Melbourne Trucks and Cars(New generation for Traveler)

[WelcometoCostcoILU]

@abg7

On a regular full-sized passenger car, this kind of construction would not make much sense in reality - most (all?) manufacturers use a full unibody construction for such cars nowadays, although Ford’s Panther platform (which underpinned the Crown Victoria and Lincoln Town Car) used a traditional ladder frame instead. In that sense, the Tomahawk Trailmaster is part Crown Vic, part Falcon FG. However, the combination of a light truck monocoque and live rear axle makes it more durable than Euro and Asian equivalents when driven off-road.

You’re correct that it is pretty rare on a passenger car, and with the Crown Vic/Commodore comparisons. The reason why I chose it is because it surprisingly drastically increased my safety to nearly 80, possibily due to the additional weight.

@abg7

The Shaman really is a bargain, regardless of trim level - in LX trim it’s a decent family workhorse, and in XR trim it’s a premium sports sedan at mass-market mid-sizer prices. I understand the ethos behind it, which sacrifices sophistication for ruggedness, and as such it occupies its own little niche in the marketplace.

That’s exactly the premise behind it MTC is not a luxury brand, sans the Chinook line, but the Shaman XR is designed to offer everything the S4 has at a pricepoint comparable to that of a fully loaded non-luxury midsize car. And you’re spot on with the cost cutting measures: I chose many build options like non AHS steel and no aluminium construction that would be seen as less “premium” (and add to the car’s obesity) but make it very offroad capable as well as probably safer than the typical entry for that CSR round.

@abg7

A jacked-up version of the Prairie, with an extra pair of doors, may well serve as MTC’s entry into the (sub)compact SUV segment, as the smallest SUV in their range. As a matter of fact, with an AWD system packed a small body, it could easily be converted into a rally car for use by amateur teams - and this applies equally to both generations.

While the Prairie does have its rally car roots, the role of MTC’s smallest SUV is taken up by the cheap and rugged Blackhawk. I did however follow your suggestion in a different way, and submitted a jacked up, rebadged version of the Prairie to the current CSC.

@abg7

The Koala’s rear end looks okay, but the front is… Odd, quite frankly. Then again, it’s rather fitting for such a quirky car, and besides, there are not many compact sports cars out there with off-road capabilities, which the Koala has in spades.

Yeah, I had quite a bit of trouble getting the front end right and pretty much just stuck with the least-bad configuration, not one of my best designs. I got the inspiration for the car surprisingly from the baja bug in GTA San Andreas, which has the V8 engine sound. So when it came time to design a small, “baja bug” inspired sports car I went for a teeny tiny turbocharged v8 in a small sports car.