Cool Wall 4: "I'm Rich!" (All Scoring Areas Out!)

Can someone explain the concept of ‘Cool Wall’ please? I read the intro post but I’m still a little confused. Why are people posting pictures of real cars, and then you also make a car? Confusing.

You need to expand the hidden sections as well, because it’s all explained there (probably better than I will too). But basically you suggest real cars to add to the cool wall, which gives you an idea of what the character/host wants from a coolness perspective, then you build your actual entry based off of what you gleaned from that.

I see that’s really cool!!

SCORING AREA #6: FUEL ECONOMY

"Alright, let’s hone in on the kind of things I really care about; such as ownership costs. With how short I am on money, the car’s cost-to-own has a huge, direct impact on how often I’ll be able to use it; and the less I can use it, the more suspicious my friends will become.

The first of cost-of-ownership is Fuel Economy; literally, the car’s cost-per-mile. Because if I can’t afford to go anywhere in the car, then what’s the point of even getting it in the first place?"

Fuel economy was calculated in US MPG. For this presentation, L/100km conversions have also been provided.

Most Efficient Car:

2008 Courageux Cirrus - 35mpg (6.7 L/100km)

"No way. I am shocked to find that this microscopic European egg is somehow the cheapest vehicle. I could never have predicted this.

Seriously though, this 1.15L engine makes less than 100hp even with the turbo, and it’s powering an ultralight blob purpose-built to have a super low drag coefficient. It’s underside is also partially covered for aerodynamics, and that confusing fake-manual also isn’t of much help here.

Hey, it isn’t the best by a lot, though. The Allure and Firebolt are also up above 30, as is- and this one actually surprises me -the Fowler Rand SUV"

Least Efficient Car:

2006 Schnell 1.8 Sport - 18.3mpg (12.9 L/100km)

"Okay, this one seems to work out as the worst. It’s not the heaviest in the group, (though it is almost 1,000lb heavier than the Cirrus), and its engine is less inefficient too. Its real killer, though, is its very high drag coefficient, thanks in large part to those big lips and wings. I’m sure this car corners great at least…

Again though, its not alone at the bottom. It’s counterpart the Stockholm also gets below 20mpg with its 2 spoilers, as does that really old, cardboard-box-shaped Lazarus."

Fuel Economy Scoreboard
Position Car Score
1 2008 Courageux Cirrus 10.0
2 2012 Allure Chiroptera 9.4
3 2007 Vaughn Firebolt GTC 9.3
4 2005 Fowler Rand 211AG 7.7
5 2007 Waldersee Ritter RK2300 7.2
6 2000 Allen Mount Everest Tourer 5.7
7 2006 Rosewood Sunbelt V8 4.9
8 2005 Regal Vedette 3.4
9 2000 Armor Mojave 1.7
10 2006 Stockholm 130CFBSP 1.0
11 1997 Lazurus DTX 3200E 0.7
12 2010 Matterhorn Scout 2.5 0.5
13 2006 Schnell 1.8 Sport 0.0

Current Scoreboard:

Position Car Current Score Change
1 2012 Allure Chiroptera (@DuceTheTruth100) 33.0 ±0
2 2005 Fowler Rand 211AG (@Ludvig) 27.6 +2
3 2007 Waldersee Ritter RK2300 (@Texaslav) 25.6 +3
4 2000 Armor Mojave (@GassTiresandOil) 24.0 -2
5 2006 Stockholm 130CFBSP (@Odyssey_Fan) 23.0 -2
6 2008 Courageux Cirrus (@mart1n2005) 21.2 +4
7 2007 Vaughn Firebolt GTC (@Knugcab) 19.4 +4
8 2010 Matterhorn Scout 2.5 (@FidleDo) 18.9 -3
9 2000 Allen Mount Everest Tourer (@Hilbert) 18.1 ±0
10 2005 Regal Vedette (@karhgath) 16.3 -2
11 2006 Schnell 1.8 Sport (@interior) 15.0 -4
12 2006 Rosewood Sunbelt V8 (@SheikhMansour) 11.1 ±0
13 1997 Lazurus DTX 3200E (@BannedByAndroid) 0.7 ±0
(Other fun facts)
  • The mean economy of a car is 26.2mpg (9 L/100km). A car with that value would have scored a 4.7, just below the median-scoring 2006 Rosewood Sunbelt V8 at 26.4mpg (8.9 L/100km). The Sunbelt has a drag coefficient of 3.73, and a 6.4L V8 operating at 25.2% engine efficiency.
  • The engine with the highest “engine efficiency” stat is the 3.5L V8 in the 2005 Fowler Rand 211AG, which achieved 28.1% efficiency. That car came 4th in this category, reaching 31.1mpg (7.6 L/100km), and had a drag coefficient of 3.61.
  • Meanwhile, the lowest “engine efficiency” stat came from the already-cited Schnell; it’s 1.8L I4 achieved only 14.9% efficiency, and its body had a drag coefficient of 3.86.
  • The best drag coefficient in the competition came from the already-cited Cirrus; it was 2.43. The Cirrus’ 1.15L I3 had an engine efficiency of 19%.
  • By contrast, the car with the worst drag coefficient was the 2005 Regal Vedette, at 4.00. It’s 2.7L inline-5’s efficiency was 20.6%, and its ultimate fuel economy was 23.8mpg (9.9 L/100km)

Next up: The other half of ownership costs; service costs. When things go wrong, how wrong will they go?

6 Likes

Turbos are so boned in this game right now, I could have probably gained another 20mpg with a 1.3l NA engine and kept the same power and lower service costs.

Whooops, quite a big jump for the Vaughn there. :stuck_out_tongue:
Let’s see if @DuceTheTruth100 takes it this time after being a bit disappointed with his earlier results in the cool wall challenges, that would be nice TBH.

2 Likes

Well I hope I thrash that thing in comfort and drivability enough to win :smiling_imp:

Seriously though, this competition has seen some serious back and forth and I am here for it. Kinda sad that interior’s car just binned it on the fuel eco, as it was my direct rival

I do not know what I was thinking building that car… At least it is not first or last in anything… because I can’t stand looking at it (although sometimes you can see it in the background, unfortunately) :joy:

I appreciate that bro.

Looking at it again, it unfortunately reminds me of a cross between a PT Cruiser and an Aztek. Still got you six points of coolness tho

That is quite a apt description, with heavy emphasis on the “unfortunately” - it really did not work lol.

Personally, I think the car has some charms that would mean it is one of those cars that have an absolute cult following with people who like it.

SCORING AREA #7: SERVICE COSTS

“Now for the other half of ownership costs; service costs. Now I have an advantage here, since I’ll be the one servicing the car myself… but I’ll still have to replace parts and fluids over time, and that is going to cost a lot. Plus, as I’ve seen earlier, many of these cars have existing problems and quirks; and I can’t afford a costly repair if things go very wrong.”

Cheapest-To-Service Car:

2012 Allure Chiroptera - $460.7

"This one’s way simpler and more reliable than any other cars here, so it makes sense it’d be the simplest to service. That SOHC I4 is very small compared to the size of the engine bay; probably because said bay was designed for bigger engines in this car’s higher trims. Its manual transmission, economy tires, and barren interior also help reduce the things that can go wrong or will need replacing.

You know, I bet this is one of the main things enthusiasts like about this type of car. With everything so simple and manual, they can work on it yourself, and run everything manually, and they like this because they can… feel more ‘connected’ with the process… or something, I guess?

Either way, it means cheaper service, and that’s all that matters to me."

Most Expensive-To-Repair Car:

2006 Rosewood Sunbelt V8 - $1222.5

"And unsurprisingly, we come back to the lot’s resident problem car. Man, I kinda feel sorry for it, seeing it in this condition.

Service costs weren’t really a concern of this car when it was built, hence the giant V8, convertible roof and the like. But the real problem here, as I cited earlier, is this car’s deplorable condition and reliability; the complete lack of rustproofing, and the way it’s deteriorated over time.

It isn’t one of those disaster-used-cars that needs way more work done to it than it itself costs, but good lord this is gonna need a lot of work done to it; and I really don’t think I can afford to do it."

Service Costs Scoreboard
Position Car Score
1 2012 Allure Chiroptera 10.0
2 2007 Waldersee Ritter RK2300 7.4
3 2005 Fowler Rand 211AG 7.3
4 2006 Stockholm 130CFBSP 7.1
5 2010 Matterhorn Scout 2.5 6.6
6 2007 Vaughn Firebolt GTC 6.3
7 2000 Allen Mount Everest Tourer 6.2
8 2006 Schnell 1.8 Sport 5.7
9 2008 Courageux Cirrus 5.4
10 2000 Armor Mojave 5.1
11 1997 Lazurus DTX 3200E 4.5
12 2005 Regal Vedette 1.7
13 2006 Rosewood Sunbelt V8 0.0

Current Scoreboard:

Position Car Current Score Change
1 2012 Allure Chiroptera (@DuceTheTruth100) 43.0 ±0
2 2005 Fowler Rand 211AG (@Ludvig) 34.9 ±0
3 2007 Waldersee Ritter RK2300 (@Texaslav) 33.0 ±0
4 2006 Stockholm 130CFBSP (@Odyssey_Fan) 30.1 +1
5 2000 Armor Mojave (@GassTiresandOil) 29.1 -1
6 2008 Courageux Cirrus (@mart1n2005) 26.6 ±0
7 2007 Vaughn Firebolt GTC (@Knugcab) 25.7 ±0
8 2010 Matterhorn Scout 2.5 (@FidleDo) 25.5 ±0
9 2000 Allen Mount Everest Tourer (@Hilbert) 24.3 ±0
10 2006 Schnell 1.8 Sport (@interior) 20.7 +1
11 2005 Regal Vedette (@karhgath) 18.0 -1
12 2006 Rosewood Sunbelt V8 (@SheikhMansour) 11.1 ±0
13 1997 Lazurus DTX 3200E (@BannedByAndroid) 5.2 ±0
(Other fun facts)
  • The 2006 Schnell 1.8 Sport and 2006 Stockholm 130CFBSP were originally listed as having tied exactly in service costs, at $684.10. However, this turned out to be a spreadsheet error; the Schnell’s actual service costs were $791.40.
  • The mean service costs of a car is $786.03 (9 L/100km). A car with that value would have scored a 5.7, a score very close to the aforementioned Schnell’s. The median scorer, meanwhile, was the 2007 Vaughn Firebolt GTC, at $744.20.
  • The second best service costs came from the 2007 Waldersee Ritter RK2300, at $661.1. The second worst came from the 2005 Regal Vedette, at $1096.5.
  • With 3 10-point categories left, it is now impossible for any car more than 30 points behind the leader to “catch up” and win the contest. This means the 2006 Rosewood Sunbelt V8 and 1997 Lazurus DTX 3200E are now effectively out of the competition.

Next up: Practicality. What can Isabel actually do with the car?

7 Likes

Congrats to GassTiresandOil for doing the impossible and getting 54th place in a competition with only 13 competitors and getting a better score than the 6th place car.

Sorry, but I felt compelled to do this.

Also how did @interior and I do this. Our cars are much more similar than just being 4 door European cars.

3 Likes

Actually, it seems the reason why is that I inputted the value wrong in my spreadhseet. …oops.

This serves as a convenient time to say; if any of ya’ll notice a math error somewhere in these results… please point it out. There’s a lot of math here, errors are likely…

The Allure Chiroptera is an enthusiast car, and for better or for worse, it will be reviewed by every car review channel on the face of the Earth should it exist. This led me to think about writing the script for the hypothetical intro to a review from Throttle House. I guess enjoy it?

For those who don’t know what Throttle House is:

Throttle House is a Canadian Car Review Channel on youtube hosted by Thomas Holland and James Engelsman. While the reviews themselves are interesting, what is more fun to watch is the intro skit they do before every review. They usually will poke fun about some aspect of a car or something that involves the car. A personal favourite that explains shows hos this skit works is a review that they compared some high-performance SUVs

2021 Mercedes-AMG GLE 63 S vs Audi RSQ8 vs BMW X5M Competition // Battle Of The Super SUVs - YouTube

My script

Thomas and James approach the Allure

J: Nice Allure Chiroptera there you got there.

T: Yeah, yeah, thanks.

J: Wait, is that a facelift model with the track package wheels? You must have shelled out a lot of money to get it.

T: Yeah

Looking up at the sky J: Might want to roll up your windows, it might rain soon.

T: I’ll go do that right now.

Thomas opens the door, and cranks the window until it gets stuck halfway up.
Thomas strains to continue to roll up the window until an audible snap can be heard.

*Holding up broken crank *T: Oh good, my car is more reliable now

Now apologies to @DuceTheTruth100 for this.

1 Like

Lol thats whats up bro!! They say all publicity is good publicity :roll_eyes:…i honestly dont know but i do find that very humorous, i love it. I just hate the fact that i had to make the car cheap to fit in…but then again that just may be my inexperience.

No, it’s fine. All of us doing modern cars were pretty much stuck to very cheap choices, hell I could barely fit an automatic in there - and no stability control.

1 Like

I went for fast convertible and look where it’s landed me lol

2 Likes

Hey, the point if the challenge was to make it look expensive without being so.You hit the nail on the head there.

The Allure felt to me like the base model of something like a GT86 or Miata; something which, beyond what’s needed to make it sporty, would be as sparsely appointed as an economy car (like the Versa). So while the Wells from last time seemed as barren as a gokart, this one was at least nice enough that it felt it could mostly exist stock.

1 Like