Fiberfab Caribee: The Rare 1960s American Gullwing Sports Coupe

Fiberglass Maverick - In the golden age of handcrafted sports cars, when ambition often outweighed budget and fiberglass promised freedom from steel’s limitations, a handful of daring builders created machines that blurred the line between dream and driveway. Among them was a striking American coupe that quietly defied convention: the Fiberfab Caribee. Rare, unconventional, and shaped by both creativity and circumstance, it remains one of the most intriguing footnotes in 1960s automotive history. 

The Fiberfab Caribee is thought to have been produced in only approximately 12 examples, making it one of the company’s lowest-production models. (Picture from: Silodrome)

The Caribee first took shape in the mid-1960s under the direction of designers Russell and Chris Beebe. Originally, the car was meant to carry a more dramatic name—“Banshee.” That plan changed when General Motors stepped in and acquired the rights to the Banshee name for a concept project of its own, the stillborn Pontiac Banshee. Forced to rebrand, the Beebes’ creation emerged as the Caribee instead. The name may have shifted, but the ambition behind the car did not. Only around twelve examples were reportedly built, instantly placing it among the rarest American sports cars of its era. 

The Fiberfab Caribee was originally called the Banshee, but General Motors purchased the name for its own Banshee concept car; image courtesy of Fiberfab. (Picture from: Silodrome)

To understand the Caribee, it helps to look at the company behind it. Fiberfab was founded in 1964 in Palo Alto, California, by Warren “Bud” Goodwin and John Hebler. Goodwin had already been involved in a prior venture known as Sports Car Engineering, and Fiberfab grew out of that entrepreneurial spirit. The company specialized in fiberglass body kits and replacement panels, offering enthusiasts the chance to transform familiar models—Corvettes, Mustangs, and Jaguars among them—into something more exotic. The Caribee became one of Fiberfab’s most ambitious projects, conceived not as a complete factory-built car, but as a fiberglass grand touring body designed to sit atop an existing chassis. 

The Fiberfab Caribee stands out primarily for its gullwing doors, a relatively uncommon feature in the 1960s. (Picture from: Silodrome)

At its core, the Caribee was a front-engined GT coupe with proportions that invited comparison to icons such as the Shelby Daytona and the Ferrari 250 GTO—though the resemblance required a bit of imagination. Its most dramatic feature was a pair of gullwing doors, a bold design choice that gave the compact coupe a theatrical presence. The front end tilted forward as a single clamshell section, granting unusually easy access to the engine, suspension, and brakes. This practical touch reflected the car’s kit-based philosophy: it was meant to be worked on, adjusted, and personalized by its owner. 

The Fiberfab Caribee often exhibited wide variations in interior trim, panel alignment, and overall finish, making each surviving example a unique reflection of its builder’s craftsmanship. (Picture from: Silodrome)

Unlike traditional production cars, the Caribee could be built on a variety of donor platforms, provided the wheelbase matched. British sports cars were the usual foundation, including the Austin-Healey 3000, the MGA, and the Triumph TR3. Builders would remove the original steel body and replace it with Fiberfab’s lightweight fiberglass shell. The result could be transformative. Even without engine modifications, shedding weight often made these already lively roadsters quicker and more responsive. 

The Fiberfab Caribee was designed for British sports car chassis like Austin-Healey, Triumph, or MG, and featured gullwing doors with a forward-tilting clamshell front for easy mechanical access. (Picture from: Silodrome)

Yet because each Caribee depended on the skill of its assembler, no two cars were exactly alike. Interior trim, panel alignment, and overall finish varied widely, making every surviving example a unique reflection of its builder’s craftsmanship. Today, the exact number of surviving Caribees remains uncertain. At least half a dozen are believed to exist, and the resilience of fiberglass—immune to the rust that claims so many steel-bodied classics—suggests that more could resurface over time. | LXIGBcb1_vo |

In a modern automotive world dominated by digital design and mass production, the Fiberfab Caribee stands as a reminder of a more hands-on era. It represents a time when enthusiasts could quite literally reshape their cars, blending British mechanical bones with American fiberglass flair, and drive something that almost no one else on the road had ever seen. *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | SILODROME ]

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