Automation RestoMod Chapter 8:
Revisiting Woodstock
Hi there, and welcome to the eighth chapter of Automation RestoMod! Automation RestoMod (ARM) is a challenge series focused on taking older, preferably real cars and restomodding them. The criteria for modding are provided by each host, and vary Chapter to Chapter. For a more in-depth description of the ARM vision and to get a feeling for the flavour the series so far, please read through the previous Chapters.
The Car
For this chapter, you will be given a 1972 Volkswagen Transporter Type 2. The Volkswagen Transporter, affectionately known as the VW Bus, was originally meant as a simple delivery vehicle based on the VW Beetle. It featured a novel rear engine layout allowing an incredibly spacious interior (although, unfortunately, this Automation version is front engined due to a very inaccurate body… grr). This spacious interior made it popular with college aged kids due to its’ ability to easily carry lots of people and equipment. Many of the same students who owned a microbus also helped grow the 1960s’ counterculture developing in the US. Despite being much slower than other vehicles on the road, people would pile into a microbus to attend demonstrations, concerts and peace rallies all over the country. Its’ distinctive shape and prominence at such events eventually made it the symbol of hippies and counterculture. The Type 2 was the second generation of Bus, debuting in 1968. It replaced the iconic split windshield with a single glass pane, had an updated interior, upgraded suspension, and featured a slightly larger engine and updated styling.
The Client
This is long, so I put it in a dropdown to make it easier to navigate the post
"Hey, my name is Mike Richards. I’m 70 years old and live in Berkeley, California. Back when I was younger, I used to spend all my time living on the road, going to various festivals with some buddies, listening to great music, smoking weed and tripping on LSD under the stars. I went to Woodstock '69, the Be-In, Monterey Pop Festival, all the greats as well as many others all over California. Oh, man, the stories, I could go on for hours. It was truly a transcendent part of my life. As I went to all these places, the vehicle that took me to all these places and wove its way throughout my life was my 1961 VW Bus. It wasn’t fast, it was dented and a bit ratty, and it sure wasn’t flashy, but man, the times we had in that thing! Grateful Dead playing on the aftermarket 8-track, cute ladies in the back, there was simply nothing like it. Sadly, in 1975, I totaled that Bus. It had been good to me till then, but there was a car that suddely slowed down in front of me and the brakes simply went out. That was that. I was a little more matured by then, had started working a steady job instead of just doing odd jobs now and then wherever I could find them to keep the Bus running and food in my mouth, but I never completely let go of the life I led, man. So, naturally, I went and I looked for another Bus. In the classifieds, I saw this orange 1972 T2 Bus, in great condition, and I immediately knew it was the perfect fit. That car served me well, man. Lasted me through settling down, courting my wife, marrying her, and having 2 beautiful young kids. Had many, many great memories in that car as well. However, as it started pushing 12 years or so, I started to worry about the safety of carrying my kids in a vehicle that unsafe, that slow, and it seemed to be breaking down more frequently, which over time I got less fond of doing. Managed to keep those feelings at bay for a fair bit longer, until in '90 or so my wife Jackie finally convinced me to get a new, safe minivan to replace it. However, the sentimental attachments, the memories I had in VW buses were too strong, and I couldn’t bring myself to sell it. I drove it occasionally until '95, when the carb died and I parked it by the shed, where the repair was delayed for 15 years, as I got distracted my other things and it sat there neglected. Eats me up each time I look at it, sitting out there, begging to be rescued. It’s in a bit of a sorry state after all this time, with flat tires, decaying paint, a missing mirror, bumper and a little rust. The kids are all out of the house now, I have a bit of money saved up, and so I figured, why not relive my youth a little bit? However, I don’t want to just restore it to stock. The slowpoke engine and the uncomfortable seats just won’t do it for me anymore, my wife will kill me if what I drive isn’t safe, and I want something that will stand out. Something out there compared to all the other Buses, something that will bring a smile to my face when I drive it, something that has power and some character inside and out. I also don’t want to erase all the great memories this car brought. I can’t wait to see what far-out ideas you come up with!
Judging Criteria
Two categories, both ranked from high to low importance:Aesthetics and Overall Package (all of these are important, despite the ranked list):
Uniqueness (judged by moi)
Prestige (stat)
Cohesiveness- both styling, engineering, story- how well does it accomplish what it intends?
Authenticity (judged by moi, but backed up by stats)
Practicality (judged by moi, based on interior and exterior usefulness)
Engineering:
Comfort (stat)
Cost (stat)
Drivability (stat)
Sportiness/Offroad (stat)- how well does it accomplish what it intends? Added up for a total score
Requirements
Safety (at least 40)
Gas must be either 91 or 95
MPG (15)
A catalytic converter and at least one muffler of some variety are required
Set model and trim year to 2020
ET of less than 140 for the engine, 150 for the trim
Must cost less than 40k- unfortunately, Mike isn't rich, and this is all he could scrounge up!
No V16s, I don't have the DLC and it's not exactly a realistic choice anyways
All cars must also submit an advertisement! This can be as simple as just a few photos and the name of the car, but it is very useful, so for this ARM, I am requiring it.
More Requirements
When building your restomod, you are allowed to morph wheel wells, but nothing else- go crazy with fixtures though! You may swap out the engine for a swap cost of $3k and a hit to authenticity. Repainting the car (removing anything beyond the rust, dents and mold) also costs $1.5k- the patina, while not the prettiest, is authentic, so if you can think of something interesting to do with it, it will play to your advantage! You may swap panels, but it will also incur the repainting penalty and hurt authenticity heavily. You cannot swap chassis materials/type or add chassis quality. If you keep the stock engine, you cannot change the block or head material. Changing engine orientation costs $2k and is probably pointless, but if you want to, go for it!Other Crucial Information
For this challenge, you will be allowed to have a short interview with Mike to gain a little more info about any parts of the brief or preferences he might have. You are allowed to ask him 2 questions total. Don’t worry, he will be more succinct than in the initial brief! To interview him, please DM me with your question and he will respond! (Credit to @cake_ape for this idea, which he brought up possibly adding quite a while ago)
If you keep the patina on the Bus, you get an authenticity bonus of 2 points.
Because the VW Bus is a lot larger and more open for creativity than an average car, interiors are especially important in this challenge and will be scored as an important part of the overall design!
As always, it never hurts to provide a good backstory to tie your build together! If you can justify engineering decisions, chances are a lot higher that unconventional or otherwise odd decisions will be let slide… At the end of the day, all engineering decisions will be judged in the context of your overall build, so please consider that in the process of creating your car!
Make sure all stats are better than the original car!
The naming scheme for this challenge is Model/Engine Family- ARM8- (your username). If this naming scheme is not followed, you will be instabinned.
The year on the family and trim of both engine and body must be set to 2020.
You must clone your car's engine family/variant and body model/trim completely before beginning work on it.
In case you have forgotten how to properly clone a car completely or are new to ARM, this video is super important to avoid an instabin:
Here is the car file:
ARM8-_(forum_username)_-_VW_Transporter_T2.car (64.3 KB)The deadline is midnight on July 28, Pacific Standard Time. You may submit as soon as July 14th. Good luck to all!
