The 2020 project car challenge (part 2: Results!)

[Knugcab]

Every year, Trafikjournalen buys an old car that is being used as a rolling project. In a series of articles they are showing what is happening to it. And now the year is 2020 and they are looking for the project car of the year. 15 years or older and a maximum price of $3000 AMU (in game currency).

And it can be anything. That bargain of a luxury car that is just waiting to break down. The cheap crapmobile that everyone laughed at in the 70s but now is all gone. A car with interesting quirks. What would YOU like to read about as a project?

So, kind of like a CSR but with more freedom. And a Vic Victory approach to the price. Motivate why it’s selling for (max) $3000.

The most interesting car will be bought and featured in the articles. Since there has been not much objections, here is the rules:

Trim year, 2005 or older. Any model year.

Any engine family/variant year, since I allow for engine swaps, however, if the engine is swapped to something more modern, it might require some more tradeoffs to justify the price, and it might make the car less interesting that it has been messed with. I would recommend to keep it stock but I am not enforcing it in any way.

No “meme” bodies and the car should appear street legal and in running condition, as in having basic stuff like wipers, head- and taillights, indicators as well as outside mirrors on cars from 1969 or newer (or any age if it has a tow bar). Unleaded fuel with a maximum of 95 octanes if it is from 1976 or later. 3-way cat if it’s from 1989 or later. At least one muffler of course. “None” safety not allowed.

Too unrealistic engineering may result in an instabin.

Post up an used car ad that is telling about the condition, it must give some kind of overview that makes the price motivated.

No hard PU/ET/price limits, but the higher they are, the harder it might be to justify the price or at least it will need more tradeoffs.

Model/trim name: PCC-yourname/Name of the car
Family/variant name: PCC-yourname/Name of the engine

Deadline sunday 21st of march, 10 AM CET.

If you wonder more about the spirit of the competition, scroll down a bit, and I know that the ruleset is vague, but that allows for creativity and freedom, was my thoughts.

[Madrias]

Well, I’m interested, at least.

Let’s just say that a certain crap-bucket is being remastered with an interior, and will make an appearance. And, no, it’s not a Minerva this time.

[mart1n2005]

Sounds cool, I assume there will be some kind of et and pu limits so we can’t make a million dollar car and say it’s worth $2500

[th3maldonado]

I’m guessing we’re doing dollar conversions? Could we perhaps have a link so we’re all using the same converter?

[Knugcab]

OK, I have thought out ideas and also a more or less preliminary ruleset.
I skipped the “decide a price” part because that will probably only cause arguing. Everything that seems to be realistic for a maximum price of $3000 AMU (*) is OK. The thing is, inspired by Vic Victory’s challenges, you have to motivate why it costs so much.

(*)=The in game currency. It is easiest to use. Think about the cost of the new car and think how much it is realistic that it has lost in value. A 2005 hypercar is not going to cost that, ever. An early 00s luxo barge, maybe, but then it will probably have some faults that may or may not make things interesting. A 60s sports car is probably very beat up for that price nowadays. A beige 90s japanese family sedan is something you probably can get for that price in mint condition, but then it is not the most interesting car to run as a project.

That is made by posting up an used car ad. This is by no means a template for how it should look, but rather an example how it CAN look.

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1987 IP RUGGER SINGLE CAB
Runs well, some surface rust but only cosmetical, almost new tyres, blower motor broken, needs some TLC but a good work truck overall.

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(This describes the vehicle and probably makes it fit inside the price range).

So, my thought about the rules then (preliminary, not final):
Car trim: 2005 or older

Engine variant: Any year. I have decided to allow engine swaps actually. After all that is what you can find on the used car market sometimes. But it is not encouraged and if it seems to cheap it might indicate shoddy workmanship so it should be used with care. I prefer not at all, but if you want to throw it in as a wildcard, I say it’s OK, but you probably have more chance of winning with a stock engine.

PU/ET: No hard limits but engineering should be realistic for the era and type of car. And if it is a car that is obviously too advanced to ever come down to the $3000 maximum price, it is a direct instabin.

Design and engineering: Fairly free but the car should appear finished and street legal. I’m not going to be too hard here. All cars must of course have indicators, headlights, taillights and wipers. Outside mirrors is required from 1969 on, unless the car has a tow bar, then it is mandatory regardless of year. No “meme bodies”. The car doesn’t need to appear 100% factory stock, but tasteless mods won’t make a winner. It should run on unleaded 95 octane gas from 1976 on, have a 3-way cat from 1989 on. It should have at least the lowest available safety package available in the trim year. “None” safety not allowed.

Stats: We are not chasing stats here but they are still important as a tool to decide the impact the car has made on the market and public. You can’t argue that an AMC Pacer is worse than a Toyota Camry in most possible ways, yet it would probably make for a more interesting project car, while an 80s Hyundai would lose in most stats compared to a Mercedes S-class of the same vintage, and most people would rather see the S-class as the project. Very fuzzy, right? That’s the point, let your creativity run free. What would you like to read about yourself?

A car that is appearantly made hilariously bad on purpouse is the perfect way to get an instabin though.

IRL CARS THAT COULD BE CONSIDERED

Quite a mixed bunch, right? But as a car enthusiast you probably know why all of them works and why they all are more interesting than a beige 2001 Passat?

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Since this is a very fuzzy ruleset, I wonder if someone has any unanswered questions?

[interior]

Is making it look unique than stock allowed?

[interior]

And also would the final price in build not matter?

[Knugcab]

@interior
1.

@Knugcab

The car doesn’t need to appear 100% factory stock, but tasteless mods won’t make a winner.

as already written, and 2.

No, not as long as you can give a realistic reason why the car costs only 3000 now. And (generally) the more expensive the car, the harder it will be to convince me. But type of car matters too. Some models of Mercedes S-class were more expensive than a Ferrari 328 in the 80s but compare what the cars are worth now… And then we have the age bit. Nice examples of 80s and even early 90s cars are rising in value at the moment. A car from 1946 has been rising in value for a long time now so almost anything from them will be out of question in mint condition, while some 1999 subcompact or family sedan may be in mint condition for the price, but not as interesting as a car.

This will be working a bit like the used car market, in this case for more fun cars. And I will not be too harsh. But if you compare it to the real world you don’t get 911s for Corolla prices, if you understand what I mean. So try to think how your car would be positioned on the used car market.

Also, this is not about being the fastest, coolest, most exclusive car with the best stats. Something like a 2CV could as well win. (OOC: The winner will simply be the car that convinces me the most that it could make for some interesting articles. Very vague and very subjective, and that’s the point, I want to see the creativity flow without too tight borders this time.)

[interior]

entries open yet? if so then

2002 Hakumai Crest SX Basic model. $1000 OBO.

Drives like a champ, Has plenty of power, exactly 86HP, It’s reliable, i’ve recently changed out the timing belt, alternator, and Air filter. I have a full service and history report about this vehicle. Shame they don’t make these anymore, but it’s Rear-wheel drive atleast,

Doesn’t need a whole lot of power to be fun, Lightweight at 2300lbs, which is about 1043Kg. It’s agile, fast and lightweight. Has been very good as a daily driver, Tires will need to be replaced. Nothing special besides adding rally lights to it because y’know, the rally heritage before they made worse cars in the late 00s. Comes with fake Michigan plates in the boot. Real European plates this car came with are currently installed on the car. I’ve thought of putting in the higher performance V6 from the top of the range models of the more premium vehicles.

Enough stalling, No lowballers, Take it or leave it. Has been owned by a driver who just needed a car to get around in. It’s literally 900 something KG if you weight reduce it heavily

So lightweight that you can get 4 people to lift the rear of it up

[Knugcab]

Since there is no objections yet I don’t think there will be many rule changes, maybe small adjustments, so I am OK with it, too tired to write up the final rules now though. Maybe tomorrow.

[Knugcab]

Final ruleset is up - open for submissions

[Madrias]

Stupid question, I know, but is 95 Octane the Premium Unleaded? I use AKI, so the numbers don’t line up.

[HighOctaneLove]

@Madrias

is 95 Octane the Premium Unleaded?

I’m pretty sure that the 95 octanes is 95RON, Premium Unleaded, since the magazine is based in either Sweden or Finland (sorry Knugcab, I’ve forgotten exactly which one, hahaha).

[Restomod]

For Sale: 1961 NAM 171w $18700

I have decided to sell my '61 NAM. For those who don’t know, NAM was a Ukrainian automaker that
produced family vehicles from 1949-1992. This 171w has 1,020,452 miles on the odometer, bucket front seats, ~150,000 mile engine and transmission out of a Solier StarLiner, aftermarket roof rails, aftermarket wheels/tires, aftermarket gearing, and aftermarket radiator. It’s been faithful to me for the 2 years I’ve had it, and I haven’t had any major issues yet. I found it in a barn with no engine or transmission, a bit of rust, no interior,
and with just shy of a million miles on the odometer. It’s okay in the dirt and snow if you are cautious. First come first serve.

[Knugcab]

Ah, sorry. Yes, premium. I did this sort of to simulate the strange 70s emission laws in Sweden that really can’t be simulated in the game.

[Madrias]

Selling: 1989 Sinistra Traville GS-HO, $1,700

We are selling our 1989 Sinistra Traville GS-HO. This car participated in a $500 used car challenge, where it took first place. The engine has been rebuilt to match factory performance numbers by our mechanic, and the black plastic hubcaps are from a 1991 Sinistra Traville Police Interceptor, as one of our drivers broke the factory silver plastic hub-cap on the passenger side front wheel.

As you can see, the car has 328,826 miles on the odometer, and is still equipped with the factory standard 5.2L Sinistra “Sidewinder” 60-degree V8, making 356.6 horsepower @ 6300 RPM, with a redline of 7000 RPM, coupled to the front wheels by an advanced 4-speed automatic.

The factory “Crimson Sky” paint is in relatively decent condition, considering the quality of your atmosphere, and the only modifications we really had to make to the car were to alter the seat rails to allow the driver and passenger front seats to slide back further, as one of our team is rather tall.

The car runs on premium unleaded gasoline, will still do 0-60 MPH in 6.55 seconds, and, as this is a 1989 model, and not a 1990 model, does not have a factory speed limiter.

Because of the work we put into the engine, we are asking $1,700 for the car, but we will ship it personally to any location in the world.

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And, for those of you who know the lore started in the Once More junkyard run, or just want a good laugh at the antics of Team Tiger Trouble trying to sell this particular car, click the arrow and enjoy. Contains a character that you won’t know, but he’s important to the team’s future antics, because this won’t be the last you hear of the newly-renamed “Team Racing Stripes.”

Voice-To-Text Transcript, Forsaken Sky Maintenance Bay

Kaylie: Forsaken Sky, begin voice-to-text protocol.

Forsaken Sky: Program started.

Kaylie: We are selling our 1989 Sinistra Traville GSHO. This car participated in a 500-dollar used car challenge, where it took first place. The engine has been rebuilt to match the factory performance numbers by me-

Kayden: Perhaps, Kaylie, it would be better to mention that you’re a mechanic, because not everyone will know who you are.

Jaden: And, by the Twin Suns, don’t mention you work on starships. It’s bad enough that the new guy doesn’t really understand Earth technology, we don’t need the humans trying to understand us.

Sound of something heavy crashing in the background, followed by a loud voice speaking in an unknown language.

Jaden: English, Rukari. None of us have a translator for your language.

Rukari: Who put table in walk-path? I nearly fall on car!

Kaylie: Seriously? At this point, I’m better off typing this out, because between you three, I’ll have a ton of editing to do. Kayden, go get the big guy some food, and by the Twin Suns, keep him out of the alcoholic drinks.

Kayden: Why do I have to do that?

Kaylie: Because he’s bigger than you, which means he’s way bigger than Jade, and even with my new mechanical arm, if he gets his hands on a bunch of tech again, I can’t take it from him.

Jaden: I don’t know, letting him have that ‘Walkman’ thing doesn’t seem like it’s that bad.

Kayden: That’s because you’re not the one who had to collect the 8-foot-tall “tiger demon” from in front of the church, where he was loudly, and quite badly belting out Queen’s “Another One Bites the Dust.”

Kaylie: Will you two ever shut up?! Seriously, it’s like watching Earth TV, except I’m having to live it. Jade, where’s the camera with the pictures on it?

Sound of crashing, like brooms, dustpans, and cleaning supplies falling onto a metal floor, followed by a moment of silence, followed by more crashing and the sound of someone walking with a bucket on their foot.

Rukari: Here is magic-box with far-sight.

Kaylie: Thank you, Rukari. Now, remember what we said before?

Rukari: No walk Rift on ship. Two-Heads-One-Mind no like it. Gives big head-hurt.

Forsaken Sky: Images Uploaded.

Kaylie: Now, if I could just find that keyboard I picked up earlier. No, Rukari, stay here.

Sound of keys clicking for several minutes, triumphant roar from Kaylie.

Kaylie: Done! Now we wait to see who buys it.

Jaden: Oh, you put the ad up already. I was going to suggest mentioning it was easy to drive.

Kayden: Hopefully the next owner isn’t allergic to cats…

[Prium]

Great Oportunity: 1980 ITA Cuter III

I decided to put on sale my 3rd gen Cuter. I personally imported it from Argentina, and it has been my project car for the last 6 years. Aside from the wheels (and the missing right rearview mirror), the car has all its original parts, meaning that it might need some spare parts soon. The car was repainted in oil-green due to the awful quality of the original paint.

It has the well known 2.5 V6 MFI Little Condor, but because this car came out before 1982, it didn’t get the Turbo spec’d version. The engine was upgraded with local parts to resemble this version, making 110hp. It’s still coupled to the original 4-speed manual, so it has some spacing issues. New tires were installed, but it requires new springs and dampers.

The car came from Argentina with a deteriorated interior, so it was partially restored with the few spares I found. Still, it has a few electrical problems: AC doesn’t work and wipers are funcional only if blinkers are turned on (I don’t know how those things are related).The seats were replaced but they keep the late-70’s style of the car.

I’m asking $2500 for it. It may sound a little too much, but it’s quite an unique car in our country, as only a handful of Cuter IIIs got out of Argentina in the 80s. And considering that at the time of it’s release it’s price was $24000, what I’m asking is not much.

[interior]

ill assume my submission’s too basic of a car to win. It’s far too light for anything

[Restomod]

I’m dead.

[LinkLuke]

Cheap Hatches and Bad Matches…

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’92 GMI ZX16 - 120 GT $2,500

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Hi, I’m Greg. Unfortunately I have to sell my baby, you see I made a bad choice and forgot to wear protection, now I’m being forced to sell the car I fell in love with, my first love, my GMI ZX16. The Girlfriend wants me to buy a minivan and well, considering the reason is kinda my fault, I have to oblige. So this one is pretty much stock, except the rims. I kinda kurbed the factory ones, and kinda regret it. With factory rims these things like triple in value since those things are rare…

Either way, these things came with a pretty decent 1.0 4 pot with a turbo making 120 bhp, hence the 120 GT tag. From the factory the sportier models got a Tach and Boost gauge, and as I said before Mine actually came with the Rare GMI URO rims, that only 130 old with in the US… I kinda cracked mine speeding over a speed hump…

On a good note tho, the aftermarket on these is actually pretty good. I heard that some mad guy high in tea in the UK managed to get like 300 horses from his, with a new intake and intercooler. Speaking of, the one on these is under the little scoop on the hood, it’s fine for stock boost, but if you upgrade then I’d say put a front mount on it…

Anyways, just call if interested, I’m gonna need to go back to crib shopping… god help me…

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