I’m kinda of hoping @strop wins based on how awesome his car looks (seriously I’m going to have to try out some cool taillight designs like that now) and it is the last two door muscle machine. Although @Madrias plans for Round 16 have me kind of torn with that massive V8 and menacing design. I think @thecarlover probably has the most classic definition of a muscle car being a big four door V8 that also looks especially pleasing in design. But that said I wish all the finalist well in the final round and may the best car triumph.
I’m just disappointed with our styling department.
We have several vacancies in our styling department…apply with CV to the usual address.
We would like to stipulate that the upper management are not to blame for any mistakes made by the plebs further down the food chain!
all of the finalists have really cool designs and ideas…but Madrias’s cars never sway me in the looks, but strop…damn…just damn. and thecarlover’s is plesantly inoffensive.
My designs aren’t supposed to be wild, they’re just something I do. If they’re being noticed, I’m doing it wrong.
well, i suppose we all have our methods.
I would like to apply for the position I have ran two companies into the ground now (ANZ and ANZhotrods) so I have plenty of experience in f*&k%$g things up
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I definitely know how to design a good-looking car for sure - my CS60 Coupe is rolling proof of that.
it’s smooth, sleek and unfussy, but somehow lacks that final wow.
@strop made his Manta look like a proper supercar, which makes sense considering that it has about as much power as the other finalists.
#Test Drives
December 7, 2013 - A day that will forever live in infamy. Moment of Silence. This day will not be saved by the unholy hell that I’m about to unleash upon the roads in these three test drives though. The asphalt compounds are unsuspecting of the rubber assault that will rain down throughout the course of this day. When I test drive cars, I do it right. Drive it like you stole it because you haven’t bought it yet.
Hammer Down.
##@Madrias, Storm Insaniti
My first impression of the Insanti was one of sheer awe. This vehicle had a presence. It was large and in charge and I wanted to get in it and wield it’s stature against every unsuspecting Honda and Mitsubishi I could find. The only things I didn’t like about the looks were the red lower grille and dual fuel caps. The two fuel caps was a slight bit of an insult to my intelligence, or at least I briefly thought that to myself before I went back to looking at the red grille. I then thought to myself, “I’m really going to have to spray paint that if I buy that car. I wonder if the dealer has black ones available. I’ll have to inquire.” The rest of the styling was right up my alley. A big black car with aggressive and beautifully sculpted curves to accentuate every fixture. Yeah, I was definitely in the right kind of car looks wise. Also, the entire rear end of this car really speaks to my tastes in automotive design. I would love to pull ahead of any opponents in this puppy.
Design wise, the vehicle made use of an AHS Steel unibody with aluminum panels for weight saving. The front suspension geometry made use of double wishbone suspension in the front and MultiLink in the rear. No solid rear axle to deal with on this car, it was certainly going to be good at handling the curves. The car was also equipped with 265/35R19 front and 275/30R19 rear sports compound tires mounted on magnesium rims meant I wouldn’t be rotating the tires with my oil changes, but it also gave the car a nice staggered stance without being overly aggressive. It basically assisted this car to have the aggressive forward lean that made it look fast even when sitting still.
As I opened the door I was met with a 5-seat luxury interior. It wasn’t of the highest quality that you could ever imagine, but no corners had been cut to save money. I appreciated the balance in the choice to go with the high-end comfort amenities without overdoing it. This car isn’t meant to cradle me. I want to be comfortable, but I was happy to feel the firmness in the seats. I knew it would come in handy through the corners, especially considering I’d be throwing 4,470.8 pounds around every time I turned the wheel. To help me manage I was given a full range of driver assists. This is both good and slightly annoying. It’s good because this car’s motor definitely needed taming. (I’ll get to that later.) That being said, it’s bad because I like the challenge a totally overpowered heavy car poses. You have to actively drive this car. You can’t just sit back in luxury and cruise. No, this vehicle required a wheel man. The assists took some of that away, but after pawing away at the luxury touch screen mounted in the dash, I found the assist settings and was able to dial them into my liking. A grin crept across my face as I made note of how to find the page later on. For the test drive, we’re going to turn everything off. I want the full experience. Hopefully both I and the car survive.
The salesman was very, very, very slow to be convinced that he should hand me the keys. I basically had to balance my checkbook in front of the guy to show him that I wasn’t some teenager looking for a free thrill ride. I knew I’d be getting that at every dealership, after my patented “fine, I think the salesman at the Ford dealership would be more than happy to sell me a Mustang” line followed by making a beeline for the door, the problem suddenly corrected itself. Funny how that works. Poor commission driven saps.
One I got the car fired up I decided that it was time to appreciate the drive-train. First off, nothing, and I mean nothing sounds as amazing as a large displacement V8. This one was an all Al-Si 7.2L XPV8 with a DOHC 4-valve set-up. It wasn’t a burbling V8 at idle much to do with the fact that the VVL really was tuned in to keep economy up at cruise while allowing for sheer madness as you pushed further and further into the rev range. A quick jab onto the throttle woke the engine out and it let out a mystifying sound of an 8 cylinder symphony. Luxury radio? Forget that, I have my own music to listen to. I just have to roll down the windows.The engine was also quite amazing on the stats sheet too. It made 611 HP @ 6700 RPM with a 7500 RPM redline. The engine also made 431 Ft-Lbs of torque at idle. The torque curve topped out at 507 Ft-Lbs at 5500 RPM and basically stayed well north of 450 Ft-Lbs to 7000 RPM. Overtaking? So not a problem.
The engine wasn’t the only thing that was sure to make overtaking simple. I had a 6-speed manual transmission and a Viscous LSD in the rear to help me manage the power, assists regardless. I probably wouldn’t have had to downshift to pass people with the immense power and torque this car had, but when I jammed the clutch and moved the stick into a lower gear, there was no delay and no doubt that the Insantiti would bury whatever laid in my path. The numbers don’t lie and a 5.3 second 0-62 time and a 50-75 time of 2.1 seconds is impressive with such a large car. Sure, there are smaller coupes and maybe even some sedans that are quicker, but I was plenty impressed with this car’s capabilities.
Without further ado, I hit the road. The salesman definitely thought twice as I punched it as we pulled out of the driveway. I didn’t wait until the car was straight either. I wanted to know if it would protest with so much energy being thrown around. The car definitely got a little upset, but it wasn’t squirrely It was controllable. The MultiLink suspension allowed for the body roll to be transferred in the form of mostly grip. Now the tires did give up a little bit, but the throttle was responsive and I could control how much of a slide this large car entered into. A quick shift to second and some more squealing wheels and I was well past 60 while still exceeding the capabilities of this car’s grip.
The car wasn’t a boat either. The vehicle was capable of 1.14g consistently and that was amazing. The roll angle was surprisingly slight, but the car still was drivable and comfortable. With this being the first car I test drove I didn’t have anything to compare it to, but it certainly was enjoying the benefit of setting the bar. I had tuned out the salesman after the second red-light acceleration pull and I relished in the sweeping curves that I managed to find. I couldn’t find a negative to the drive quality and I certainly knew the vehicle would be absolutely satisfying whether I wanted to run it hard or go on a cruise. I liked how much variance existed in this car. It could be a family cruiser or it could be a canyon carver, or it could be a drag king. Sure, it wouldn’t be as good as some other purpose built vehicles, but I could get groceries and beat most stock muscle cars by the time I hit third gear on the way home from the store. This is what I’m looking for and it’s why I’m test driving it now. I’d have to see how the competition lined up.
##@thecarlover, Solo Jetstream SM
This car was sharp. That’s precisely how I would describe the design of this car, it just looked sharp. Not just “good looking” sharp, either. It was more like “capable of cutting your opponents into shreds” sharp. I had nothing negative to say about the design of this car. Every detail of this vehicle was crafted with precision. There was no oddball red grille here. The looks of this car were just impeccable. I really want to talk about how the rear looks so precise or how the front looks intimidating and how that gives a distinguishing look to the car, but I just cannot. Singling out one design feature would be a disservice to the rest of the car. Looking at the vehicle out in the lot was giving me the sweats and it was the beginning of January for crying out loud.
This car was identical to the Insaniti as far as design choices went with the exception of the rear suspension. AHS steel unibody with aluminum panels made up the body. The front and the rear both made use of double wishbone setups however. I wondered if this car would be more balanced with matching geometry in the front and rear. I was plenty happy with the MultiLink setup in the Insaniti. Could the Jetstream do more with a simpler system? The sports tires were 265/35R20s mounted on aluminum wheels. I liked the symmetry with the design theme as I looked around the vehicle. I could smoke the rears and rotate them to the front to even out the wear with matching rubber on the Jetstream. That’s very important when I have a lead foot in a RWD sedan. I must also say, even with the matching front and rear designs, the body was sculpted in such a way to give the aggressive forward leaning stance much like the Insaniti had. I could definitely see myself looking back at this car every time I parked it somewhere. I was really hoping that the interior and power plant could live up to the appearance this body put forth.
As I opened the doors to the Jetstream I was greeted with 5 seats once again. These were only premium seats, but they had a little higher quality than your typical premium interior. It wasn’t overly high quality, but the stitching and handles and latches inside had a nice solid feel to them. That’s become underrated in cars. There’s nothing I dislike more in a car than something that looks exquisite and refined, but then functions with a piece of plastic that’s a cheap as a ten year-old Dodge Neon. The Jetstream didn’t blow me away with it’s looks, but the attention to detail in this car spoke volumes that the car was meant to actually function. Sure any garage queen would hold up, but this car felt like you could drive it every day and not break anything in normal use, at least not for a considerable amount of time.
The salesman here was a little more reasonable in handing over the keys to the Jetstream. It wasn’t as much of a stretch that a teenager could afford this car. It only cost $30,030.00 and I was sure I could offer something under $29k and walk out with this car. Good luck finding something else with this kind of value. And let me tell you something, this car wasn’t cheap because it offered less. I’m not entirely sure how the Jetstream did it, but the vehicle did not do so by reducing capability or cutting corners.
Starting the Jetstream was a little less exciting than the Insaniti, but it was still impressive. This car was powered by a 6L XPV8 with another DOHC 4-valve setup. It produced 645 HP at the 7700 RPM redline and 463 Ft-Lbs @ 6800 RPM. Now the torque here was no where near as linear as the Insaniti and that was mostly due to the really aggressive VVL profile. Both the Insaniti and Jetstream utilized both VVL and VVT and both made similar power and got similar economy, but you could see the differences in the tuning strategy. The Insaniti went for more constant power, the Jetstream went for aggressive, snarling extraction of more power from a smaller block that ran on regular fuel. It was astounding as far as engineering went.
The Jetstream was also a little more advanced in the gearbox department. It utilized a 6-speed double-clutch sequential transmission with a Geared LSD to get the power to the rear wheels. Yeah, it wasn’t a driver’s delight, but it did allow for more convenience. Once again I thought this car was designed to be the daily driver just a little but more than the Insaniti. Between the regular fuel, matching tire sizes, premium interior with that little extra quality, slightly smaller footprint, and a transmission that was a compromise between the convenience of automatic and direct feel of a manual, this car screamed “you don’t need your truck, you can take me everywhere!”
The test drive began much the same way the last one did and the results did not really differ. 645 controllable horsepower. I also don’t know if it was the transmission, or the matching suspension, or something else, but the Jetstream seemed to have a little more grip that the Insaniti. The Jetstream did tip the scales at “only” 4012.4 pounds, and the weight savings may have returned a little more lateral grip. The weight savings coupled with a quicker transmission and more power definitely attributed to the rest of the enhanced performance states. 0-60? 4.8 seconds. 50-75? 1.9 seconds. Cornering? 1.17g at low speed and 1.12g at higher speeds. The gear ratios were a little shorter this time around and the wheels gripped a little more, but I was still able to break the rear loose with sufficient ease. The body roll was palpable in this car, however. It was slightly more unsettling, but as I got used to it I was more comfortable with pushing the vehicle further. It was truly a deceptive experience. The salesman was definitely expecting it more than I. First potential upgrade: stiffer springs.
This was proving to be a difficult choice. Maybe the last car would make it easier.
#@strop, Courcheval Manta
Okay, I admit, this car had no business competing with the Insaniti or the Jetstream when looking at objective numbers. But, who said anything about being objective? Certainly not I. I decided I wanted a sedan, but this was a coupe. I exempted a coupe that still had 4 seats that made more power, but cut it for value. I just liked this car. I couldn’t cut it without driving it. I felt like there was something I would miss. Something about the potential drive of this car reached out to me every time I was about to discard it and begged me to give it a chance. Well here the vehicle is and I was standing in front of it. I didn’t do that long because the front end wasn’t the most impressive thing I’ve ever seen, but the rear end. Yes, a million times, yes. Purely sculpted beauty. The taillights were unique. The trim pieces worked in concert with the light design. The exhaust shape matched the geometry of the rest of the rear. The diffuser wasn’t obnoxious, yet gave style. The turn signals and reverse lights were placed not just as a functional requirement, but rather to accentuate the beauty of the rest of the light fixtures and draw your attention to them. You’d know if I was changing lanes or if I completely pulled you from a red light. I wish I could speak so highly about the rest of the car. You could tell where the design team spent their time.
Inside the vehicle were two premium seats, a full range of driver assists and some advanced safety that experienced some weight reduction for the sake of performance. The rest of the interior had the same quality attention that the Jetstream showed. It was a good car. I kept this car in my back pocket just on the off chance that the sedans were performance duds. That certainly was not the case in my experience thus far. This car was just going to have to be a performance monster to get me to buy it. So forgive me if I don’t get to the details of the build. It just really didn’t matter. This car was all about speed, drive, and feel.
All right, let’s get right to it. The engine: all Al-Si 6.5L (6462 cc) DOHC 5-valve XPV8 that made 612 HP @ 7100 RPM with a 7800 RPM redline. There was no VVL with 5-valves per cylinder, just VVT on all cams and straightforward sports cams making a wide parabolic torque curve that stretched over the whole rev range with 491 Ft-Lbs @ 4800 RPM. Sure, this engine didn’t have the high torque at the low end, but I didn’t really care. The engine was plenty strong and having all power potential all the time and not waiting for the extra valve lift was an attractive prospect.
The transmission: a 6-speed manual for that pure driver’s feel. No overdrive gear provided and a Geared LSD. This all came together for a 4.4 second 0-60 run, a 2.1 second 50-75 sprint, a 12.1 second quarter mile, and a 218.3 MPH top speed. And the lateral grip… 1.21g at low speed and 1.28g at high speeds with very little roll. I don’t think I ever drove a car that just reacted to steering input like you were driving a video game. The grip had to be handled by 315/45R19 sports tires up front and 345/40R19s in the rear mounted on magnesium rims that were connected to the all steel unibody by double wishbones up front and MultiLink in the rear. The car only weighed in at 4022.6 pounds and it had perfect 50.0/50.0 weight distributed. The decimal places were literally necessitated by the preciseness. The whole package is pretty damn impressive. Did I mention that this thing only cost $29,370.00? Yeah. You read that right.
The car was an absolute performance monster. And the PR guy should be commended for keeping this car in the competition. I was going to discard the vehicle, but the advert kept it in. Not just because of the looks or the performance stats, but because the story was so compelling. It told a tale of American Muscle the spirit it embodies. The reason I like these cars is not because they’re the best handling, or even the most powerful in the world. It’s because it’s an American Spirit that screams through wielding a vehicle that longs to be driven, that is designed to be pushed, and takes skill to handle when you approach the car’s limits. The advert hit that on the head and I couldn’t get rid of something that looked at that spirit and tried to modernize it and recreate it all in one exquisite and accessible automobile. I was better for having driven this car and would love to own one… one day.
#Yes, it was decision time.
The Manta was impressive, but it didn’t manage to exceed the two sedans anywhere except cornering and it didn’t do it by much there. I decided that it was down to the big guns that I had test driven earlier. Yet, it was still no easy decision. Each vehicle had benefits and draws to it that made me want to buy both, but I had to pick one. In the end it was a matter of what vehicle could do the most, provide the most fun, and still manage to deliver a car that could be driven everyday. The choice was hard, but it slowly became clear.
#Congratulations to @thecarlover and the Solo Jetstream SM!
For the reasons stated above, you have yourself a sale.
Note: I will be editing this post to add a Google Sheet that detailed the rounds of cuts as well as photos of the winning cars.
Edit: Forgive any typos; it’s late and I have yet to thoroughly proofread. I’ll get to those tomorrow.
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Oh, so close! I thought the price and performance might swing it, but there’s no beating the brief. Nice one, @thecarlover
Well, that was a mega blast. I’m having a greater sense of urgency in wanting to host a round so you can bet I’m going to be really gunning for it now. Y’all been warned 
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Can’t say I’m surprised. Congratulations to thecarlover for winning the challenge.
Well, it looks like the Solo Jetstream SM just had the right balance to take this round. Congrats to @thecarlover and looking forward to seeing what comes next round! Thanks to @KLinardo for hosting this round it was quite an exciting challenge.
No surprise here. @thecarlover built a big saloon with the heart and soul of a supercar, and it paid off handsomely. If I had $30k to spare and the Solo Jetstream SM existed in real life, I’d buy one right away for its old-school approach to thrills… And it runs on regular fuel, a boon in Australia where this basic fuel is commonly available everywhere.
Even if @thecarlover had opted to use a multilink rear end, the final result would not have changed, and I reckon that the margin of victory would have been even larger in that case. At least we all had fun trying to give @KLinardo the car that he wanted!
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Thanks!!! Coming last isn’t easy but, with truckloads of determination and true grit, we here at Bogliq have taken the wooden spoon again! 
Congrats to @thecarlover for a well deserved win despite fierce competition. 
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Yup, I called it xD
I need to win to defend my honor as a car maker, so…
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Well, I’m hoping the next challenge is something I’m good at. Got a narrow skill-set where I do things well enough, and everything else, I might as well not even bother.
Wow, as much as I’ve been hoping to win a round, I really wasn’t expecting it 
Thanks @KLinardo for the great round!
I just got back from a concert and have to head to bed, but I’ll put together my ideas for Round 16 tomorrow and try to have it all ready sometime in the evening.
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