[LHC] - Letara History Challenge - Rd 5 [Results being posted]

[Petakabras]

The SAETA Family

Exciting yet affordable, arriving in Letara for 1952

SAETA company

Founded in the late 40s, SAETA would try to bring a premium driving experience to the more cost-concious buyer. They didn´t have a choice though, since the spanish nation was still recovering from a terrible civil war and there was almost no demand for expensive cars. Their first car would be the Albor (sunrise) sedan. The monocoque chassis would be a novelty for most buyers, as was the overhead-valve, alloy head. Low fuel consumption and agile handling made the car stand out against it´s competitors. It was available in various trims. Starting at the bottom, we had the Viajante, a stripped down version equipped with a downtuned engine and reinforced suspension. It was mostly sold in the wagon body-style. Then there was the standard Albor, and above it, the Sprint version, only available with 2 doors, and featuring a more powerful version of it´s engine.

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SAETA Carrera Coupe

The Carrera Coupe (or CC) was meant to be sold to the more hardcore racing fans. Based on the Albor chassis, serial work was done at the rear, fitting a swing axle rear suspension, which worked slightly better than the original rear axle. With the aim of reducing weight to the minimum, the roof was removed, along with all the body panels which were replaced with aluminium versions. Generous reinforcement was installed to compensate, though, and in the end it turned out 200 kilograms lighter than the original car. To propel this little car, a bored out version of the engine was used, and while the horsepower figure may not seem impressive, with such a low weight it didn´t need any more power. To make it legal in Letara, windshield wipers had to be installed. It doesn´t even have a windshield, SAETA engineers said, but they were forced to install them anyways, and so, a extremely useless manual wiper was installed, but it was deemed enough.

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[cake_ape]

ONE WEEK LEFT!

Just a reminder that there is one week left for submissions - deadline is Oct 23. @ 11:59 PM UTC; no exceptions.

I know some cars might’ve been altered by patches/hotfixes, and may have been pushed over the legal limit in some instances - especially imporant for the race class. I will allow resubmissions in those cases, but it is your responsibility to check your cars, contact me and send a new file. Illegal cars will not be allowed to participate in the racing!

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One more reminder for everyone:

• Put all of your communications to me (e.g. submissions/lobbying/questions etc.) into one DM thread with the topic “LHC - <YourForumName>” please.

If you don’t know how to find your previous messages, see the tutorial by @AMuteCrypt in the ALC OP.

So far I’ve still had to ask over 50% of the participants to change the thread title (tally as of now: 7/12). It really helps me to keep things organized in this large challenge if the threads and cars are appropriately named! It’s big bureaucracy at its finest.

Thank you - the Government of Letara

[lotto77]

is anyone even going to read this? I guess I'll just put a spaceship here (_)(_)=====D~~

^ The div above this is the first background, and the primary border. The background doesn’t move due to the “background-attachment: fixed” tag. The background loops vertically if your image is short or your device is tall enough, so this allows for patterns (see: portalkat’s AGC20)

Feel free to change the image to whatever suits your fancy.

^ The div above this is the second background, and secondary border. it also defines the text color and font family.

Planar History Files: P&A goes to Letara

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Quick P&A lore rundown

Founded in Sydney in 1881 by friends Frank Planton and Bill Ardent, Planton and Ardent (P&A for short) quickly established itself as Australia’s premier luxury coachbuilder, building numerous well-known high end cars. Between the wars, they decided that they’d take a bold step forward and build their own cars, acquiring surplus and (at the time) reasonably modern plane engines, and waiting for investment. That investment didn’t make it before the war, however, and they were forced to spend WW2 making transports for the war effort with not a single road car to their name. After the war, the truck business was spun off into its own subsidiary, P&A Trucks, while the main company went to work on their long put on hold car.

In 1946 they finally launched their first car, the P&A Sportsman, to wide reactions of “What?”

While it was a beautiful luxury car with a well appointed interior, the car was powered by a 5 litre surplus aeronautical inline 4, which while it made decent power, was widely panned by the media, leading to agonisingly slow sales. Other cars picked up the slack, but it was left to shamble on for eight years.

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1948 P&A Trucks Loadman “Bus” government transport

Lore and pictures

P&A’s first foray into Letara technically wasn’t even by them, the Letaran government was seeking proposals for a “legitimate” tourist transport vehicle for 1948, and P&A Trucks, preparing their Loadman line for launch in the same year, saw an opportunity. Planton & Ardent themselves also saw an opportunity to establish their name in the country before a wide launch sometime in the future.

A short while later, a proposal was sent off for a “Bus” version of the Loadman van, which would be provided to the government at the same time as actual Loadman Buses were sold to the public to provide cover. Modifications for the government version included sealed doors on the right and rear of the bus, with extra armour on the rear as well, strong curtains that could be secured in place to hide the contents from the outside world, and restraints on each seat that “tourists” could be handcuffed to.

The Loadman itself was a capable streamlined bus/van/small flatbed truck. Fitted with P&A Trucks’ new 4.5L Small Straight 6, it made decent power and torque, enough to propel the bus to 100km/h in 15 seconds, and more than enough to comfortably carry a full compliment of 9 people and their luggage (with the optional rear facing jump seat). It was even seen internally as so good looking that it would inspire future P&A cars!

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Historic picture provided with the proposal to the Letaran government

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1954 P&A Sportsman Mk.II Straight 6

Lore and pictures

For a flagship car, by the early 50’s the Sportsman sure didn’t feel like it. A car from 1946, with an engine originally from a plane in the 20’s, that (unsurprisingly) sold extremely poorly could surely only be an exercise in stubbornness. But P&A had a plan for it, and by 1954 they released the Mk.II, much to most people’s initial disappointment.

It was pretty obvious to see why, it was just the original car with some minor tweaks! And in reality it was, with the base chassis and body still being the exact same as the original 1946 car, but looking closer the minor tweaks started to make a lot of difference. The grill and front end were all tweaked to allow for the new parking lights and individual high beams, the interior, while looking largely identical, was of much higher quality, and it was offered in LHD for the first time thanks to being sold in Letara, but all of that paled in comparison to what’s under the bonnet.

The old, rattly, loud Neilson 4 cylinder was gone, replaced with a 5 litre version of P&A Trucks’ Small Straight 6, that was specifically tuned to be less agricultural than the original truck version. Making a quite sizeable 164hp and 352Nm of torque, it could get to 100 in a respectable 13.5 seconds, and thanks to the new gearbox could go on to reach a monstrous 180km/h.

Marketed almost exclusively to well-to-do people with more conservative design tastes, who wanted a big lazy cruiser to travel to their holiday house(s) in, the Mk.II would soldier on until 1964, receiving numerous tweaks and additions during its lifetime, but its performance in P&A’s first LHD market, Letara, were a whole other story.

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Photo from the press event launching the car in Letara.

[Riley]

Zephorus Autos

Presents

The past, present and future.

Zephorus, a recent entrant to the production car market having come from the agricultural industries oversea. The Italian manufacturer wanted a piece of business from the Letara(n?) market, and so a car to enjoy the fine roads around the country is making it’s way to Letera, the Zephorus Espion.

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Coupe, Convertible, Competition

The standard version of the Espion will be the coupe, a two door 4 seat grand tourer. Gullwing doors for ease of access to the rear seats.

Enough room for the family and luggage for day trips, a beautifally smooth 3.6L I6 producing close to 100hp propells the sleek Zephorus to the top of the people’s choice chart for premium cars*

An enjoyable and comfortable drive with premium interior and a manual gearbox, for only $16600**

*Based on research done within the company, no relation to actual choice of the people
**all prices are plus tax where applicable

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The convertible Espion comes with two seats, and even more luggage room, perfect for those romantic evening drives.

Only $16000

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Zephorus Races onto the market

The big story from Zephorus is that they have entered one of their car models into the Portunis Cannonball Run, a specially equiped, specially made Espion nicknamed the “Silver Bullet” for it’s special paintwork. Perhaps this will prove as good promotion for it’s more accessible cars.

With the lighter coupe body made from aluminium, but the roadsters two seats the Silver Bullet weighs a staggering 143kgs less than the original car despite retaining all the comforts them. The engine power has been increased from 97hp to 163.5hp with bigger carburetors and a freer flowing exhaust. Zephorus has quoted a 8.8s 0-60mph time, and an absurd top speed of 116mph.
Available to buy to public, but with a hefty price tag of $22,000 only the most spirited of drivers would see the need to buy one.

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[AndiD]

Mara Goes Letara, Ep. 1-4

Previous post

16th September 1949, Storia Habour, Letara

Rodyn Gumprov, Mara junior development engineer and in charge of running the P47-1 prototype testing programme, had gotten up early to watch the big cargo ship glide into a dock in Storia Harbour. Earlier in the year, he had arrived with one prototype car, a support van and a few colleagues on a similar ship to put the P47-1 through its paces on Letaran soil - first, to iron out the worst kinks, but also fine-tune it for its designated role as an entry into the Portunis Cannonball run.

A converted HD6 van turned out to be quite spacious to support prototype testing in Letara

The engine swap of the 2.5l flat-4 engine from the HD6 van (now called Mara Visim (‘eight’) for the Letaran government bid) into the diminutive P47-1 body had not been an easy task, but they had managed. In the process, he had learned quite a few new curses from his engineer comrade colleague Yenna Bielicki, but over time she had worked wonders to extract almost double the power from the venerable HD6 engine.

This extra power had been very handy in testing the P47-1’s suspension and brakes to the limit (and finding quite a few flaws in the initial setup). The engine had also proven surprisingly reliable, despite running close to its max rev range. On the ship were now two more prototypes with a few further enhancements (and parts in the trunks). As the dockworkers started unloading the ship, Rodyn made his way to the customs area to sort out the paperwork.

**

Later in the day, he met the two main drivers for the cannonball race in front of a large garage door. (He himself would enter as well, but only as designated support for the other two.) One main driver was his boss, Mara chief engineer Fedor Piechov, the other one, to his astonishment, Mara’s chief executive Henri Nordhov*. Both had arrived by plane a few days ago and were officially on holiday in Letara.

“Good morning, comrade director, comrade”, he greeted the other two.

“Good morning”, Nordhov replied cheerfully. “And you can drop the ‘comrade director’, as long as we are racing on Letaran soil.” Nordhov winked to Fedor and Rodyn. “I must say, I am really enjoying my time here in Letara. Great climate, nice wine, and everything else you might possibly want from life.” He winked again.

Fedor readily agreed. “Nice not to worry about things for a while. I had rented a boat for a few days - good sailing climate.” He looked at Rodyn. “The cars are ready?”

“Yes, comr… sir. If you would come in please.” Rodyn led the way into the garage they had rented to serve as the base for their Letaran prototype testing. It was almost empty on a Friday afternoon, except for the three P47-1 prototype cars and Yenna Bielicki, the engineer in charge of engine testing (and tuning).

Upon hearing the entrance door opening and closing, she looked up and turned around. “Comrades… Comrade director? What a surprise.” Instinctively, she stood at attention.

Nordhov kept his cheerful tone. “At ease… Yenna, right? Officially, I am on holiday. But can’t wait to put our prototypes through the paces myself. Carry on.”

Yenna happily turned around again and turned her attention back to the engine in the #99 car.

“How are they to drive?” inquired Fedor, pointing at the three prototypes.

“Much more powerful than the future production versions, of course. But surprisingly tame at the same time, after we happened to find suitable wider tyres locally to fit instead of the stock wheels. The speedometer gives accurate readings, by the way… until the end of the scale, that is.”

Henri and Fedor exchanged excited glances.

Rodyn pointed towards a table at the back wall of the garage. “There are the keys… and the registration forms for the rally. If you’d like to fill them out, then I can take them to the rally office before it closes for the week.”

Henri and Fedor quickly made their way to the table, hastily scribbled their names and other information into the form and handed them to Rodyn. Afterwards, they were eager to grab the keys and put the prototype P47-1s through their paces.

Meanwhile, Rodyn took three sheets of paper to the rally registration office which had the following lines at the top:
#42 - TEAM MARA #1: NORDHOV
#47 - TEAM MARA #2: PIECHOV
#99 - TEAM MARA #3: GUMPROV

OOC: No real-world car manufacturer executives of the past or present were harmed when seeking inspirations for the protagonists.

[AndiD]

Mara Goes Letara, Ep. 1-6

Previous post (chronologically)

15th December 1949, White Square, Kronagrad, Archana

Rodyn Gumprov stood among the people in the first line of the small crowd that had gathered around two cars and three people on an improvised stage at one end of the White Square in the centre of Archana’s capital, Kronagrad, a short distance from the Mara main factory.

What a contrast the cold December day was in an Archana that still slowly but surely was in the process of recovering from the now increasingly distant war, compared to the breezy warm autumn climate of (at least outwardly peaceful) Letara. There, Rodyn had taken part in the Cannonball rally only a couple of weeks earlier this year, driving a support car for two of Mara’s higher-ups, or comrade directors, Henri Nordhov and Fedor Piechov. The rally essentially had marked the ultimate - in more than a single sense - test of the P47-1 prototype that was now officially unveiled to the public, and given a proper name: Tovarysh, meaning comrade or friend.

Both Henri and Fedor were among the three people on the small improvised centre stage at one end of the square, giving short speeches about Mara’s first clean-sheet passenger and work vehicle developed after the war for Archana, its workers and its families. They were joined by a dour looking state official whose name Rodyn had already forgotten.

And what a contrast the first examples of the production vehicles next to Nordhov, Piechov and the state official were, compared to the prototypes which Rodyn had been in charge of testing for the better part of the year. While outwardly looking very similarly, and even being very similar mechanically underneath, many cost-cutting measures had to be employed in virtual all areas regarding material choice, attention to detail and production efficiency, compared to the well-engineered prototypes which they had entered with confidence into the rally.

While Rodyn understood that these strict rationalisation measures were necessary to achieve a sales price that made the car affordable even for the average Archanan and profitable for Mara at the same time, he still had to fight tooth and nail not to overly compromise functionality and durability in favour of price and production efficiency. One compromise had been to offer more than one trim level for the sedan, with the higher-spec trim levels K (Komfort) and KE (Komfort Ekstra) receiving less than favourable sales forecasts.

He knew that arrangements were already made to sell any excess production stock to foreign countries with open markets for Archanan products, such as the neighbouring Dalluha, but also overseas countries such as Araga and Letara, probably under a different model name.

Rodyn hoped that he would not be needed later today in a hands-on role to get the cars started in the cold temperatures, when, in conclusion of the Tovarysh’s unveiling ceremony, the cars would be driven down the small ramps, closer to the crowd, so that everyone interested from the public could take their first close-up look into what the three Tovarysh variants would have to offer for them, once they would go on sale in early 1950.

Rodyn also could only hope that their first outing in the Letaran rally would not have been their last one, would it not be up to him to make that decision. However, given the transformation that both Nordhov and Piechov had undergone being a mere week away from Archana on holiday in Letara behind the wheel of a (reasonably) fast car, Rodyn was reasonably sure that he and the two others would be back in Letara next year.

[FidleDo]

Liberty Motor Corporation

Liberty Motor Corporation was founded in by William G. Peterson in 1927 in Philidelphia. They would start off by making semi-premium family cars and utility cars. They stuck with this model until WWII, which is when they would start producing cars exclusively for the military. After that, they went back to producing the same cars as before. Here is the current situation.

In 1948, Liberty would announce their new line-up with a sedan, truck, van, wagon, and a limited production racing car. Each one would leave a mark on the company, and the would all jump-start the success of the company. They would decide to start selling the in Letara cars soon after the release, a decision considered quite controversial at the time considering conflict between Letara and Montelin. Let’s view all of the models that were sold in Letara.

Liberty Civilian

The Liberty Civilian was the main model sold by Liberty in Letara. It was meant to be a family car that was also semi-premium. It featured 4 Liter V8 that produced 110 Horsepower, which was probably pretty unnecessary. It had a leather interior with the most advanced safety features at the time. It sold for 14,000 AMU and it could be bought as a sedan or a 3-row wagon.

Liberty Artisian

The Liberty Artisian was a light duty pickup truck based on the Civilian. It had all of the same engine, same safety features, same everything. There really isn’t too much special about this pickup except…

It has 3 seats in the front that are definitely able to “comfortably” hold 3 adults (it does not hold 3 adults that well). The idea behind it was that a business would be able to carry more workers in one car. Like the Civilian, it would be sold for 14,000 AMU.

Liberty Merchant

]
Consumer model shown

The Liberty Merchant was a van, or a truck, that was built on Liberty’s heavy duty platform, containing a powerful V8 used in the Civilian. It was a symbol of the hard working breadwinner in American, with it being able to carry 1500 Lbs. of cargo and 9 people. That’s enought to carry a 3 generation family, and luggage, on a road trip! It would be sold for 14,000 AMU.

Interior

Liberty Professional

The Liberty Professional was a limited production racing car built for the Liberty Racing Team and a small amount would be built for the public. It was a modified version of the Liberty Civilian, with it being built on a different chassis, aluminum panels, a more sportier suspension, and a lighter interior. The engine was also a modified version of the Civilian engine, with it producing 175 HP.

[HelloHi]

INTRODUCING
THE 1951 ALIRA SAUSALITO

Nothing Else Like It!

The all-new 1951 Alira Sausalito is a modern tour-de-force! Designed for this new decade of hope and optimism, it thinks outside the box with its’ small dimensions and big American presence, its’ innovative Boxer engine and chic aircraft-inspired styling.

We offer two trims in Letara this year, the comfortable, capable Valueline, available as a sedan or wagon, and a sedan-only Prestige trim. The Valueline comes well-equipped with our powerful 80hp boxer 4 mated to a three-on-the-tree manual. It has American-style vinyl bench seats and a standard radio and heater. The showstopping Prestige trim features showstopping metallic paint, a smoother engine (thanks to our Luxomer engine balancing system), an automatic gearbox, whitewalls, and improved interior accoutrements.

Gallery

[Admiral_Obvious]

Immortale Automotive

The Colombri line of consumer vehicles.

You can get it in whatever color you want if it’s yellow.
Newly designed for the Letaran markets, we offer a family coupe and sedan with an eyewatering fuel economy of under 13 L/100 km. Designed from the ground up to withstand anything you can throw at it, and maybe even more!

Also on offer (not pictured) is the brand new Immortal line of passenger van with over 80 Kw of power, and full option of rangebox and reinforced frame to absolutely ensure you get the people you care about where you need to go. Currently only available to authorized government contractors.

[abg7]

1954 Wolfram Wanderer

Replacing the smaller, four-cylinder Westwind that had been in production since 1948, the Wanderer was the first car from the company to use an independent rear suspension, and the first to have a six-cylinder engine. Powered by a 3-liter overhead-cam straight six developing 120 horsepower, the Wanderer was capable of exceeding 100 mph (another company first) thanks to its 4-speed gearbox in place of its predecessor’s 3-speed unit.

In parallel with the base model, a special version was developed for the 1954 Letaran Cannonball Run, featuring wider tires, stiffer suspension and an uprated engine with three carburetors instead of two. Along with the factory team, Wolfram Motorsport Developments, it would be campaigned by two other teams: Carlson Concessionaires and Wolfram Dealers North America.

(Note: This is a retcon of earlier lore which stated the Wanderer’s debut year as 1952 due to Automation having received numerous patches for the open beta release, and also due to the Automation Legacy challenge being on indefinite hiatus.)

[mart1n2005]

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Knightwick Company Lore up to 1946

Knightwick motors started life as Small Heath Cycles (SHC) in Birmingham, England in 1895. From 1908 they transitioned into a full motorcycle manufacturer building small sports and utility bikes.
The Knightwick company itself was formed in 1933 when SHC was taken over by Harris autocars, the SHC name carried on for motorcycles for the time being. The Harris name was used for upmarket vehicles while the Knightwick name was used for mainstream cars and light utility vehicles.

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1946 Knightwick Dragonfly family

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Dragonfly saloon

The first small car from the amalgamated Knightwick motors company using a cut down variant of the company’s steel ladder chassis. This body style was only available as a 2 door saloon with a four seat interior.

The exterior design had unusual semi hidden headlamps behind a front grille, with the actual radiator intake centrally located behind a metal grid grille. Running lights were located as small “torpedoes” above the wings. On these early models indicators were located on the B pillar, and a singular brake light was installed centrally on the boot lid.

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Technical specifications
Chassis	Steel Ladder
Front Suspension	Double Wishbone
Rear Suspension	Live axle, coil sprung
Front Brakes	250mm SLS drums
Rear Brakes	250mm SLS drums
Steering	Recurculating ball. No power assistance
Front Tyres	P135 100C14 97K Cross ply
Rear Tyres	P135 100C14 97K Cross ply
Engine	999cc Knightwick 4 cylinder 49bhp@5000rpm
Transmission	Four speed manual

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Dragonfly Utility

The utility variant had much the same front end design as the saloon, with some chrome trim removed for the more utilitarian look of the vehicle.

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At the rear the metal pick up bed was available as an open top or a model with a canvas roof and steel ribs to give it a van style appearance.
The fuel tank on the utility was located beneath the bed so a wide opening rear tailgate could be fitted.

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Technical specifications
Chassis	Steel Ladder
Front Suspension	Double Wishbone
Rear Suspension	Live axle, coil sprung
Front Brakes	250mm SLS drums
Rear Brakes	250mm SLS drums
Steering	Recurculating ball. No power assistance
Front Tyres	P135 100C14 104J Cross ply
Rear Tyres	P135 100C14 104J Cross ply
Engine	999cc Knightwick 4 cylinder 49bhp@5000rpm
Transmission	Four speed manual

[MrdjaNikolen]

Mrdja Cars Letara journey
Part 1: Quint and Omega, decisions and lineup for 1946

Quint and Omega

It was very early in 1946 when these two lovely fellas had appeared for the first time in country that will be basis for their new adventures.

Adventure here being the fact that they will lead Mrdja Cars operations in Letara, which also meant they needed to familiarize themselves with the country.

Climate was pleasant and they werent exactly new to fact that country isnt state of the art in economy, industry or roads - although to be fair, their expectations werent exactly high to begin with.
They will spend very pleasureable time together further improving upon their strong relationship, one of boyfriend and girlfriend.
Quint is the one that technically runs the operation and his observations would play big role in how to even start in first place, while Omega is his greatest help, also second-in-command in here. She might also have some fair share of making decisions herself.

After getting around country few times and sleeping in a car, it was decided where they shall place important bits of operation.
Jawole was chosen for its quiet suburban nature which meant they definitely needed to use the car to travel to work but had allowed them to have their own house and backyard.
As for where work part would be placed…yea, it would be in Lerance. There was consideration of living there, but train tracks were just too close to any place they would possibly be interested in.
Doesnt matter too much, as they would still live very close to job.

They decided to use one 1946 Kolondra 1400 Wagon as their personal transport. Its small, but still big enough for their potential wants and needs…not to mention its going to be used by grand total of two people.
As it turns out, thats going to be quite the entry for potential customers as well.

Choosing the brands

Quint had to make very hard decision right on start. He couldnt get more than four brands into the country, as per Letaran law.

As such, he needed to choose four brands from corporation that would be universal enough to cover everything this market may throw at them.
Choices were:
-Kolondra
-Kontir
-Daniloski
-Rosanda

Finding main brand in this little group is not exactly possible per se but either brand that starts with K would be good candidate for same reason.

Kolondra is car manufacturer. As it stands, this may be most universal brand of them all in Letara, seeing that Letarans want transportation from A to B…which is exactly the premise of this company.
Origin of this company stems from some doodling done back in 2013 IRL. In said time, Kolondra was presented as compact car with either sedan or wagon version.
Unsurprisingly, that would have put original vehicle against Golf, Corolla, Civic…some of most popular cars sold around the world.
Its its own brand in current interpretation, but going after segments that tend to sell in quite the numbers remains.
Based in Fruinia

Kontir is Gasmean truck manufacturer. To spare some US people from explaining what i meant by this: it will make pickup trucks, SUVs, vans and semis.
As was case with above brand, its inspired by my doodling in 2013 and was expanded for its current iteration.
Unlike it, it was originally a brand of semi trucks exclusively expanded to fit more products.

Daniloski is company with sporty image. Think about those cars that are perceived as both sporty and practical - this is it.
It doesnt exactly fit Archana with such premise, but i guess that will not really stop us.
Daniloski is surname of my best friend from high school, who was main inspiration for this brand in general.
He was looking at putting bigger engine in car he had avaiable (Coupe engine in Uno; both cars being Fiats) and also sent me few videos featuring tuned cars as in: Fiat Marea Weekend with 600+ hp.
Usual hot hatches/sedans/wagons are also fair play and few sports cars will be present as well

Rosanda is luxury/premium car manufacturer based in Hetvesia.
Rosanda is name of my uni crush and also happens to be name of someone that, to my knowledge, has 2011 Audi A6 Avant.
Prob needless to say, but main target here might be very European-oriented; exciting world of classic American take on luxury might await another implementation

Lineup

Kolondra 1400
As the name implies, this car has 1.4 liter inline 4 namely making 36hp transfered to rear via 3 speed gearbox.
Its placed in C-segment or compact car segment depending on who you ask for classification.
Its all-steel affair having double wishbone in front and solid axle leaf in rear, providing acceptable balance between handling and load capability.

In its original guise, its 5 door 5 seat car with roomy trunk for its size.
Not exactly fast, but needs only 12.2 liters per hundred km and is cheap+it can handle family trip

Wagon is blessed with additional three seats in rear, allowing it to serve as choice for extended families.
This entire range happens to be small, so parking is of no issue
Its also affordable choice for ones that do need it

Van
Having only two seats and just as many doors for people, it stands as no surprize that this is cheapest entry in consumer market
Unlike rest it cant do 100 kmph, but it would be most useful for potential small farms out of the three.

Kolondra V8
This bigger car is intended to easily blend in, seemingly being just like smaller and widely avaiable 1400 Wagon.
However, this car is actually intended to meet requirements of certain transport that Letaran government had expressed interest in.
This required removing internal door handles and adding divider

Has a V8 under the hood, making it much faster than lesser vehicles.
Ofc due to its practical shape, it might happen to be very useful in other roles as well

Daniloski KimiKup
Racing car, intended to be affordable coupe for masses.
These guys do happen to have decently tuned inline 6 engines and compact aluminium paneled body, which makes them rather fast and quick at same time.

[cake_ape]

24 HOUR WARNING

One day remains until the deadline - Oct 23. @ 11:59 PM UTC; no exceptions. If you want to participate, now is the time to submit your cars and post your showcase on this thread!

Here is the entry list so far. If for some reason I’ve missed you, let me know asap. For those on the list, please check that the type of entries you have submitted is correct, and send any corrections to me if necessary:

UserID	C	G	R
@abg7	x		x
@Admiral_Obvious	x	x
@AndiD
@Aruna	x	x	x
@benjamintamilia
@cake_ape			x
@ChemaTheMexican	x		x
@conan	x	x	x
@Edsel	x		x
@Fayeding_Spray	x
@FidleDo	x	x	x
@GassTiresandOil	x	x
@HelloHi	x
@karhgath	x	x	x
@Knugcab	x	x	x
@Lotto77	x	x
@Madrias	x	x	x
@mart1n2005	x
@Maverick74	x		x
@Mikonp7	x	x	x
@MrdjaNikolen	x	x	x
@Petakabras	x		x
@Prium	x		x
@Riley	x		x
@Texaslav	x		x

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@AndiD and @benjamintamilia - you’ve posted lore on this thread but not submitted a car. Make sure you don’t forget.

[LS_Swapped_Rx-7]

Kamaka Motor Corporation does a presenting: Chief 1953

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Kamaka Motors are proud finally reach the land Letara to do the put on sale new Chief car. All new car for new modern.

New redesigning complete influence america cars. Front of the suspension system is seperated apart allowing for outstanding comforting driver and doing turning. Chief car comes in selection forms 3 variety.

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Base Model

Chief base model design purpose is to doing simple transport cheap. Extra cheap assured by 4 cylinder 1.6. Makes 40 horsepower. Satisfactory fuel economy. Front rear triple seat preserves the practicality extraness. Allowing seat 6 person.

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Van

Chief van variety also available for job exportation cargo. Perfection van producing small business enlargement. Better cargo exportation with incremented up suspension. Mechanical the base model going to van for economy same economy assurance.

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Deluxe

Expensive market premium variety available for comfort extraness. Stand out materials for more premium. 3.3 liter straight 6. Makes 110 horsepower. Comfort seats and 6 cylinder smooth for comfort.

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*Japan models are doing the presenting.

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taste of the underground

Fascinated by the growing hot rod scene in the USA, a unknown group of Letaran tuners who wanted a piece of that fun made a custom Chief for the 1953 Portunis Cannonball Run. It sports the same straight-6 from the deluxe model but tuned up to 160 horsepower, and a load of other modifications to make it a very serious racer. However, to the surprise of absolutely no one, an overpowered engine in a tiny car resulted in an undrivable deathtrap that struggles to put power down most of the time. Oh well, at least it is fast when it isn’t actively trying to kill you, and those brown stains can be washed out of the seats when the race is over.

[AndiD]

Mara Goes Letara, Recap / TL;DR Ep. 1-1 to 1-5

Previous episode

Government car: 1948 Mara Visim

After the conclusion of the war in 1945, there were plenty of surplus ex-military cars available in Archana. For some types there were more cars than actual civilian demand, such as in the case of HD6, the standard Archanan eight-seater personnel transport. Mara thus gladly responded to the Letaran government’s brief since the HD6 matched the general profile quite well. They named their submitted car Visim (‘eight’), after the seating capacity.

If accepted, all Visims will be extensively refurbished - with most traces of their previous life removed - and retuned / -equipped for civilian use. In addition, Mara engineers found a sufficiently large stack of light steel plating to reinforce the regular driver cabin doors. Originally, there had been the plan that the pair of doors on each side could be used as improvised cover, but, except for the first models, this plan had been shelved in favour of more simplified wartime production, combined with an increase in useful carrying capacity. The metal window blinds would also be useful to deflect incoming bullets, in addition to serving to hide the insides of the vans to the public.

Moreover, the three interior compartments are all split by sturdy metal bars which can also be used to chain or handcuff the ‘passengers’ to the bars. The ‘passengers’ in the middle and the rear also do not face each other, limiting the opportunity for silent (or any type of) unwanted cooperation, and there are only ever three ‘guests’ at the same time to contend with, making the job easier for the guard(s).

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Race car: 1949 Mara P47-1 Prototyp

When Mara representatives handed in their bid for the government van, they discovered an advert for the Letaran Cannonball Race. They decided to frame their initial participation as stress-testing of the final prototypes for the ‘Proyekt 47-1’ car that later would be known as Mara Tovarysh, or Companion in non ADM (Archana Domestic Market)-settings.

The three participants are Henri Nordhov (#47), Mara’s managing comrade director, Fedor Piechov (#42), the chief comrade director for engineering and development and Rodyn Gumprov (#99), a junior development engineer, to support the other two on the roads, and to oversee the actual prototype testing. The three participating prototypes were painted in the colours of the Archanan flag.

Since the P47-1’s 1.3l I4 engine was a tried-and-true variant that has had more than its share of stress-testing during the war, an enterprising engineer found out that it indeed was possible to shoehorn the 2.5 flat-4 from the government van into the P47-1 chassis and she was tasked with tuning the engine for maximum performance.

In the years after their debut, the participants simply took the prototypes from storage each year during their annual holiday which they spent a good part of in Letara racing and, most importantly, away from the sometimes rather dreadful environment in post-war Archana.

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Consumer cars: 1950 Mara Companion 1.3 SK, TR, PR (Sedan, Van, Ute)

Companion (‘Tovarysh’) was Mara’s name choice for their first clean sheet postwar car design, code named P(royekt)47-1. Due to the prevalent resource shortage in Archana, the engineers paid special attention to the design’s production efficiency - for instance, minimising the amount of ‘unnecessary’ special shaping of sheetmetal to form curves or bulges etc., as common on many pre-war designs.

The resulting car built upon tried-and-true technology from the Mara-produced Konyk wartime jeep - such as a ladder frame and a leaf-sprung live rear axle. Double wishbones at the front were the only ‘innovation’ for the Tovarysh / Companion. The Konyk also donated its 1.3 litre inline-I4 engine as its about 35 hp (in civilianised form) was plenty to get the light car moving.

Compared to the P47-1 prototypes, many cost-cutting measures had to be employed in engineering and production set-up, however, to achieve a sales price that made the car affordable for the average Archanan and profitable for Mara. Even so, especially the higher-trim Komfort and Komfort Extra versions did not sell well and so Mara had excess production they could export to other countries such as Letara.

A Komfort interior

Moreover, the more barebones Tovarysh Pick-up competed with the leftover sales from their civilian Konyk jeep / ute, so they were happy to export those as well in the early years.

A Regular interior: more metal, vinyl seats and less gauges

And since there were no planned export contingents for any of the trims, no engine was not re-tuned for the higher octane fuel in Letara compared to the low-grade ADM fuel. Moreover, the build quality was the same as for those sold on the ADM.

[SheikhMansour]

Mocabey Motor Company presents its lineup for 1948

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3600 Sedan

The Mocabey 3600 is a spacious sedan designed to seat five people. With a 2.7m wheelbase, AM radio, and all around independent suspension, the 3600 is designed to be comfortable for any family wishing for independent transport throughout Letara. Available with an overhead cam 3.6L straight six with 100bhp, or a twin carb version with 120bhp.

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Mocabey Salesman

The Salesman is Mocabey’s offering for the commercial market. Sharing the same strong 100bhp engine as the 3600, this van can reach speeds of more than 120km/h, though only do this where legal, folks. For those with large families, this van is also available as a passenger variant with eight or nine seats, and can be ordered by government departments as a fleet van, from just $11,400.

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Mocabey Karpater

Just like the rest of us car fans, Mocabey likes to drive at speed. Thus, for the 1948 Portunis Cannonball Run, the company has released the Karpater. With twin two-barrel carburetors and aggressive cam, the 3.6L engine produces 165bhp in the coupe. While this speed machine is designed first and foremost to shred tarmac at high velocities, it is not without its creature comforts, coming with a radio and special sports interior.

[Lupus]

Empire Motors (EM) was founded by Paul R. Gearling in 1929 in New York City. The company began building luxurious family cars which were popular among wealthy businessmen and families throughout the great depression despite lots of financial trouble. As the Second World War arrived, the company won a contract to build tanks for the United States Military. It’s Largest factory would be opened by 1940 in Queens. After the war came to an end the tank factory would be converted to build cars. Several different models including both economical and premium cars would be made from 1947-1950 but all were well-known for advanced comfort and safety features at competitive prices. Empire motors has now began exporting it’s newest mid-size family sedan to Letara.

EMPIRE MOTORS (EM) MANHATTAN 50:

The Manhattan 50, named after Manhattan Island, is EM’s newest version of their best-selling car. It is a luxurious mid-size sedan featuring the best tech Empire Motors has to offer. It was built from the ground up to replace its predecessor, the Manhattan 47.

DRIVETRAIN: The drivetrain on the Manhattan 50 is entirely new, sharing no components with the Manhattan 47. It features either the powerful “Six-Shooter” 3.1L (or 3.5L) i6 or the prestigious 3.3L “Empire State” v8. Paired with such powerful engines are a 3 speed manual transmission or the all-new “Gear-o-Matic” 2 speed automatic transmission with the “Auto-Locker” automatic locking differential to ensure a superior driving experience.

SAFETY: The Manhattan 50 is among the first cars to introduce seat belts to production vehicles. It also features a pop-out removable windshield and back seat safety glass to allow both the driver and passengers to escape the vehicle in case of collision. The passenger compartment is also separated from the engine compartment by a 8mm steel plate to further protect occupants from collision.

COMFORT: Depending on your choice of trim, the Manhattan 50 may include a premium cloth interior and seats or a carefully crafted hand-made leather interior and seats. The top-end “Luxe” trim includes extra-soft suspension for driving comfortably over unpaved or low-quality roads as well.

RACING: Upon recognition of the now legalized 1950 Portunis Cannonball run, Empire Motors decided to also make a Race-tuned GT Coupe version of the Manhattan 50. This model features a more powerful 3.3L “Empire State” v8 engine, 4 speed manual transmission, sporty interior, and tuned suspension. It keeps some of the luxury features of the original Manhattan 50 Coupe, so it goes for a pretty penny.

Engine: 3.1L i6, 3.5L i6, or 3.3L v8(racing uses improved 3.3L
Transmission: 2 speed auto or 3 speed manual. (Racing uses 4 speed manual)
Brakes: 290mmF/265mmR or 325mmF/325mmR
Wheels: P135/95C16 97K (Front) P135/95C16 97K (Rear)
Wheelbase: 2.6m

Trims:

Wagon starting at 13000 (import tax included)
Premium sedan starting at 14000 (import tax included)
Luxury sedan starting at 24000 (import tax included)
Racing GT Coupe starting at 23500 (Import tax included)

Manhattan 50 lineup

[Lupus]

Manhattan 50 Sport GT for Portunis Cannonball run.

[donutsnail]

TURBOL Corporation Presents:

The 1946 Stellar

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Brand new for the 1939 model year, Stellar’s UK offering was a small, all-purpose vehicle designed for the UK and European markets.

Engine options were also brand new, as the company moved from L-head to overhead valve engines. Both engines were designed with UK tax code in mind, and as a result are heavily undersquare. Models would be named for their engine option: either a 13 tax hp, 46 gross hp 4 cylinder or a 21 tax hp, 80 gross hp 6 cylinder. 6 cylinder models were equipped with additional chrome trim to denote their greater status, and were available as a convertible.

When the UK resumed consumer vehicle production after the war, the UK suffered from steel shortages, and a nationalized steel industry required manufacturers to reach high export targets to secure their supply of steel. Stellar looked into exports to the Letaran market with great interest; the relatively un-industrialized country would provide no domestic competition, and the small and economical Stellar products seemed well suited to the nation’s economic stature. While the 2 door, 4 passenger and 4 door, 6 passenger saloons were expected to make up the lion’s share of Letaran sales, 6 cylinder convertibles were also imported, expecting some interest thanks to Letara’s warm climate.

Per the request of the Letaran government, in 1948, Stellar produced a special order variant, combining the 8 passenger, twin inward-facing bench equipped Troopy minibus with the 21-80 6 cylinder engine.

[Vento]

Capable Motors!
From Capable Motors Co.
Headquarted in Idaho, USA.
3 new cars introduced in 1948!

The Capable Cruiser! 5 seat sedan capable of 73 mph! Built for comfort at cheap. Only, $12,120 including taxes! Use it to cruise and have fun! Even on dirt roads.
The Capable Heaver! A pick-up truck capable of 167.3 lb-ft of torque and a cargo capacity of 940 kilograms! 83.7 mph top speed. Use it to haul stuff! Includes manual locking differential! Lock the differential for improved off-road handling!
And the Capable Hauler! A van. It has a cargo capacity of 983 kilograms. Use it to heave stuff! Comes with manual locking differential.
You can also use the Capable Heaver and Capable Hauler for heaving and hauling other vehicles. Attach a cable to the Capable brand tow hook at the rear of each Capable vehicle to heave and/or haul any other vehicle! The Capable Heaver is capable of heaving 3,000 kg loads*, and the Capable Hauler is capable of hauling 3,000 kg loads!*

All Capable Motors vehicles are built for off-road capability and are able to drive on dirt and gravel roads just as well as on concrete and asphalt. In fact, you don’t even need a road at all! All Capable Motors cars are capable of smooth off road driving regardless of road! That’s the capability of Capable Motors!

(Pictured, Left to right: Capable Cruiser, Capable Heaver, Capable Hauler. No matter where it is, a Capable Motors car can get you to to it!)

Also introducing the Capable Racer! A race car derived from the Cruiser, with all new aluminium panels and Double Wishbone suspension in the front and rear! Its top speed is 98.6 mph! This Capable Racer has the capability to win any race.

(Pictured: Capable Racer)
Watch out for the Capable Racer at the Portunis Cannonball Run! Our Racer has the capability to survive any endurance race!

*maximum safety tested limit. Capable Motors cars are capable of towing even heavier loads but has not been tested, caution is advised.