2006 Apoapsis Dreamline
V10, RWD, and more cushions inside than a Pottery Barn
Old World Class with a bit of New World Dance.
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2006 Barclay Beauford SLX
What’s better than a large American car? Of course, it’s a large American car with rocket/plane influences and a terrifyingly 50s paintjob.
Pedestrians be damned, with the sheer amount of chrome that sticks out from this vehicle, any pedestrian unfortunate enough to be caught in its path will quickly find out why pedestrians and other road users give these cars a wide berth.
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2006 Carpentia Medalist Hyperstellar Sunset Boulevard Edition
Special edition of America’s most exclusive and exceptional landyacht is here. Introducing the Sunset Boulevard Edition for Carpentia Medalist. Production limits to 300 units, half of which are paired with Interstellar trim and the other half are paired with Hyperstellar trim, which include sportier hood and grille, boosted V8 and adaptive dampers. The Sunset Boulevard Edition features two-tone metallic paint called Rose Gold Metallic and Pearl White with matching interior, rocket-inspired side garnish, 17-inch chrome rims and Sunset Boulevard Edition badges. This car is equipped with a 325 horsepower V8 paired to a 4-speed advance automatic powering the front wheels. At 49700$, style and elegance have never been this affordable.
Other Carpentias for reference
2006 Carpentia Medalist ESX (normal version)
“Normal timeline” 2005 facelifted Carpentia Diaz Interstellar AWD
“Normal timeline” 2005 Carpentia Paragon ESX (right), 2008 facelifted Paragon Hyperstellar (left)
Note: Interstellar is Carpentia’s highest luxury trim and Hyperstellar is Carpentia’s performance marque.
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Just a reminder for everyone: The deadline is in about 47 hours.
hello I would like to beg for an extension please (a delay to the flight if you will)
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somewhat seconded
Ok, with multiple people requesting extensions here and elsewhere, I’ll bump out the deadline. I expect to be busy on Tuesday and Wednesday (AWST), so you have a 72 hour extension. New deadline is Wednesday The 11th, again at 11:59 PM UTC.
ALCC Caravelle Spirit
The American Luxury Car Concepts design house - renowned for work with Callahan, SMC, Keika Automotive, and more - has decided to enter the field of building their own cars. A custom designed chassis, extravagant and unique design, and a bespoke engine designed from scratch, the Caravelle takes this new era of design to another level. A broad intake along the nose, additional intakes along the side, interspersed with bars acting as headlights and indicators, a divining strip along the side to emulate the flow of air over a wing, upright tail fins and jet exhausts acting as the brake lights. To create a connection with the air and sky, a moon roof allows vision of the sky even when the roof is closed, yet is capable of segmenting and opening to allow the four passengers to access to the sky, in which this car takes such grand design inspiration from. A grand connection between land and sky, fully presented as an emulation within this car. This design. This grand circumstance.
Fly High, Fly Well, Fly in Luxury, Fly in Class.
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Okay, a bit under 24 hours left, I have submissions from @Edsel @Capri78 @superbiirdd and @UnderlovedGhost .
Pinging @supersaturn77 and @NotChris07 to remind them of the deadline.
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2006 Rennara Torva DS5
Rennara’s storied luxury sedan debuts a powerful new V8 and sweeping aero for the 2006 model year, replacing yester-years anemic V6. Further refinement was made to the already-smooth automatic; and with a more powerful, responsive, V8 tied in, cruising down the boulevard has never been so effortless. Unfortunately, the Torva’s exciting new powerplant is tucked into the upper echelons, gracing those who opt for a near-top spec Deluxe Sport. As usual with the Torva’s exhaustive list of options, the V8 is also offered within the Deluxe Touring package, and experts are expecting to see it in racing paddocks next year. Those willing to part with the better part of $60,000 can also find it in their Grand Sport and Touring models - but why spend that kind of money if you’re aren’t getting the optional V12?
Get your hands on this chrome-lined, V8-powered cruiser for a scant $44,700! Dangerously low-priced? A verdict to be seen…
Design by @NotChris07
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Entries are closed. I received the entry above, and no others. I’ll get started on reviews today!
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I cut that dangerously close, and I apologize. But I made it in and have since edited the post to be higher effort.
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REVIEWS
Okay, let’s get into it. Design reviews first, then engineering separately. Each review section will have a ranking, and they’re tucked inside details dropdowns.
Design Reviews
Barclay Beauford SLX
By @Capri78
Right off the bat, the first thing that strikes me is the overall shape. There hasn’t been much done to reshape the body. That would be fine if the body was contemporary, but this is a body from 1986. It’s 20 years old here, old enough to get a body age penalty even in the slow-moving budget segments, and it feels like it. The parts that have been added that shape the car outside the body all draw some complaints from me. The grille looks like it was cribbed from a 50s design, while the spare tyre on the back feels even older than that. Is it a spare tyre? Pulling it out from the bumper wouldn’t be that desirable. Maybe it’s an ornament designed to look like a turbine, but I’m not the greatest fan of it. There’s these weird triangular bits sticking out from the rear, but they don’t really fit that well in the overall shape, they’re just there.
The little details here are nice, but they’re not enough. The doors are nice pushbutton models, but they feel too old. The little wipers and washers for the headlights are nice, but they don’t save it. The same goes for the cowling around the centre-mount brake light, along with the assorted ornaments and chrome trim. The choice of a two-tone is definitely eye-catching, but the way it’s largely done using a cloth roof on an already-dated car really doesn’t help it.
This is one of the two cars with an interior. The interior here is nice but little to write home about, with a classic white and red. Maybe a pain to keep clean, but you’re probably paying someone for that in this segment. Basic screens for satnav and gauges, it’s a passable interior, no major complaints but little to really link it to the rest of the car outside of colours.
As far as how the overall package comes off, it feels like it’s missed the mark a little bit. This doesn’t look like a modern 00s car at all. It feels like an 80s car desperately clinging to elements from the past, rather than an 00s car reacting to its era.
Apoapsis Dreamline
By @Edsel
Where’s the plane?
The Apoapsis Dreamline’s incorporation of the theme is incredibly subtle. If I am generous, the thin chrome strips with the side reflectors atop them are reminiscent of a plane. If I squint, the grille and headlights sorta almost look like a certain plane, but that’s being generous. There’s a little scoop that resembles an intake and there’s a pair of turbine wheels, but that’s about it. It’s an acceptable 00s sedan, I suppose, but it wouldn’t be much to write home about elsewhere, and it doesn’t do enough for the theme here. Midnight purple is nice, but doesn’t save the visuals. If I have to be generous and try to give you the benefit of the doubt to find the theme, you didn’t hit it. Visually, there’s not a massive amount for me to comment on here, it’s very much a car with not much on it, not a lot to comment, it’s a pedestrian design with little to latch on to, little of the theme in it. There’s not enough to comment on, not enough material, there’s just not really anything here. It needs more.
ALCC Caravelle Spirit
The Caravelle Spirit is the sole convertible here, and I am in two minds for it. On the positive side, it reminds me of the Bugatti Veyron. On the negative side, well, it reminds me of the Bugatti Veyron. It looks like a crazy fighter plane on wheels. That front fascia is a bold concept, coming down to a point like a plane and cutting through the air, with the grille and proportions reminding me of the Veyron. The side cuts in just behind the wheels, the cabin is stretched with a massive door to allow four to comfortably enter. The afterburners on the rear and the massive fins scream “plane”. Hell, that stretched cabin’s remarkably Veyron-like too, probably good for aerodynamics, there’s just one issue.
The Veyron is not a particularly beautiful car, in my opinion, and this reminds me of the worst of the Veyron too. I’m not a fan of the way the lights stretch across the front, I’m not a fan of the strange shape of the grille, of the way the lights are laid out. The front fenders are bulbous and swollen, and it really doesn’t fit with the weird cuts and shaping. It looks like a plane, it looks like a car of the era, does it look like something I like? No. Is it perhaps a bit on the nose? Yes. You’ve called this a concept car, but I think it feels more like a Hot Wheels. The idea is fantastic, the concept is fantastic, but the execution doesn’t sit right with me. The chrome that reaches from the front bumper and up around the front wheel before swooping down across the rear wheel cover and to the rear is a nice touch, though. The muted blue is nice but not especially eyecatching. It poses a really interesting question for me to evaluate, and it’s really difficult for me to properly place it and work out my opinions on the car. I sure hope it doesn’t have anything amiss in the engineering.
Rennara Torva DS5 (Alt History Concept)
By @NotChris07 and @Jaeger
The Rennara Torva feels like something of a relative to the Caravelle, almost. I can see a world where the Caravelle started out as the bold design study, before being gradually refined, shaped, reined in to give the Torva. A more conventional front fascia where the pick-shaped grille and V-shape evoke a plane, but where the lights are far more likely to be legal. The fins are smaller, but more sensible and serve a purpose. The massive rear turbines are shrunk down and worked into the lower bumper.
No RT here, there’s some autojank
But the Torva has its own ideas too, don’t think I’m calling it a copy job, it’s more convergent evolution. Many of the things they share were mentioned in the priorities, after all, I can see the process. It uses the new triple fang vent as a motif through the car, applying it on the hood with a bit of molding that flows nicely into the front fascia. It’s carried through to the rear, where it frames those smaller turbines and a central exhaust. A vent on the side is trimmed by a long chrome border, and I swear I’ve seen that triangular shape somewhere. Further up, a probably-superflous vent apes the same sort of nose intakes that a lot of stuff did when planes were in vogue, it definitely looks cool. The paint job also looks like something from KLM, a much brighter blue that helps tie together the aeroplane theme.
If there is one criticism I can make, it would be that I’m not especially fond of the overall execution. It looks like a car from the 00s, sure, but many elements do not fit together well. The hood molding meshes with the front, but the front doesn’t mesh with itself, many items don’t quite fit together and it’s a bit too busy, a lot of stuff that doesn’t feel like it should be where and how it is. It feels busy and overcomplicated and messy.
Carpentia Medalist Hyperstellar Sunset Boulevard Edition
By @superbiirdd
What a mouthfull of a name! But also, what a beauty of a car. The Hyperstellar is subtle yet evocative, and it’s got a lot of stuff that I really like. The big chrome strip on the front evokes a plane or a perhaps a condor, with the badge taking pride of place. It cuts right into the lights, but everything’s arranged just right to ensure that it all works together, it fits and doesn’t feel stuffed with things. Over on the hood and sides, we get a bunch of elements that just feel right. The strakes on the hood inlets, the little vents joined by chrome trim, these tiny little fins up close to the windows. The side has chunky chrome trim, some of which is shaped into this swoosh that reminds me of a plane’s nose or perhaps of a bird (again). This is the third car to have something reminiscent of a turbine on the rear, but it’s subtle now. While the Caravelle had giant afterburners and the Torva used spokes, this one just wraps some lights and the exhaust in chrome trim to get the shape without being on the nose. Everything carries around the car, your eyes pulled back and forth along it. The orange really pops, and the choice to extent the white along the hood and boot lid along with running it along the bottom helps it feel modern and contemporary.
On the inside, we get an interior that feels more expensive than the Barclay, thanks to the wood trim. The restraint to keep white as more of an accent helps. I do find the choice to run a single dial interesting for the era, but it does have a turbine look – and moving the tach over to the right allows for it to show this retrofuturistic fighter type aesthetic. The rounded AC vents fit the theme a little more than the straight ones present in the Barclay too.
The car takes the theme and runs with it in a really interesting manner. It doesn’t look like a plane, sure, but when you put it next to a plane, you can see the relationship. It’s not imitating a plane, but it is inspired by one. It’s a reaction to this new technology, it distils that down into something that’s a car first and a plane second.
Design Rankings
So the question now, at this halfway point of the reviews, is… How do I rank them, visually? Well, looking over the priorities I wrote, the theme is above the other elements, like the quality of the design and the congruence with the era. With that in mind, the visual ranking:
- Fifth: Apoapsis Dreamline (by Edsel)
It’s just not ambitious enough. I have to squint to see any trace of the theme here, I have to be really generous. Maybe I’m missing something in it – but if I can miss something, it’s not clear enough, right? Some turbine wheels and some vents aren’t really enough, I don’t think. It’s nice, but doesn’t match the theme. - Fourth: Barclay Beaufort (by Capri)
The Beaufort did certainly try something, yep. It’s just not the right something. I give it points for trying, for having a more ambitious design, for having stuff there, but it still doesn’t scream plane and it doesn’t scream 2000s either. - Third: Rennara Torva (by Chrisn't and Jaeger)
This is where it really tightens up. The bottom two could’ve been swapped with different priorities, and the top three could’ve been in a lot of places depending on exact mood. It’s the first car that I look at and go “yeah, a plane inspired that”. But the other cars in the top do that too. This just feels too busy, the quality of the execution lags behind, I think. It’s close, but not quite there. - Second: Caravelle Spirit (by Underloved Ghost)
This is the one that looks most like a plane. It’s ugly as sin, it’s legally questionable, but I look at this and it’s absolutely taking the inspiration from there. It took the ball and ran with it, and the stuff I dislike is all stuff that exists in some real 00s cars. So why isn’t it first? - First: Carpentia Medalist (by superbiird)
The Caravelle wasn’t first for visuals because the challenge wasn’t “make a car that looks like a plane”. It was “make a car with plane-inspired design cues”. The Carpentia is subtle, but still accomplishes it. I do think the Caravelle hits the theme a little more, but the Carpentia is very close and it feels like it’s better in terms of aesthetic quality and the other stuff. Just enough to edge out first.
Engineering Reviews
No pictures here, because a lot of the photoscenes are being weird and they’re more important for the design.
ALCC Caravelle Spirit
Oh.
Oh no.
Remember how I said the Caravelle Spirit looks like a concept? It drives like one too. It only hits WES6. I deliberately kept the visual review, because I missed it on my first scrutineering pass, but it’s not legal. A supercharged V10 and tons of power are nice, mediocre drivability doesn’t help. The convertible robs some comfort. There’s a lot of points of failure, like hydropneumatic springs, and that makes it unreliable… But it crashes out due to emissions. I can’t place this car highly when it fails emissions, it automatically slides to fifth, and the looks can’t save it. It would’ve placed highly for engineering due to the massive prestige, but it can’t.
Barclay Beauford SLX
by @Capri78
I’ve mentioned this over on Discord, but this car made a critical mis-step. It used a traditional hydraulic automatic rather than a modern computerised one. The issue is that nobody IRL did that for quite a while before this challenge, especially not in this segment, because they suck. It’s the least drivable, but wouldn’t be with a modern gearbox. It’s a little down on comfort, partially due to the gearbox. A small engine does save on running costs despite the disadvantage of the gearbox there, but that also makes it the lowest-powered, which costs prestige. The gearbox hurts comfort too, along with “only” using premium parts and having a bench rather than two discrete seats in the rear. It’s reliable, I guess, but reliability and low running costs can’t save it. Being quiet and smooth can’t either.
Amusingly, the running costs are lowest despite running staggered tyres, because it turns out that service costs are usually outweighed by fuel costs and service costs have been kinda overblown.
Apoapsis Dreamline
by @Edsel
Where… Where’d the money go?
The Apoapsis Dreamliner is very labour-intensive, with a lot of production units at play. With 5 valves, tubular headers and all-forged internals, the engine takes more time to make than the others. Aluminium panels, multilink suspension and advanced 10s safety do the same to the chassis. This leaves little room for quality, which makes the car unreliable. It’s got a big V10 and luxury interior, yes, but that lack of quality allows the other entries with smaller V8s to pass it for prestige and comfort, it falls behind when you sit in it. The advanced 10s safety makes it safe, yes, but another entry was safer because of safety quality. It’s sporty and drivable, but that can’t save it. The lack of quality can’t even help with finances, it’s the second most expensive to buy and about average to run. The devil is in the details, and this car is found lacking there. What it does well just isn’t important enough to save it from what it does poorly.
Rennara Torva DS5 (Alt History Concept)
By @NotChris07 and @Jaeger
This car is, for some reason, despised by insurance companies. I have no idea why. All the other cars have insurance under a grand, this one has about 2200 in insurance costs. Is it excessively fast? No, the (binned) Caravelle is much faster and the Carpentia beats it too. Does it have too much power? No, it’s actually the second lowest. Does it have a ton in materials to replace? Again, no. It’s not the biggest, it’s not the heaviest, insurers just hate it.
Onto the stats, this is our second car with a premium interior, but it does have a luxury satnav. A flow optimised undertray and no limiter keeps the prestige high, and suspension is tuned really nicely for both comfort and drivability, bringing it to second place for comfort. Active suspension and an 8-speed puts drivability up above 80, comfortably the best there. There’s plenty of nice features, but reliability is still decent. It’s also the cheapest to buy, which makes the hatred from insurance companies even weirder. Standard 00s safety does make it the least safe, but not by much, it’s a matter of a few points.
Carpentia Medalist Hyperstellar Sunset Boulevard Edition
Does FWD belong in a premium sedan? Does a 4-speed belong? This isn’t the only car with a 4-speed (the Apoapsis did) but this is the only one with FWD. The thing is, it loses prestige for both of those… And it doesn’t matter. That FWD was used to save some money to invest in stuff like a really nice luxury interior and a ton of body quality. All this money spent gives it the highest prestige among legal cars, despite the FWD. It gives the highest comfort too, and missed out on top reliability by 0.1. MacPherson struts and regular progressive springs do slightly ding it for drivability despite the FWD, but it’s still midpack. Sportiness and noise aren’t exactly great either, FWD makes it the least sporty, but those aren’t too important. It’s expensive as well, but worth the money.
Engineering Rankings
Well, that’s unfortunate. I saw the Caravelle’s massive prestige and thought it’d be a fun contest between the two, but then I saw the emissions. That makes the rankings pretty clear.
- Fifth: Caravelle Spirit (by Underloved Ghost)
Sorry, but rules are rules. It wasn’t even a case of almost passing WES11, it was way off. WES9 for HC, WES7 for CO and WES6 for NOX makes for a bin. It would’ve been first or second without those, it would’ve been a hard decision, but it can’t. - Fourth: Barclay Beaufort (by Capri)
Worst prestige. Second worst comfort (behind the Caravelle with its convertible penalty). Worst drivability. Second worst safety. A lot else being lacklustre. In truth, the gearbox wasn’t the entire issue, but it was part of it. - Third: Apoapsis Dreamline (by Edsel)
It’s just 1.6 ahead of the Barclay’s prestige. It’s only third in comfort because there’s a convertible and a slushbox behind it. It could work if some priorities here were shifted, it does well in places, but not well enough. - Second: Rennara Torva (by NotChris07 and Jaeger)
Always the bridesmaid, rarely the bride. The Torva does drivability and price best, then comes second in sportiness, prestige (excluding the Caravelle), reliability (barely), comfort. Being hated by insurers and safety testers stings, but it’s still solid. - First: Carpentia Medalist (by superbiird)
Welcome to bizarro world, the FWD car is prestigious but not as easy to drive. It’s lucky I choose to listen to the stats and don’t force cars in a particular mold, because it’s fascinating seeing how unconventional choices freed up budget. It comes within 0.1 of taking four of the five highest-importance stats, and the fifth isn’t that sucky.
Final Rankings
The only difficult decision was which car squeaks onto the podium.
- Fifth: Caravelle Spirit (by Underloved Ghost)
If it was WES11, it might’ve been first. It would’ve been hard to decide. But it broke the explicit rules. - Fourth: Apoapsis Dreamline (by Edsel)
The unambitious visuals were always going to hamstring this one, and the lack of quality didn’t help either. - Third: Barclay Beaufort (by Capri)
You tried something interesting, and the ambition just barely covers you forward, because I mentioned visuals being more important, but… Well, it needed a bit more. - Second: Rennara Torva (by NotChris07 and Jaeger)
Unfortunately, the Carpentia just does everything the Torva did, but better. - First: Carpentia Medalist (by superbiird)
Turns out the medal was gold, rather than the bronze of the paint. A hearty round of congratulations are in order for the winner!
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Great writeups, mate! That’s about what I expected, I knew I took a very unambitious approach. Also, I do need to learn to use quality more.
By the way, where are you getting this about insurance companies? Is this some new Al-Rima stat I haven’t seen yet?
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Gah fuck I missed the emissions requirements. I knew I was being… extreme with the designs, but yeah… oh well, good challenge nonetheless 
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It’s in Detailed Stats, under Running Costs.
It doesn’t show how it was arrived at, sadly.
It’d be great to see. I suspect the Flatplane V8 wasn’t helping me there. Outside of Lux SatNav, I can’t imagine what else would drive up insurance costs.
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Appreciate the reviews! I wasn’t expecting a win at all, because I think my engineering part is still a bit behind others. Doing challenges helps me improve my engineering skills quite a lot (and helps me to be much less stingy in quality sliders lol). I’m very delighted to be part of this cool and interesting competition!
I made my car FWD with a V8 and 4-speed auto because that was what American full-size were doing, like the Cadillac DTS and Buick Lucerne Super (which is the main inspiration for the Paragon I included in reference photos in the post).
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FWD and 4-Speed is very much a case of applying big-picture thinking, both for the automakers and for the challenge. You sacrifice a couple of things that might impress buyers, and you put the cost savings into stuff that’ll impress them more.
The goal is prestige, not “fitting an exact mold of a prestigious car”.
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I just trying to be realistic, but I get what you mean. Thanks for the comment!