Our next iteration is coming this Christmas

We're excited to tell you that after 17 years – and 224 editions – Complete Kit Car is rebranding and expanding into a bigger magazine for the kit scene, and wider car building world, this Christmas. Just as Complete Kit Car was an evolution of our previous Which Kit? title, our upcoming Complete Car Builder  banner is a total rebuild that will see us push this unique industry, scene and hobby into a new era.
The biggest news of all here, is the fact you’ll be receiving a physically larger magazine in time for Christmas, but it’s what’s inside that counts the most. With bigger names – a list which already includes Ron Champion and Lee Noble – alongside more impactful features, this is going to be huge. Our biggest ambition with Complete Car Builder is to open up this world to more people, and to build on that intrigue in a big way. It’s our view that the best way to grow a sub-culture – and not just a magazine –  is to first expand it and widen your reach, and those aforementioned extra pages and revised title is our way of building more bridges into our world.
So, while kit cars are to remain at the forefront, we’re leaving plenty of the extra space for exciting and curious builds of all persuasions... whether they be of a hot rod, motorsport, special or even aero-engined bents. As long as the content and story is good, car building is always interesting in our book.

Is it really a big change?

Well, yes and no. Our heart remains firmly with the kit car scene, and the new magazine will reflect that heavily from the off and beyond. We’re still going to bag the exclusive first drives, spotlight the finest manufacturers and display all of the best home builds, while also diving into the wider world of car building. With more pages, we have the space to grow and catch the attention of those not yet interested in bespoke and component cars.
There will still be all the latest kits, and classic ones too, it’s just that we’ll also be shining a light on other areas of high-end, homemade engineering as well. Complete Car Builder may have its favourites, but we intend to be nothing but democratic in our content.

Haven't we been here before? 

Exactly right! Long time followers of us will know that we’ve rarely been averse to change in the name of progress. It’s also common knowledge that we haven’t always been known as Complete Kit Car either. This magazine, and by extension its new title, has a lineage that stretches back as far as the dawn of UK kit car publications, it being borne from Peter Filby’s launch of the first Alternative Cars compendium back in 1979, which was followed by several popular titles prior to our long-lived Which Kit? prequel. In summary, kit cars and bespoke engineering have been in our blood for a very long time... and we intend to keep it that way.
As with our previous iterations, and the dawn of Complete Kit Car in 2007, our new Complete Car Builder title is there to better reflect – and hopefully improve – the current kit car climate... all while giving some promotion to other genres of car building that have been criminally underrepresented for far too long.
There are a few surprises still to come, and we’re leaving no room for ‘filler’ going forward. Everything is set to be bigger and more powerful with the new title, which includes our technical section that will be much more encompassing in its subject matter. Expect everything from preparing yourself and your car for all-manner of motorsport activities, tips on fabrication and a greater focus on big ideas, big upgrades and bigger inspiration.

Beyond the Magazine

While upgrading the magazine has been the main focus for 2025, our sights do admittedly go beyond the page… so next year we’ll be bringing more online content, which will include everything that doesn’t make it into the magazine, and there will be the return of video content as we push kit cars to whole new market too. We’ll have more on these plans and our updated digital magazine in the upcoming Collector’s Edition Complete Kit Car magazine, as well as on our socials, but expect an equally thorough rebuild throughout.

Making it happen

We have set our sights high this Christmas, which admittedly brings a heap of extra, if enjoyable, legwork. We’ve all worked tirelessly preparing for this expansion over the past 12 months, and to best serve the changes for years to come we will be moving to a bi-monthly schedule after the next issue hits store shelves in the run up to Christmas.

Existing subscribers

If you’re a current subscriber, you will still receive all 12 of your allotted issues – and the best overall deal – with more pages, features and the required time to read them in. Gaining four weeks in our production cycle is the only way our small but dedicated team will be able to bring the bigger features we want to share with you, as well as the online content and more surprises to come. 

New subscribers

If you’re not a subscriber yet, our exclusive Christmas pre-order price is just £25 for six issues in the UK and our revised digital package is only £20 (which includes access to 24 months of Complete Kit Car back issues)… and if you want both, you’ll be spending just £30 on a UK combi-subscription – international prices for posted and combination subscriptions can be found on both of our websites, and the digital price remains the same for international readers.
We’re opening the floodgates here, but these deals will not be available for too long... so if you’re after a bit of a steal for yourself or a gift for the mechanic in your life this holiday season, be sure to get in early. Like we’ve already said, we’re aiming for this to be big.

In the run up to the launch

While we're very excited for you to see our next iteration, the next magazine to hit store shelves (and existing subscriber mailboxes) on 22 November is our Collector's Edition December issue. Inside there are new features, cars as well as plenty on our upcoming expansion... as well as several lookback features from our current editor Jack, and CKC's previous editors Ian Stent and Adam Wilkins. It's a great and packed issue to bridge the gap between our past 17 years of content and the next.

As a publication that prides itself on never standing still, we can't wait for you to see all that 2025 brings. It's going to be big!