QFC26 - Baby on the Way
Brief
Surabaya, 2003
David is a shrewd and resourceful man in his early 30s. Born into a family running a small store in his hometown, David has always had to work hard to make ends meet for his family and to get the things he wants. After attending trade school, David decided to move to the Surabaya in search for opportunities. Things happened, and David now runs a successful wholesale store in the city’s biggest shopping center, selling all sorts of goods to both customers and other businesses together with his wife Merry and their 5-year old son Aldo whenever he isn’t doing homework.
David and Merry currently drives a used 1984 Hakaru Carica, a compact 4-door sedan. However, Merry is expecting a second child and clearly, the old Carica just isn’t going to cut it. David suggested that the family get a Toyota Kijang, a tough and reliable car that can do just about every chore. However, Merry, noting that the family is now much better off than when they first got the Carica and that the country’s car market has recently opened up to imported foreign cars, suggested that they get one of those which were would have been forbidden fruit a few years back. David happily agreed because why wouldn’t he?
David and Merry are searching for a new car that can provide practical transportation for him and his growing family, as well as occasional errands for his rapidly growing business. He is looking for a car that is efficient, economical, and safe. He also wants a car that is relatively prestigious (which in this context just means anything that isn’t an everyman’s Toyota Kijang or equivalent) since he is climbing up the ranks, even if he’s not at the top just yet.
Inspirations
MPV
Honda Stream
Toyota Wish
Opel Zafira
Ford C-Max
Volkswagen Touran
Renault Grand Scenic
Kia Carens
Toyota Corolla Verso (a bit small but I like the way it looks)
Pontiac Vibe
SUV
Nissan X-Trail
Honda CR-V
Kia Sportage
Hyundai Tucson
Subaru Forester
Suzuki Grand Vitara
Ford Escape
Rules
Trim
- Model year: ≤2003
- Trim year: 2003
- Body: MPV, SUV, or Wagon. Some bodies blur the line between those three categories so I will judge the car based on how it looks or how you advertise it in your forum post as well.
- Suspension: front and rear double wishbone, multilink, and pushrod are banned for balance reasons. Cars with a ladder frame chassis may have front double wishbone suspension, but other restrictions still apply.
- Soft limit: $16,500
- Max price: $19,000. Better make the car worth it.
- Interior: at least five seats
- Tyre width must end in 5 (e.g. 195)
- Techpool: Default (+5 in all categories)
Engine
- Family year: ≤2003
- Variant year: 2003
- Maximum loudness: 40
- Catalytic converter required
- Fuel: unleaded 91 RON
- Techpool: Default (+5 in all categories)
Naming Convention
- Model/family name: QFC26 - (your forum username)
- Trim name: name of your car
- Variant name: name of your engine
Priorities
Design coherence, period-correctness, realism
Don’t make something that can’t exist irl. If you are making a base shitspec car, make it look like it. The same goes for higher trim levels. Give it body coloured trim and some chrome bits maybe. Any eyebrow-raising engineering choices may result in a bin.
Drivability
David and Merry know how to drive manual, but an automatic would be better in the city’s gridlock traffic. They don’t want a car that is too big to maneuver either, as the car park where they work can get very tight and crowded.
Practicality
They are going to transport their children and their goods so the car must be able to fit all of them. For now, 5 seats is enough although having extra seats could also help in certain situations. I won’t focus solely on the practicality stat, but rather on cargo and passenger volume.
Safety
The car should be safe for early 2000s standards. While a ladder framed car with no airbags or ABS are perfectly fine to be sold in the country, David and Merry wants the best for their children and themselves. I won’t just look at the type of safety you use, but also chassis material and other variables.
Purchase Price
Even though business is good, David and Merry don’t want to blow their entire budget on the new car if possible. Don’t make the car feel like an utter piece of garbage though. There’s a reason why Jeremy Clarkson said that family cars are “almost impossible” to make.
Fuel Economy
David and Merry will always be stuck in traffic on their way to the store and back, so fuel economy won’t be great. Still, even with cheap, subsidized, leaded gas David doesn’t want to spend too much on gas.
Comfort
David and Merry don’t expect S-Class levels of comfort, but they don’t want to rattle their bones to dust either. They’re accustomed to sitting in their '84 Carica and cars that are frankly worse than that, so David and Merry doesn’t really need a particularly luxurious interior for their car.
Reliability
A family car is supposed to be dependable so don’t make it break down so readily.
Service costs
Keep it reasonable.
Sportiness
They are not looking for a sports car.
Notes
-
SUVs, MPVs, and wagons all work as family transport in this context. Just make whichever one of those you want.
-
Keep power figures realistic. David and Merry don’t need a ““280PS”” 0-100km/h in 5 seconds kind of machine
-
David and Merry are expecting a second child but a third one may be coming in… who knows?
-
As mentioned earlier, the couple don’t want a car that is too big. A C-segment/compact car would strike a good balance between size and interior space.
-
The use of advanced trim settings is allowed, but don’t make the car look like something it isn’t
A guide to Indonesian plates for those that want to make them
Indonesian license plates during the 2000s look like this:
The four numbers at the bottom of the plate denote the month and year of expiry (MM • YY)
To make Indonesian plates, use the EU-sized plates, size it as below, and paint it black.
For license plates issued after April 2011, scale the x-axis to 0.85.
For the registration, I used the Oxygen font, sized as below:
For the expiration date, use the same font sized as below:
For the line between the registration and the expiry date, I used the long line fixture found in RB Insanity (which itself can be found under badges/decals), scaled as below:
These (apart from the plate’s dimensions) are just for reference so whatever you do, if it looks right then it probably is right.
For more information on the codes and such go to the most reliable source of information in the world, Wikipedia. Below is what your plates could potentially look like in the game:
DEATH TO MALAYSIA!!!
ETERNAL DAMNATION FOR SINGAPORE!!!
REEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
Submissions
-
Submissions will open on Sunday, 11th June at 23.59 UTC+7. The rules will be open to deliberation and subject to change until then.
-
Submissions will close on Sunday, 18th June at 23.59 UTC+7.
-
Please submit your car file to me via DMs and post an ad in the thread, otherwise your entry will not be considered. Resubmissions will not be allowed.
Changelog
- Added tyre width requirement
- Renamed “Opel Astra H Caravan” to “Opel Astra G Caravan”
- Added notes about the car’s dimensions
- Further elaborated on practicality priority
- Clarified that this round takes place in the wonderful country of Indonesia. Malaysians can go to HELL!!! KANINA MAK KAU HIJAU!!!
- Increased the importance of safety
- Added notes on advanced trim settings
- Banned rear double wishbone, multilink, and pushrod suspensions
- Banned front double wishbone suspension
- Added Indonesia license plate guide
