Wow.
The average man is only priced out of these cars if he insists on buying original, number matching cars with high end options.
What's the difference between a REAL billboard car and a "cloned" billboard car? A single code on the fender tag, and a bunch of cash. Other than the fender tag, the clone looks just the same.
Performs the same. And is probably more fun, because the owner isn't afraid to drive it.
If 100% real cars are your thing, well, get out your wallet or get used to not having what you want. But the only thing that makes an original car different from a clone is a letter or two on the VIN, a few codes on the fender tag, and the final price. If you don't care that the VIN # says your car is a /6, then you can drop in a 440 six pak and have fun for a heck of a lot less money than buying a real 440 6 pak car. And you know what the difference will be out on the road? Just the shape of the letter on the VIN tags.
My '72 318 Challenger won't be a 318/auto when I'm done with it. It's going to have '71 sheetmetal and a 4 speed. Heck, it'll probably even have T/A stripes. And ya know what? I don't care if there's a "G" on my VIN and my fender tag. I won't even care that the "G" is followed by a "2".
Now, if some scammer is trying to pass a clone off as real, well, that's a different story. But, if you insist on paying tens, or even hundreds of thousands of dollars more for a few stamped letters, you'd be wise to make sure all those stamped letters really are what they're supposed to be.