Your wagon is the exact same color scheme as my 1971 Pontiac (actual car sitting in my driveway). Not gonna lie, I’m kind of jealous lol.
2 Likes
Wow excellent contenders so far, subjectively.
Is the deadline of Jan 2nd still optimal for everyone? A little awkward working around holidays to make sure everyone has time and all that. Just message me if pushing the deadline by a day or so would help out. Otherwise we’ll stay the course.
Joining in on the single picture ad party because it's too hot for my computer to put up with taking photos in auto lmao
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Hey all,
We’re coming up on about 12 hours out, just tracking what has been delivered to me:
received vehicles and posts from
@Ch_Flash
@GassTiresandOil
@Happyhungryhippo
@ChemaTheMexican
@DuceTheTruth100
@lotto77
@Arn38fr
@Knugcab I don’t have a vehicle but I do see a posted ad.
I can push this out a couple/few days if there are more interested competitors. Right now its a pretty sparse field and a far cry from the 14-20 or so I usually judge.
Thanks all
3 Likes
Speaking out of experience, JOC rarely seems to get a very large starting field.
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As one of America’s finest production automobiles, the Sixth Avenue line of luxury hardtop sedans, hardtop coupes, and station wagons continues to push the boundaries of automotive engineering.
Unlike most other competitors, the Sixth Avenue is built on a new unibody chassis (debuting in the last generation model) which is stiffer and lighter than the tradional body-on-frame construction, allowing for a more spacious interior, better comfort, and better driving dynamics.
All Sixth Avenues and Mayflower passenger vehicles are equipped with radial tyres as standard, improving comfort and cornering grip over previous models which use bias-ply tyres.
The cabin of the Sixth Avenue is lined with fine leather and suede for maximum comfort and noise insulation. The cabin is also trimmed with genuine Brazilian rosewood and metal trim for an added air of elegance.
Front and rear passengers alike are treated to a generous interior room made possible by the new unibody chassis. The bench seats are plush and allows the driver and his passengers to cruise in comfort while listening to music courtesy of four high-quality speakers and an 8-track cassette player.
12 Likes
Swanson 555WLP
The WIP followup to the Big Beetle - now on the other extreme of simplistic/overdone and old/“modern”. Still has the V8 sized six-cylinder and plenty of space.
Interior? Well yes it has 5 seats, a dashboard, steering wheel and a fantastic stereo - in fact it’s so great I won’t show it because its also terrible
3 Likes
Ironically enough this kind of reminds me of a front engined VW 412 instead 
2 Likes
Submission deadline reached, entry closed!
I received 3 more cars at the bell, will check those entries for compliance in just a bit and then start reviewing.
Entries from:
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JOC2C - Round 1
Kenneth just completed a grueling round of back to back test flight sorties, and earned some well-deserved R&R for a few days. He figured, no time better than now to car shop, but he decided to not take on the effort alone. He decided to phone fellow surf buddy and KSC employee Bruce. Ken met him working in the hangars on aircraft maintenance and up-fitting for experimental test craft. It turned out that he and Bruce had a lot in common, but Bruce was the better surfer and kept Ken on toes out there. His real superpower was his mastery in keeping up with all of the latest cars. That, and he also knew how to fix them, as he was an avid amateur car restoration geek. Kenneth phoned his buddy and car confidant, gave him the news, and laid out all the cars he could see owning along with all his wants and needs. Bruce never really picked up the same rocketry passion but he could see the need for some space with surf boards, so it was easy for him to visualize his needs. It was an exhaustive list of ten.
“Ken, your plan is solid but one of these cars you’re going to have to give up on”, Bruce relayed over the line.
“Yeah, which one” Kenneth asked. “Why, what’s up?”
"The Swanson. For some reason, it still requires LEADED fuel, and it requires the good stuff, too.
“Ah”, well we’re down to nine!
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Definitely a nice looking entry!!
Mine is probably next up lol
1 Like
JOC2C - Round 2 Part 1
Bruce continued the call, “Ken, let’s talk about the rest of these over some beers at the beach. You up for this afternoon?” And so the plan was hatched to meet hours later.
“Bruce!” - Ken exclaimed as he caught a glimpse of his buddy toting his board in one hand, and a cooler in the other. Ken had his hands full himself as he brought a stack of research documents over the nine remaining cars.
Bruce replied, "Buddy, let’s grab a bench and look at your stuff there, Some of these cars have some issues we need to go over and hopefully make a shortlist for you so we can get out there and drive some of these beauties.
Kenneth grabbed his papers, took a beer from Bruce’s cooler, and found a good spot to converse.
Bruce started the conversation after surveying the waves, “So, let’s talk about the hot rod of the group. There’s always a black sheep with go-fast bits.”
Ken knew exactly the one, the Meunier Mirage.
@Ch_Flash
Bruce continued, “This thing is fast, but it comes at a price. It has some weird metric tires so expect those to be a pain. 220/60R15’s, so you might need to special order those. The brand is a big deal, but you’ll be fixing it all the time. Or asking me to fix it for you.”
Ken responded, “Yeah, its got some great lines but there’s a blind spot the size of a city bus. Reminds me of some of the X-jets they have me flying, except there’s no radar screen for me to see what’s popping up behind me.”
Bruce extolled the Mirage’s top performance specs but agreed with Ken, performance in this day and age is actually pretty good even for “lesser” cars.
OOC
The Mirage gets 9th place.
It wears “TRX metric” type tires which isn’t a bin, but isn’t normal for this era.
As the flavor text implies, it is the performance machine of the bunch. 1st place Braking, Cornering, Acceleration, 1/4 mile, you name it. 1st in Prestige too. On the other hand, it ranks last in Reliability, Practicality AND Utility (both, somehow), and Service costs. Regarding its style, the front is handsome, and the sides and rear carry a nice look too. The smallish rear window and tiny porthole rear side windows works better with a van with a shag carpet, perhaps.
5 Likes
Round 2 Part 2
Ken sipped a cold one while Bruce pulled on Ken’s stack of papers, pulling out the research on the cheapest car of the bunch.
Bruce spoke up, "Right here, the Halvson Harrier. The Mirage runs 27000, this one is almost ten grand LESS! But you gotta hear me out here. Boards will fit, no problem, and its cheap to run too, but past those two things, it all falls apart. It runs super-skinny tires which holds it back from getting traction, and it is the least-comfortable out of all the cars you picked.
“But it looks cool!” retorted Kenneth half-heartedly. He already knew the Harrier was out of the running based on Bruce’s face.
Bruce continued, "True, true, it could be a future classic for sure, these El-Camino types usually have some value later on, if you take care of them. In fact, for the price I might pick one up because the engine is a marvel of engineering. They stuck a tiny 60 degree V8 in there, not even sure how that works but I’ve done some research on it. Still, you gotta pass on this one.
@lotto77
OOC
This Ute looks nice, especially the all-important front grille. Lots of neat tricks used to get a clean face. The lower intake I feel needs to be softened to match the upper grille, and the rear of the car is somewhat of a let-down compared with the front. The sides are plain but fine the way they are, and the color is great for a 70’s ride. 5th place subjectively. I wish it had much wider tires as the 155/80R14’s look more suited for like a Subaru Brat, than this V8 machine. Speaking of V8, your choice of a 60 degree V works well, no complaints here.
So, 1st place Approximate Cost and Service Costs, last place offroad (weird for a Ute) and comfort, which being a three-star priority took a big whack out of the points gained. Mid-pack everywhere else.
The Halvson Harrier Ute V8 ranks 8th.
6 Likes
Round 2 Part 3
"This next one, we’ll call the “Sipper”, Bruce said as he took a sip of his own. "Somehow this big beauty gets the best economy of them all. The Garland Valiente Wagonstar.
@ChemaTheMexican
“So why are we dropping it, then?” Kenneth questioned with a bit of skepticism.
Bruce was quick to explain to his friend, “Its got two major issues you need to know about. You remember a few weeks ago you were in that rattletrap 60’s turbojet and you complained it gave you the heebies about safety?” Ken nodded while Bruce continued, “This car has the worst rust record, AND the worst safety record. Probably not a good combination. Kudos to them on a good price and good economy, but gas is cheap and will probably be cheap and plentiful forever.”
Ken quipped, “This is the first wagon we’re looking at. I have to say that I really like the look of this car. The lines, the space, hell, even the woodgrain. It calls to me.” Ken wondered if Bruce would agree; none of his cars are wagons.
But Bruce surprised him, “Oh yeah, I can dig it.” But trust me, this stack of cars you picked, there’s plenty more where this came from and the specs are flat out better. Better safe and sound than in the ground, right?"
“Right”
OOC
The beautiful Valiente ranks 4th place subjectively. I like the style very much, especially the touches of elegance like the front side signals blending in with the front bumper. Great woodgrain work, and a nice job conveying the presence of such a big vehicle. The Wagonstar scores mid to low pack objectively in most categories but it has a couple engineering choices that seemed to cost it a higher place. The 60’s Standard Safety which meant it was last place in Safety. Likewise, the use of regular steel for the chassis when everyone else chose something less prone to rot caused a last place finish in Environmental Resistance.
The Garland Valiente Wagonstar ranks 7th overall.
edit: I guess I can’t put each car on its own reply, I got some sort of notification that this is not allowed. So anyway,
“OK last one before we go catch a wave, alright?” Bruce looked through the papers and pulled out the Vaughn Tobago Rallye
@Knugcab
“Bruce, this one looks OK to me but there’s some fit and finish and styling issues, I think.”
“Yeah this one isn’t even bad anywhere either, Ken, its just not a top contender compared with so may other rides you picked out. Its priced OK, performs well, and is very reliable. BUT, it isn’t as comfortable, or safe as these others.”
Ken nodded, fully acknowledging Bruce’s expertise in researching these types of things. He said, “OK but we’re going to have to drive the rest of the bunch. That’s 5 left, right?”
Bruce replied with some excitement, “Yep, call it the top 5! But you see those guys doing rollers out there? Come on, let’s go show them how its done!”
And with that, Kenneth stuffed the papers under Bruce’s cooler, grabbed his board to meet Bruce who already had a head start paddling to the big incoming waves.
OOC
This one just needs more time in the oven to be great, IMO. Subjectively it initially scored well, but after I loaded all the cars and started scrutinizing to reach a ranked score, I realized this one had small fit and finish details with fixtures compared with others, and some angles of trim didn’t quite line up with body and light lines. I had to pick nits to get there, but in the end this one scored 7th subjectively. I did like and appreciate the interior work. Engineering-wise, I think the decision to run 60’s advanced safety held you back compared with everyone remaining running 70’s safety. Scores were mid-pack everywhere, except a 2nd place sportiness and 1st in reliability, and unfortunately an 8th place comfort score which, now looking in detail at the score chart, might have been a major factor in placing where it did. Still, a delightful entry to review.
The Vaughn Tobago Rallye places 6th overall.
6 Likes
Advanced 60s since it is supposed to be an old car, released already in 1968 with 1972 being the last model year. I guess there is nothing unusual with outgoing models falling a bit behind more modern cars IRL either.
Also, maybe I should have went more comfort oriented than the “muscle wagon” idea in hindsight, lol.
3 Likes
Yeah, I was going for cheap but cool lmao, didn’t quite work. Utes tend to have pretty plain asses but it is what it is.
Trust me fellas I had to split hairs to find real faults, this competition has been tough to judge because the effort overall by everyone has been so good. All these cars are great in their own way. No bad cars here. I’m very impressed. Except for ludvig and his leaded fuel. That was disappointing because the car was otherwise cool as heck.
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Well yes I guess this is a car from a company with more wild ideas then knowledge to realise them… Of course they had to use the one set of very experimental tires they got from some shady contacts in France.
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Well that’s a double facepalm xD Too much of a last hour hurry making a wagon version.
Still plenty of Electra+ level cars left for the surfin’ dude.
Nevertheless a disgrace, your giant Beetle was mechanically great, so was this one.
1 Like