The upper half of a magazine advertisement for the Armada lineup.
My 2 brands for this competition will be the American brand Bazard, and it’s Automation-universe extension, Centara. Usually Bazard designs commuter and commercial cars, whereas Centara designs sportier cars, but both brands usually import each other’s cars for sale in their respective countries (or universes, I guess).
Lore about Bazard.
Bazard makes bottom of the line budget cars, as well as commercial vehicles. It usually does not dabble in sports cars. However, Centara specializes in performance commuter vehicles, which are then sold in the US as Bazard models; meaning US buyers know Bazard for both budget and sport vehicles. And that is one problem which gives its advertisers a headache; Bazard and Centara tend to make substantially different kinds of vehicles, and don’t often collaborate, yet they almost always sell each other’s vehicles in their homelands under their own name.
But sometimes they do work together; Centara will often make a tuned-up sport version of Bazard’s cars, and Bazard usually makes a commercial variant of Centara’s cars. And these company’s are also known for frequently collaborating on extravagant and absurd “halo cars,” which vary wildly in style and design, often year to year; from a front-wheel-drive luxury coupe ('50), a Rolls-Royce size limo ('55), an early supercar ancestor ('59), and a rediculously-huge-by-muscle-car-standards muscle car ('64). Both of them make these, both of them sell them, and rarely do either of them make any profit doing so.
Never was Bazard quite as sucessful as the big three, but it’s always been stable enough to survive, and well known enough around the states (at least in commercial circles). And plus; whenever Bazard did find itself in trouble, it could often count on it’s friend Centara to help it out (and vice versa).
Lore about the Armada.
The CR8* nameplate had been the name given to Bazard’s commercial vans for years. But up until now, the CR8 had always been built on a dedicated van chassis. The 1964 Bazard Armada CR8 marked the first time the CR8 name had been put on a more car-like chassis, which was shared with other kinds vehicles (in later years, this would become the norm).
The Armada Surge. Version shown is the Centara version, which was modified slightly to account for the automation-universe’s different regulations.
The Armada was originally intended to be a base for a plethora of cars; 2 & 4 door sedans, wagons, vans, pickups and more were part of the original concept. But right around that time, Centara found itself facing numerous financial difficulties, and after helping bail them out, Bazard didn’t have enough money left for all their plans; so they settled on making a van (the Armada CR8), a pickup (the Armada Toro), and a civillian coupe (The Armada Surge). Centara then threw some sport modifications on the Surge, to make the Armada Leviathan muscle car.
To prospective commercial buyers, the CR8 offered many advantages over its adversaries. It came standard with a V8, as well as progressive springs, power steering, bigger brakes than could be found on most cars of the time, and after 1965, a radio with a retractable antenna. It was also very reliable, practical, spacious, and thanks to it’s high ground clearance, able to handle itself when taken off the pavement. And it was cheap; only $1940 for a base model ($13,900 AMU).
That’s not to say it was flawless… For one, it had a solid front axle (that’s why the clearance was so high). It was also extremely heavy, and it’s V8 did not know the definition of fuel economy. Plus, the interior was cheaply made, and horribly uncomfortable- which is why the car was usually marketed to company executives, and not to the drivers themselves.
The Armada CR8 (left) and Toro (right). Versions shown are the Centara versions, which are modified slightly.
But as a work van, it did its job quite well. The Armada chassis overall proved a moderately good success, with CR8s and Toros selling enough to offset the losses from the Surge and Leviathan (the very design choices that made the Armada platform a great commercial chassis made it a poor car chassis).
The version provided for the competition is a base-model 1965 Armada CR8, painted in white; All Armada CR8’s were painted white unless ordered in a different color, as Bazard expected companies to repaint/restyle the cars themselves.
*“CR8” is a pun on the word “crate.” However, in official media and advertising from Bazard & Centara, it has always been pronounced as the letters “C-R-8.” In fact, though they have acknowledged it, the companies themselves have almost never actually referenced the pun.
I mean, it was just about the first thing I noticed…
great looking car anyway.
lol)
