No.
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Oh okay
THE TRAFIKJOURNALEN OFFICE, JANUARI 2020
-Well, no more 2019 project car then.
-Yeah, apparently there was someone that wanted to buy a bodged together cheap RHD Dickson Basker with a mould smell. Let’s get something else for 2020.
-Where do you think we will find another bodged together cheap RHD Dickson Basker with a mould smell anyway?
-True.
-So, have you found anything interesting while browsing through the classifieds?
-Well, the first candidate is a third generation ITA Cuter, 1982 model year… (@Prium)
-Now stop joking!
-Nah, it is true, if not the whole ad is a joke, but the guy seems to be serious. It appears to be an import from Argentina.
-Probably. Now that would be a cool car, no question about it. Though I have no experience with them.
-Nobody has in Sweden, but rumours say that they were gas hogs but really fun to drive with good driving dynamics.
-Yeah, is it beyond repair though? I can’t imagine that getting spares will be an easy task.
-Seems like it is possible to get a nice car out of it with just some small tweaking. But still enough to write a good series of articles about it.
The ITA Cuter ticks all the right boxes and will be considered as a candidate for the 2020 project car.
-How about the next candidate then?
-A 1988 ASB Polka W. (@AndiD)
-Lol. Please tell me you mean 1958, right?
-Nah, they were produced for like, forever.
-It has an history as an Archanan fire chief car as it looks like. Cool in its own special way, but maybe a bit off for our readers taste.
-It should really get in the right hands, and I am not 100% sure that it is in the hands of us.
The ASB Polka W will not be considered as the 2020 project car for Trafikjournalen, but the ad was passed over to its sister magazine “Kommersiella klassiker”.
-So, the next car then?
-A 1989 Rutherford Sparra. (@Blothorn)
-Oh my god, they were so fun.
-Yeah and they kind of have a special cult following, one of the true analog and manual sports cars, no electric gizmos in the way for true fun.
-The engines were prone to breakdown though, which may or may not make the project more interesting.This one has a low mileage though. I’d say let’s gamble!
-Yes!
The Rutherford Sparra is a fun car that will be interesting to many of the readers and will be considered as the 2020 project car for Trafikjournalen.
-Anything else that seems to be interesting?
-Yes, a Bogliq…
-(gasp)
-…Brioche…
-(GASP!)
-…convertible. (@HighOctaneLove)
-Now that’s something actually. Convertibles on a budget are always interesting. Any drawbacks?
-It is repainted an even uglier shade than Bogliq blue.
-Maybe we can do a cheap repaint as part of the article series. It seems to be kind of sound otherwise.
The Bogliq Brioche will be considered as the 2020 project car since it has some points that can make it an interesting project for the readers.
-Now, if that Bogliq is a POS, do we have any alternatives?
-A 2005 Durendal Havana maybe. (@GassTiresandOil)
-Why not, we haven’t had a yank tank as a project car since like forever, if ever.
-It has some usual “grumpy old man” wear and tear, may be a fun car to have as a project.
-We can always, you know, like…
-Please don’t!
-…make America great again!
-Let’s keep your bad sense of humor out of the project articles then, please!
Since there will always be readers that still are watching Kojak reruns, the Durendal Havana will be considered as the 2020 project car.
-Or maybe we should consider something different after all?
-How about a GMI ZX16? (@LinkLuke)
-Thanks, I hate it.
-Just look at this ad. “Boo hoo, feel sorry for me”
-Looks quite unmolested though, can be about time to save it from that moron.
-An interesting car for it’s era with advanced technology after all. And it is getting rare. But I am a bit skeptical….
The GMI ZX16 will be considered as the 2020 project car despite some doubts.
-Since I am still skeptical about the GMI, do we have something else to check out?
-A freshly imported Sinistra Traville maybe? (@Madrias)
-Traville, well, a bit bland but still an interesting car, kind of a sleeper with lots of interesting technology for an 80s yank.
-Yeah, and maybe an article series could spawn some new interest into the model. Seems to be in a not too bad condition but still some work to do on it.
-We can always visit the dealer, it won’t hurt.
The Sinistra Traville will be considered as the 2020 project car since it is a more interesting car than it first may appear like.
-Many modern classics here, do we have something older?
-A 1961 NAM station wagon maybe? (@Restomod)
-Nah, looks like it has been messed with too much. I don’t get a good impression.
-V8 swapped, cheap so probably some hodge-podge and a rattle canned flat black bonnet. Nah, let’s pass on this one.
The NAM 171W will not be considered as the 2020 project car but the ad was passed on to the sister magazine “V8&Yankee custom magazine”.
-I’m getting tired now, don’t we have enough cars by now?
-Just one more. A Hakumai Crest SX. (@interior)
-OH MY GOD, did they sell more than like, three of them?
-86 hp single cam RWD, it was the perfect hot hatch of the 70s, in 2004.
-They made good track day cars though, with lots of tweaking.
-And that is not really what we are after. It was a truly underrated car in some ways, but it’s mainly forgotten now.
-Honestly, I don’t see lots of reasons to choose this. And besides, look at how old this ad is.
-Yeah, probably already sold, he only forgot to remove the ad I guess.
The Hakumai Crest SX will not be considered as the 2020 project car. Angry e-mails from weebs are probably going to drop in soon because of that decision.
So, the finalists are:
@Madrias
@LinkLuke
@GassTiresandOil
@HighOctaneLove
@Blothorn
@Prium
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I like your descriptions. Angry emails from weebs. That’s probably true alongside it being underrated because it’s the very low end model being a play on RWD hatchbacks.
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To be honest, the car was a positive surprise in itself when I saw it. Some really interesting engineering choices made this like something of an underpowered sports car in hatchback disguise. But it felt a bit off considering what I was looking for. Maybe it will be some cult following in 20 years, quirky cars are seldom appreciated when they haven’t reached vintage status yet.
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I was forced to use a fairly underpowered I4 instead of a V6 Swap or any other more powerful engines due to how much wheelspin happens with a car like it. Canonically I’ve used the model name in rounds of Generations 2
I can’t decide if I should be happy or ashamed of this.
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actually made me laugh… But yeah I get how it may seem advanced, the ZX16 was kinda meant to replace GMI’s aging Pico, a car that despite a revison by 1989 had been in it’s 2nd gen production since 1971. It’s engine was even older. GMI already had done engineering on the ZX64, and ZX128 on a shared platform with Bogliq, so They were able to downsize it and spend most of the 80’s designing the new 1.0 twin cam engine.
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I’m honestly surprised I made it past the first round of cuts.
While the Traville as a lore-car actually isn’t bad, there’s a lot of really good ones in the competition that I was certain would knock it down.
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REPRINT FROM TRAFIKJOURNALEN #3 2020
OUR NEW PROJECT CAR, PART 0, THE PROLOGUE
OUR NEW PROJECT FOR 2020
As you may have read in the last issue, “Lord Basker”, our 1976 Dickson that we have been running as a project car during 2019, and that has given us lots of fu…eh, trouble, is now sold. And as it has been an annual tradition since the 80s to run an older car as a project for a year, we needed a new one for 2020. And this time probably something easier to live with than an abused british 70s gran turismo, at least for the sake of variety.
Searching through the ads, and ditching some cars, like a backyard hot rodded NAM (!), a charming Archanan fire chief car (lovely, but maybe a bit too odd even for our taste) and a Hakumai Crest (believe it or not, they do exist outside video games), we had six interesting cars that we had decided to take a look at.
The first one was a 1992 Bogliq Brioche convertible that we found at a car dealer nearby that specializes in USDM imports. Apparently, they had imported it already 12 years ago but had it traded in again recently. It was the only convertible in the bunch, which made us kind of interested. But looking at it closer, we were not fully convinced. The respray in a clown car paint could not really be taken seriously, and with the bad prep before the painting, the rust had started to shine through again, and it would take lots of work to get it back to something that normal people could have been seen in without feeling ashamed. Other than that we found no major reasons not to buy it, but on the other hand, except for the ragtop, we didn’t see any reasons to buy it either. If all the other cars turned out to be heading for the scrapyard, though, we could probably live with the Bogliq and its flaws.
We continued our journey to a McDonalds parking lot instead where we had promised to meet up a private seller. After a short while of waiting, we heard a burbling V8 and with squealing tyres a la Hollywood, a 2005 Durendal Havana entered the scene. The classic yank tank that they simply forgot to take out of production, with roots harking back to the 70s and numerous facelifts that looked more or less laughable all the time. Basically lacking in ALL departments compared to more modern competitors, but still sold like firewood in Alaska. What a nice start.
Out of the drivers seat jumped a guy in his 20s wearing the complete package of blue jeans, leather vest and some stinky brand of pomade in the hair that probably, just as the Havana, only existed because they forgot to take it out of production. Stray cats were blasting from the speakers, and we had our reasons to believe that this was not the first time he visited McDonalds. The springs on the left side got a much easier job after he jumped out, to say the least.
He was blabbering on about how this had been his grandfather’s car but that he now had to sell it. We had no reasons not to believe it. It had some classical old man wear and tear. Discharged battery that probably had origins from when the car was new. Lots of parking dings and small scratches. An interior that smelled of a chain smoker. Though that’s more or less the amount of work that we are looking for. And we felt positive that this would keep the spirit alive from our previous project cars. Maybe a bit new, on the other hand, it could by no means be called “modern”.
This was a strong contender, we told him, but we still had to look at some other cars.
That’s why we visited a collector outside town that had lots of latin american cars, SEABs, Estradas, even a Volkswagen Brasilia. But the car that caught our interest this time, and the only one that he was willing to sell, was a third generation ITA Cuter, imported from Argentina. Yes, there was a third generation, unknown to most people in europe. And the car looked kind of solid. A half decent paint job was sprayed on some years ago, and there were some electrical gremlins.
He said that he sold mainly because he didn’t have the time needed for it, and sitting in it sure was an interesting experience. A car mainly sold in its home market on the other side of the Atlantic ocean. And it is a really cool little car actually, that we think we could make something fun out of. We told him that it was a strong contender and went on to the next car.
Another import car dealer near the docks had a Sinistra standing in the backyard that had just arrived from the states. It appears like it had participated in some gambler 500 like event but had been gone through completely after that. And it appeared like a reasonably solid car, but still…
Something did not feel quite right. The Sinistra Traville is far from as bland as it first appears, but yet…no, our hearts were not beating for this ride. And besides, it seems like it already has kind of a cult following. Did we really want to inherit someone else’s project that have had its five minutes of fame already?
And besides. If we wanted a yank tank, the Durendal has more of a soul to it.
We left the dealer without any Traville and we had more interesting cars on our possible list already, so…
At the Shell station, we had promised to meet up with the owner of a GMI ZX16 that we already were a bit sceptical to. And when he entered with a handbrake turn, blasting “absolute bass hits 2003” from his boombox, we were even more sceptical. One can say that his pregnant girlfriend had a hard time getting out of this cramped ride, and it was for obvious reasons only going to get worse. He was nervously blabbering on about everything that was perfect with the car. The truth is that nothing was perfect, but it still appeared solid. After she had bought gallons of Monster cans at the gas station, his girlfriend came out and after loading up the cargo compartment with them she soon had her phone in one hand and a cigarette in the other. We thought that smoking while pregnant was left in the 70s for most people, but what do we know?
He was starting to nervously try to bring the price down when it became apparent that we didn’t have too much of an interest in it. But that didn’t change much. Sure, it was an unmolested example that better should be saved, and we hope that someone will do. But we felt like it was not our responsibility.
Our last trip went to a very clean garage, where we got introduced to a clean Rutherford Sparra by someone that, well, let’s say that he knew more about Rutherfords than probably anyone else, and he was not afraid to tell it. After we had heard everything there is to know about Rutherford for two hours, we took the cover off to look at the car. And it was nice, no question about it. We didn’t want to rule out this car because we like them very much and because it was in a well kept condition, so it was one of the three finalists that we had to think over.
So, we were left with three choices.
A Durendal Havana that had the right kind of ironic charm and was a big enough project, but maybe a little bit too new.
An ITA Cuter, a rare and fun car that we were sure many readers would appreciate. But hard to find spares, and maybe it should get into the hands of a collector instead.
And a very nice Rutherford Sparra. A true enthusiast car, a driving machine loved by many. And very nice. But maybe a little bit too nice when thinking about it.
And we had to choose one car.
FLIP THE PAGE TO SEE WHAT WE ENDED UP WITH!
And here it is! Please, let’s introduce you to “Kojak”, the 2005 Durendal Havana that we will run as a project car in 2020!
@Madrias @LinkLuke @GassTiresandOil @Prium @HighOctaneLove @Blothorn
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Nice! its unfortunate i did not get in there because the car itself. But it was a good one. Liking the descriptions
Hey, if I had to lose, at least I lost to a modern classic American luxury car.
Either way, it’s not a big deal, the failure to sell the Traville won’t set any of the crew back by that much. It might end up being beaten on a bit and thrashed until it becomes the cheap-track-day-special for Team Racing Stripes, especially if there’s any beater racing showing up for them to go through. It might even be modified by Twin Hearts Racing to be even more terrifying…
Anyway, thank you to @Knugcab for hosting this challenge! I had fun remastering the Traville to fit in it, and, well, let’s face it, it was either going to be a Traville, or a 2005 Savage anyway…
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Woo hoo! Thanks for the win! It was nice to see a lot of really cool (and different) cars in this one. “… we had our reasons to believe this was not the first time he visited McDonald’s” that line had me laughing.
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Well, let’s hope that I can keep up the quality in the articles then… 
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First of all Congrats to the winner.
Also thanks to @Knugcab for writing some stuff that actually made me laugh for the first time today. Maybe in the future you’ll get another GMI… maybe this time it’ll be some big guy who overloaded the suspension struggling to get out the car…
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You probably understood why 
describes mine too
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Well, Congrats to the winner! Tbf I knew it would be a tough decision with these entries ( I really liked the 30-years-late-and-still-kicking concept used on the Havana).
I loved the final analysis on each car and each of the owners. I totally lost it at the collector profile of the owner of the Cuter, as I really tried to tone the car down to make it a crappy version of the Cuter Turbo (which would be the real collectible) but it seems that it was still too rare.
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Congratulations to @GassTiresandOil for your success and thankyou @Knugcab for hosting!
I think this competition struck the right balance of fun, balance and authenticity; I will definitely be a part of the next one!
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