1984 Letaran Auto Convention (completed)
A sequel to the 1974 Letaran Auto Convention that ties in to the recently concluded fourth round and the upcoming fifth round of the Letara History Challenge.
Ever since it hosted the first Letaran Auto Convention in 1974, the Lerance Convention Center, a vast building in the national capital of Letara, has been a place of interest for the world’s motoring press. Since then, every year, every major car manufacturer with a presence in the Letaran market has been invited to the LAC. A decade later, it remains a showcase for their concept and production-ready cars, as well as any advanced technology they may utilize. Are you ready to show Letara what your products can provide to the car-buying public?
General Rules (all production cars)
All submissions in any production car categories must follow the rules stated below.
- Tech pool allocation: 25 (engine), 40 (car); maximum tech pool of 8 in any one area.
- Maximum quality of +5 in any area for car or engine.
- Model, trim, family, and variant years must all be set to 1984.
- Fuel type must be either unleaded (91, 95 or 98 RON) or any form of ethanol blend.
- A 3-way catalytic converter (either normal or high-flow) and two mufflers will be required.
- At least Standard 70s safety will be required, but Standard 80s safety or better is recommended.
- All cars must have at least one pair each of headlights (white bulbs and lenses), taillights (red bulbs and lenses), brake lights (red bulbs and lenses) and indicators (orange bulbs and lenses).
- All cars must have front (orange) and rear (red) side reflectors; these may be integrated into the headlight and taillight assemblies, respectively.
- Although not required, all cars may have a visible third brake light, mounted centrally in the rear and at or above trunk height. They can be mounted on aero fixtures (wings, lips, spoilers). If a car’s lore post states the presence of a third brake light, but no such fixture is fitted to the actual car, I will assume it is placed either ahead of the base of the rear window or at the top of the trunk lid.
- All cars must have a fuel filler cap.
- All cars must have two mirrors (one each on the driver and passenger sides).
- All cars must have at least one front windscreen wiper.
- An interior is recommended, but not required.
- No race parts of any kind (semi-slick tires, as well as racing headers and intakes).
- Functional aero fixtures are allowed – you can have positive downforce values at either end of the car (or both, just don’t go too crazy with them.
- Advanced trim settings may be used, but in moderation.
- Most mods are allowed, except for the Legacy Body Pack (which I don’t have).
- No V16 engines (I don’t have the requisite key).
List of Advanced Technology
The following items are classified as advanced technology for this year’s LAC:
- Carbon-fiber panels and/or chassis
- Multilink rear suspension
- V10 engines
- 5-valve DOHC heads
- Lightweight forged and low-friction cast pistons
- Any type of variable valve timing (VVT)
- Twin-scroll turbochargers
- 4-piston vented discs
- 4-speed advanced automatic transmission
- CD player
- Advanced 90s safety
- Traction control
- Adaptive dampers
The two production car categories are as follows:
Standard (S): This encompasses a wide variety of cars for the masses, from entry-level (sub)compacts) and mid-sized family cars to (mini)vans, pick-up trucks, and SUVs of various sizes, with a maximum budget of $25,000 AMU. The priorities for this category are as follows:
Major Priorities 
- Drivability
- Safety
- Comfort
Moderate Priorities
- Price (less is usually more)
- Reliability
- Emissions (trim)
- Fuel Economy (in US mpg)
- Service Costs
- Design
Minor Priorities
- Practicality
- Utility
Luxury/Performance (R): This is a category reserved for upmarket, luxury, and high-performance cars (including supercars), with a maximum budget of $40,000 AMU. The priorities for this category are as follows:
Major Priorities
- Sportiness
- Prestige
- Design
- Comfort
Moderate Priorities
- Drivability
- Safety
Minor Priorities
- Emissions
- Fuel economy (in US mpg)
- Reliability
Letaran Car of the Year
Only the top 5 cars from each of the two categories above are eligible for this award. The scoring criteria are as follows:
- Score in original category
- Design
- Uniqueness
- Emissions
- Fuel economy (in US mpg)
- Safety
- Bonus points for use of any advanced technology (as listed above)
Non-Production Concepts (X)
These cars will not be intended for production, but are meant to draw as large a crowd as possible (hopefully for the right reasons). In this category, design takes precedence over engineering, but the rules are identical to those for the two Production Car categories, with the following exceptions:
- Tech pool: 40 (engine), 60 (car), with no limits in any area; maximum quality of 6.
- Race parts (intake, headers, semi-slick tires) may be used.
- Maximum price: $70,000 AMU.
Major Priorities
- Prestige
- Design
Moderate Priorities
- Sportiness
- Comfort
Minor Priorities
- Safety
Schedule
Rules discussion ends at 11:59 pm GMT on Monday, March 6th, 2023. Submissions open at 12:00 am GMT on Tuesday, March 7th, 2023 and close at 12:00 am GMT on Tuesday, March 21st, 2023.
Submission Guidelines
You may submit up to 3 cars, with a maximum of 1 car per category. For each category, the model and family names are as follows:
Standard: LAC - 2S - your forum user name
Luxury/Performance: LAC - 2R - your forum user name
Non-Production: LAC - 2X - your forum user name
Regardless of the category, I will only accept submissions through forum DM (not Discord), and each submission must be accompanied by a post on this thread showing a picture of the car(s) submitted. However, if your entry violates any of the rules stated in the OP, I will not reject them immediately; instead, I will inform you as soon as I can, although there is no guarantee that I will notice any rule breaks - so make sure to (double-)check your submission before you send it.
This is also the first time I have hosted a round of a challenge after winning its previous round, so I appreciate your feedback and patience.
Changelog
- Date set to 1984
- Updated list of advanced technology
- Adjusted price for Luxury/Performance and Non-Production categories
- V16s outlawed along with Legacy Body Pack mod
Above all, good luck, and have fun!
