified with GT3 bumpers, a GT3 rear wing and GT3 RS style vents on the front fenders.

Mercedes W222 S500 to Maybach facelift

Image Source

This W222 S500 now has Maybach front bumper and rear bumpers, a Maybach vertical slat grille, multibeam LED headlamps, Burmester 3D rotary tweeter speakers, and 20-inch chrome alloy wheels. Great way to look rich(er)!

Maruti Baleno to Baleno RS

Image Source

Here's a popular upgrade among Baleno owners. This Baleno Alpha was converted to an RS with body kits including front and rear bumpers, by a Nexa showroom. The car continues to be powered by the 1.2-litre naturally aspirated engine. The upgrade was done because the owner wanted an RS, but the car was not in stock.

Maruti Swift to Swift Sport

Image Source

This one looks hot!!! This body kit for the Swift including the front and rear bumpers, have been imported. It even has fake exhausts at the rear. The car, as well as the new body kit, have been wrapped in yellow, a popular colour for the Swift Sport.

Volkswagen Polo to Polo GTI

Image Source

With a large number of aftermarket parts available and the car's mod potential, it's not surprising to see the regular Polo being converted into a GTi, especially when the GTi was sold in India in limited numbers. This car gets a new grille with GTi badging, bumpers and twin exhaust pipes.

Toyota Innova to Innova facelift

Image Source

This one seems to be pretty common. I keep coming across ads that market the facelift body kit for the first-gen Innova. Back in 2013, we felt the chrome-heavy front grille was much too gaudy & loud and even now, our opinion hasn't changed.

BMW to BMW M

Image Source

Gone are the days when we used to see BMWs and Mercs with M and AMG badges. BMW and Mercedes owners now upgrade their cars with body kits for the cars to look like their performance versions. The main upgrades in these cases are usually the bumpers. Some owners upgrade the ORVMs too. BMW also offers M Performance kits for their cars which make it look like the performance versions.

Mercedes to Mercedes AMG

Image Source

Converted Cretas

Not entirely sure this is upkitting, but is worthy of this thread. Many customers of mainstream cars choose to buy the cheap base variant and then add only the accessories and features they want. Check out this link. This way the car doesn't look barebones and the owner doesn't have to spend unnecessarily on equipment he doesn't want.

Old Jeeps to Mahindra Classic

Image Source

Perhaps, some of the most upkitted models in India are old Jeeps which are converted to "Mahindra Classics". This one has copied the bull bar, "Mahindra" brand plate behind the bull bar, roll bar, steering, passenger grab handle etc. While this one is an easy catch, there are a few fake Classics which have been convincingly converted. GTO jokes that there are more Mahindra Classics on the road than Mahindra ever produced! It's a similar story with many MM540s & 550s converted to fake Thars.

Check out BHPian comments for more insights and information.