It looks like he used fixtures though. I meant bumpers that are part of actual body and morphed to stick out. The effect would be similar, but better to make sure.
I thought about it, but decided against it in favor of fitting 5 mph bumpers to my entry, no matter what form it takes - I simply came up with a way to install them without spoiling its looks too much. Besides, in later years, integrated bumpers will eventually be treated as 5-mph bumpers for safety purposes - but that will have to wait until a later round.
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The bumpers on my car are strictly body morph (I only used patchwork mod to chrome the center sections). I’m not the rule maker here, but I would think that as long as it looks like genuine 5 mph bumpers you should be fine.
1978 Bricksley Grand Sorcerer
Trim: Pressurized
1975 brought Bricksley a major need for a new sedan. While the market had, in 1973, trended quite heavily toward small, fuel-efficient cars, Bricksley had hoped that once the oil crisis was over, people would flock back to their favored large cars.
The chassis, designed for 1975 by Rowlari, ended up being unibody, like the Diamondback before it. While the Rowlari Warlock was a unibody car, Bricksley wasn’t sure Average Joe was ready to embrace the idea that the car’s body is the frame. The unibody was, as a result, bolted onto a standard Bricksley ladder chassis.
This led to a car that, compared to its competition, was surprisingly rigid. Police departments appreciated the sturdy assembly and the availability of several high-power engines meant for police duty, in the forms of the 464ci ‘Interceptor’ inline 6 and the 497ci ‘Pursuit Breaker’ inline 6.
While the Grand Sorcerer was produced from 1975 to 1987 for civilians, fleet services, rental agencies, and police departments, 1978 was the first year for the Pressurized trim. Packing the latest in Throttle Body Electronic Fuel Injection, the engine was force-fed air from a turbocharger through a charge-air cooler, producing a modest 250 horsepower from the same 464ci inline six that Bricksley had been using since 1965.
For those trying to find out if their Grand Sorcerer is an original Pressurized model, as many copies were created, the upper and lower front grills should have black bars, but the frame should be body-matched to the car. The five-spoke, 16 inch black steel wheels were also unique to the Pressurized trim, as are the black steel brake calipers on the front and rear. All Pressurized models came with fog lights as standard, and the factory yellow lenses are unique to this trim. Finally, all Pressurized models come with an automatic transmission. If you’ve bought a used Grand Sorcerer, especially a 1978 one, and it has a manual gearbox, it was never originally a Pressurized model.
(Yes, that is a reference to the number of people who make Buick Regals into false Grand Nationals. While the Pressurized model was never a one-color affair (you could get them in just about every color Bricksley had to offer, after all), they were a little bit unique. Not exactly impossible to copy, but the first models of just about anything can fetch value somewhere.)
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1979 Madison Ballista
The oil crises of the 1970s forced the Madison Motor Car Company to rethink its priorities. Instead of engaging in an all-out war for displacement, power and torque, economy and comfort were the new buzzwords. Inevitably, performance suffered across the board, but in the midst of all this, the senior management realized that the dark times will inevitably end, and with this in mind, they developed a new flagship sports car to carry the brand into the next decade: the Ballista. Introduced in 1979, it proved to be an instant hit. Despite having big 5-mph bumpers and a pair of inset exposed 3.5 x 5.25" rectangular sealed-beam headlights on each side, it still had a sleek, futuristic appearance, with long-nosed, cab-backward proportions suggesting a rip-snorting powerhouse under the hood.
Speaking of which, the Ballista was initially available only with one engine option: a 205-bhp 5.7-liter V8 (hence the 350 designation) mated to a 3-speed automatic, a 4-speed manual, or, in GT trim, a close-ratio 5-speed manual gearbox (initially exclusive to the Ballista). At a time when raw power was in short supply, the fact that it was possible to buy any kind of domestic car with at least 200 horsepower was cause for celebration. But to really challenge the imports, the Ballista needed the handling and braking chops to match its engine, and the engineers made sure of this by fitting a well-tuned A-arm suspension setup and vented disc brakes at each corner. In fact, turbocharging was considered early in development, but rejected due to the difficulty of combining a turbo installation with both a carburetor and a catalytic converter.
With its base price of just $19,500 AMU enabling it to be pitched as a more affordable, less highly strung alternative to premium European imports, this sharp-edged two-seat sports car ultimately developed a formidable reputation at the dawn of the 1980s, especially in the circuit racing scene. Not even the use of 85-mph speedometers in the early years of production could dilute its appeal. Despite the mandatory fitment of catalytic converters, Madison’s 350 V8 still had plenty of tuning potential - much of which would be unlocked by race teams, as well as eager owners. In fact, the Ballista weathered the storm of the early 1980s better than many other American so-called performance cars, and went on to become their new halo model as the new decade progressed.
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1976 Ryuji Shisa 1100 CAEE
While the Chariot may have been the first car Ryuji brought to the US, it was soon followed by many others. But one they had not intended to import was the Shiisaa. But the world can be an unpredictable place. The Mk. I Shiisaa was a rather conventional automobile built to suit Japan’s recently introduced kei car regulations. It featured a simple ladder chassis and a two cylinder engine powering the rear wheels. It was inexpensive, reliable, and simple to work on, but the Ryuji engineers felt it could be better. This led them to developing what was internally known as the AA63 project. Through this the engineers looked at coming up with a front wheel drive platform to better make use of interior space. Efficiency was also something that they were looking at improving, so overhead camshafts and the use of aluminum for engine materials were also explored.
The fruit of these efforts materialized as the 1970 Shiisaa 360. It helped showcase the future of small cars and became a brisk seller for urban families on a budget. But seeing how slowly even the bigger Chariot was performing in the US market, the top brass at Ryuji sensed that the smaller car would fair even worse.
Then the events of 1973 happened and Ryuji saw a possible opportunity for the Shiisaa to succeed in the US market. The kei car was widened several inches, fitted with more safety features and crash structures, and outfitted with a greater selection of convenience features to better serve American consumers. The name was also shortened to simply Shisa
The heart of the Shisa is a 1100cc all aluminum SOHC inline four. It was christened the Clean Air Emissions Engine, or CAEE for short. Essentially a doubled up and enlarged variant of the powerplant seen in the Shiisaa, it produced 51 horsepower at 6,200 rpm and 57 ft lbs of torque at 3,300. The truly impressive feat was that it was able to comply to federal emission regulations without the help of a catalytic converter. Mated to a four speed manual transmission, it propels the little car from 0 to 60 in 12.8 seconds while averaging 35mpg.
Debuting in May of 1975 as an early 1976 model, this particular model features the optional luggage rack, 8 track player, locking fuel cap, 13 inch wheels, tape stripe, and is finished in Santa Fe Orange. MSRP for the 1976 Ryuji Shisa is $3,940.48.
8 Likes
Question: If a body has built in bumpers am I still required to put larger bumpers over it?
I had the same problem, and initially considered this suggestion for a solution:
That route could be considered, but I chose not to go down it, after realizing that I could add 5-mph bumpers to the front and rear without ruining my car’s aesthetics too much. I am therefore assuming that integrated bumpers will still require 5-mph bumpers added on top of them, at least in this round, unless the host tells us otherwise.
1 Like
The Lombaxo Tornado 5.8L
The Lombaxo Tornado 5.8L is a curious car. Originally launched as a muscle car in 1965 the Tornado didn't become well known until 1968 when it became available with an extended wheelbase. Really, the first "muscle" car to have 4 doors and an extended wheelbase.
Now, it should be said the orignal engine that was launched with the Tornado was the infamous Narrowblock. The Narrowblock was not like your conventional V8 engine. The Narrowblock was originally a Polaris Y-Series V8 which was then redesigned to have a cylinder bank angle of 60 degrees. The Narrowblock taught a lot of things to Polaris such as installing balancing shafts to cancel out the uneven forces. This also became standard in their 5 and 4 cyl engines that were available in their other cars. The Narrowblock launched with the Tornado in 1965 and was pretty much unchanged until 1972, when they had to alter it to meet regulations. The product was the NB-2 which was terribly hard to make and maintain primarily because of the aluminum heads on a cast block. This also caused long term issues due to different wear rates and heat capacities. The NB-2 was sold in the Tornado until 1974 when it was replaced by the more conventional Roadhunter V8.
The Tornado wasn’t really a very popular or well known car throughout the 60s. It was sluggish, heavy and unconventional, but, it did compete amongst other family cars. The long wheel base model was more comfortable than the short wheelbase as the LWB was roomier. But, the Tornado quickly gained popularity in 1973 when its muscle car aspects were stripped away and transformed into a luxury car. So, The later generations of the Tornado were more known because now that the car was a luxury vehicle in the form of LWB model. Lombaxo then canceled the production of the SWB variant because it didn’t make sense to Lombaxo, at least to sell a smaller version of a luxury car when a larger, more comfortable version was available.
The 1973 oil crisis was not kind to the Tornado’s sales that year. However, the next year, well over 1 million Tornadoes* were sold across the US and Canada.
*
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Note to competitors: feel free to talk about the history and design of your cars, but please refrain from speculating on what their significance to the public was after their release… because that’s my job, and kinda the whole point of this competition.
6 Likes
Cabrera Trubia GT
After some years working with Chrysler to import their cars to the US, Cabrera decided to start working independently. Many people say it was because of Chrysler situation in Europe, which lead to Cabrera to walk away from them before it was too late.
The Trubia was the main car of Cabrera´s lineup in the 70s, sitting over the Lince city car and below the Boreas saloon. The design was pretty modern for the era, featuring 4-wheel independent suspension and monocoque construction. The engine, though, would suffer due to emissions regulations, making it even less of a performer than it initially was.
A car prepared for the rough life of the countryside.
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Oh shid, my bad. Just disregard what I wrote in my post about the sale success for my car. Just use the history tidbits.
[[First off, sorry if I’m stepping on Cabrera a bit, another Italian car going for a similar market segment. I was working on this before you posted, anyway, first car for my planned lore company]]
FA Monterenzio Rana
The 300 platform, that would later be called the Rana, owing to it’s large circular headlights reminding someone in marketing of a frog, started it’s life as a drawing board concept in 1973 squarely aimed at the Italian domestic market. Fabbrica Automobili di Monterenzio’s venerable 200 series platform was finally decided to be beyond the point where a face-lifting and the Bologna based manufacturer would need a new platform for it’s compact family, city, and light sports models, what would become models 301-304.
The 305 however, would be added later in cycle, a product of shear mercenary opportunism.
With the introduction of CAFE standards and the dreaded catalytic converter mandated in the United States, some within the company immediately saw the opportunity created to jump into the gap in the North American budget car market that would be created as the American manufacturers scrambled to redesign their heavy lineups centered around large sedans. Thus, another model was added to the planned rollout of the Rana.
The decision wasn’t without controversy, Monterenzio had traditionally build all it’s mass production cars for European consumption, and their exports to US were almost exclusively premium and sports models that could be marketed to upper middle class buyers as exotic but affordable. However, the allure of establishing a mass-market foothold in the massive US market eventually won out over traditionalism and concerns about brand integrity (a short lived plan to launch a different marque was quickly shot down, Monterenzia puts it’s name on it’s work. Some traditions wouldn’t die.)
The Rana 305 NA was built almost entirely around the 302 family car model, with the notable addition of a pair of extended plastic bumpers retired founder Angelo Battaglia allegedly called the ugliest he had ever seen, and of course, an engine variant, the 415 ENA, build for American emissions standards.
The ENA variant of the 415 power plant strapped into the North American model put out 69 bHP at 6,100rmp and generated 73.4 lb/ft of torque at it’s peak and was connected to a simple 3 speed manual, getting the car up to 104 mph and averaging out at a respectable 21 mph efficiency, not class leading, but enough to put American consumers still reeling from the oil shock at ease, all that and AM radio at an MSRP of $2,750 ($12,000 in 2012 dollars).
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@SketchyKeeps Don´t worry, Cabrera headquarters are completely okay with some healthy competition.
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1977 Quezon Laguna
SUPER EAGLE 427
SUPER EAGLE 427
About
Quezon’s entry into the US market in 1975 was marked with the bang known as the Laguna Super Eagle (shortened to SE), a somewhat souped-up version of their compact-sized Laguna coupe.
Still head of the company at that time, Ricardo Quezon wanted something that was rather different compared to the usual cookie-cutter of Malaise laziness that most domestic US manufacturers were putting out in order for them to stand out against the rest, and as such the Super Eagle variant was born.
Differences from the standard Laguna coupe was an exclusive paint job, last seen on Quezon’s 1971 Laguna GTO, and usually identified by most as British Racing Green. This time, it was matched with a cream white two-tone and Eagle decals to signify it wasn’t just a normal Laguna. The large 5-mph bumpers, instead of remaining the usual chrome, was painted in cream to blend in more with the bodywork and to give it a cleaner look.
Aesthetic differences were not where it stopped, however. The suspension was “optimized” for handling, allowing the vehicle to turn (in theory) sharper than a normal Laguna. For 1975, the Laguna SE was available with four engine types, a UAMC 153-cubic inch straight-four engine. Quezon’s own overhead cam “Quezon Straight-Six” engine, or an upgraded version of UAMC’s 327-cubic inch V8 making slightly over 150 net horsepower.
Initially, Quezon wanted the Super Eagle to be a limited run US-only edition, only selling for a year in 1975 to boost initial sales of Quezon products in the US, but later decided to just have it be a separate performance variant of the Laguna and was later introduced in the Philippines as well, but only available with either choice of straight four or straight-six engine, and as such production would continue until the second generation Laguna would be discontinued by 1980, marking the end of an era of performance-oriented Quezons as Ricardo’s son Felipe would take the helm of the company to steer it towards another direction.
In 1977, the Laguna would receive an update after two years, and the SE was affected by it too. Gone were the quad 5.75-inch round lamps in exchange for quad rectangular lamps, thinning down the vehicle’s appearance slightly. The front bumper was changed to account for this too, with an experimental urethane body-colored front bumper that protruded slightly more than its steel counterpart. 1977 retained the steel rear bumper, however, and it wouldn’t be until the Laguna’s final update in 1979 where the rear fascia was changed to incorporate a sleeker bumper design as well.
Engine and chassis-wise, 1977 saw the re-introduction of a 427-cubic inch engine to Quezon’s lineup since 1974. UAMC’s big block engine made a return with the addition of a catalytic converter as required on all US cars at the time. The engine produced 185hp SAE net with a single 4-barrel carburetor and when mated to UAMC’s Hydro-Dynamic 3-speed automatic transmission or 200hp SAE net with a 4-speed close-ratio manual gearbox. Quezon also fitted 2-piston brakes to the front suspension for improved braking ability.
Also new for 1977 was an optional T-roof, with removable panels on both the driver’s and passenger’s side separated by a bar in the middle.
Continuing with the limited run plans for the Super Eagle, another idea was for Quezon to sell only 1000 of them, but it was later changed to only sell for a year, which later changed to just become a separate performance special edition trim. Quezon sold roughly 5,000 Laguna Super Eagles from 1975 to 1980, with about 950 being equipped with the special 427ci engine.
Gallery
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The 1974 Bazard Lad
(Originally a Centara design. Bazard is from the US, Centara is from the Automation-Universe.)
Making up stories about the cars is fun :D
October 20, 1973
“H-hey, you know that really, tiny car you guys had out when we went over last summer? That little gold one?”
“What, the Lad?”
“Yeah, yeah, that was its name. How many can you send us, and how fast?”
…
Last round’s Flamenco may have been a failure, but if there is one thing Bazard had learned, it was that importing Centara’s designs was easy; and cheap. As poorly as the Flamenco had sold, it had cost so little to import that Bazard hadn’t really lost that much money. It was still a loss, and one that was prompting them to again start pulling out of the US civilian market (They wanted to focus more on the commercial sector and on other, 3rd world markets). But they still kept this knowledge in mind, in case Centara made something that Americans might actually like.
Comparison between a gen 1 (left) and gen 2 (right) Lad.
Since the late 50’s, Centara’s entry level hatch had been the “Lad,” a kei-sized micro-hatchback known for its reliability and practicality, and popular predominantly in Archana. But after some time, it started becoming very hard to stand out from all the other small hatchbacks known for their reliability and practicality in Archana. So to try and stand out better, and also to work their way into Frunia, Centara released a second-gen Lad at the turn of the 70’s, designed to be a bit more upmarket.
It’s chassis was a ladder-monocoque hybrid design meant to combine the advantages of both designs, and it featured double-wishbone suspension on both wheels, as well as front wheel drive. It could be had with 3-speed automatic transmission, medium-compound tires, and a choice of I3 or B4, along with a pretty decent interior. Budget versions of the car still existed in the place of the old Lad, but at heart, the car was a middle-upper-class micro-hatchback. And it sold- it wasn’t changing the world, but it was doing pretty well.
3 Centaran-spec Lads side-by-side, of varying trim levels. The rightmost one is a sport variant that was never brought to the US
Having been to Centara’s headquarters, Bazard executives had known about the Lad. They didn’t think much of it, and certainly could not imagine it in the US, but it had certainly looked like a well-built car. Then, on October 19th, 1973, the CEO of Bazard was listening to the news on his radio. He heard that an embargo had been declared, he knew most oil in America was foreign, and he realized a big scare was probably going to happen. (Though he didn’t think it would be nearly as bad a crisis as it was)
And by the afternoon of October 20, he was on the phone with the CEO of Centara, discussing his idea: import a bunch of Lads, change as little as is necessary to make them legal, sell and market them as best they can, and do all of this as quickly as possible. Many other executives thought the idea was a bit overkill, but by the time all the logistical calculations and analysis had been done, it was clear the boss’ prediction had some truth. And by the turn of the year, things had gotten so bad that getting the Lad on American roads as soon as possible had become the company’s top priority.
Comparison between a Centara-spec (left) and Bazard-spec (right) Lad. Aside from differences in trim level, the only visible differences are that the American version has different lights, and a very slightly larger bumper.
All this hard work meant they were able to respond sooner than most other brands; a US-spec Lad was fully available in stores by August 1974. The lights had to be changed slightly, and a few related panels had to be redesigned to account for them. They had only had time to convert the smaller of the available engines, and power was a bit weak. And while the original Lad already had pretty large bumpers (for parking purposes), Bazard did have to fit stronger ones- as well as a few safety features. But for the most part, it was the same micro-hatchback that could be found in Archana, and it was better quality and better fitted than almost any small car in the US at the time of launch, (or pretty much any car at a comparable price.)
One page of a 1975 2-page Lad ad, telling the story of a satisfied customer who bought one in 1974
They also launched a broad ad campaign, which took up over half of the whole project’s budget alone. After all, they had to convince Americans that a). A “Premium-quality” small car was a thing that could exist, and b). that a small car could actually do the job as good or better than a big one. Newspaper ads described its advantages, and later told success stories. TV commercials framed traditional sizes as absurd. Bazard even adopted a new slogan: It (just) works.
The version provided is a higher-trim, originally sold around $2850 ($13100 AMU). It doesn’t have all the features that were ever made available, but it gives a pretty good idea of what Bazard presented to the American public in 1974.
5 Likes
(sees the pink and immediately thinks of Pepto)
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http://discourse.automationgame.com/t/ip-automotive-ltd-1974-ip-rugger-brochure/37225/22
Also, if it does help spicing things up, I added some more lore in form of the 1974 brochure.
(Probably early version with misprint, should read “over half a metric tonne”, not “over a metric tonne” 
)
2 Likes
A week (minus 5 hours) left in the submission period.
I can almost guarantee this week I will not be so prompt on delivering reviews. I’ve got a failed crown and impending root canal (that won’t even be done for another week, hooray Pandemic)… so I’m not exactly on top of my game right now.
6 Likes
MY77 Keystone C1700 Savant
The new for 1977 4th gen was designed to ensure Keystone could maintain marketshare for as little financial outlay as possible!
Ever since it’s debut in 1949, Keystone has always marketed the C platform of cars as a budget friendly family car. A marketing position which makes more sense in the Commonwealth vs the USA. So the fourth generation model was not going to buck the trend, with the car being sold nearly worldwide (except the Eastern Bloc countries and eastern Asia), having a simple spec list and carry-over engine to keep costs down.
The 4th gen C series was powered by either a 1400 or 1700cc “Surrey” engine with a special “Savant” moniker reserved for the models fitted with the optional “Hurricane Injection System” (similar to a Bosch Jetronic system). The C1700 with the Savant option were the only model offered in North America and were available in three trim levels:
(Base) - Stripped model. Had a radio, a heater, crank windows, full vinyl seating, and that’s about it.
DL - Adds carpeting and an electric rear window defroster
GL - Adds a clock, cloth seating, and passenger side mirror
These trim levels were available over three seperate body styles; two door coupe, four door sedan and five door wagon (the 3 door hatchback was a European exclusive). The car was expected to sell well to families who couldn’t afford a bigger car, but it was hoped the C1700 would also sell to wealthier families who wanted a second car for the wife or a cheap commuter for the husband. Either way, the C1700 Savant was positioned to be a low cost, high volume best seller for Keystone; hopefully the buying public would come to the same conclusion!
8 Likes