QFC29 - MOAR POWARRRRR!

xsneakyxsimx · 20 August 2023 01:57

INTRO

Jeremy, Clark’s Son, is trying to convince his dad that since he is old enough to drive and has both schooling and work commitments, that he should be able to have his own car. After much back and forth, his father agrees and says he will pay half, and he will cover the other half. But he doesn’t want just anything, he wants a classic hot hatch!

RULES

The car must:

be up to a maximum of 2.5m rounded (2.54) wheelbase
be a 3 or 5 door hatchback according to Automation
be between 1973 and 1979 for the car model & engine family year
be 1979 for the car trim & engine variant year
be either FWD or RWD (No 4X4)
have 5 4 full seats in the car - Seat count minimum decreased
have all the road legal exterior fixtures (headlights, taillights, indicators, mirrors, wipers, etc.)
have a ~~catalytic converter and~~ at least one muffler of any type - Cat no longer required
have the techpool set to it’s default values (+5 across the board)
have quality sliders limited to a range of -3 to +3
not be more than a maximum of 10,000$AM in Approximate Cost
not have any parts that are deemed race parts (race intake/exhaust, semi slick tires, etc.)
not be a body from the Legacy Bodies Mod
run on ~~91 RON/87 AKI - 95 RON/91 AKI~~ 98 Leaded fuel - Fuel type changed
Failure to adhere to these rules will result in the car being banned. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED

The car may (within reason):

be powered by any engine layout
be carbureted or fuel injected
be naturally aspirated or turbocharged
be front or rear engined
be a convertible if so desired
be from any real or Automation equivalent region

‘Within reason’ here means that you can experiment but these will be cars that are based off of commuter cars. If you can be convincing enough to say that “Yes, my hot hatch could totally have a V16 from factory and fully handmade interior” you can attempt that, but if I am not convinced it will not fly

The naming scheme for the vehicles will be that the Car Model and Engine Family name must be “QFC29 - (your forum name)” and the Car Trim and Engine Variant names are free to be as you wish.

PRIORITIES

3 Stars

Cost: Since he is still in high school, and therefore isn’t earning a ton of money, he’s looking for a bargain. The more car for less money, the better

Drivability: Having only had his license for a year now, his perception of his driving abilities pale in comparison to what they actually are

Sportiness: The essence of the hot hatch, a smaller, ‘normal’ car that can go toe to toe with sports cars, grand tourers, and the like

2 Stars

Appearance: While these are based on more mundane commuter cars, hot hatches have a certain vibe or presence to those who are in the know

Reliability: Even though it is meant to be a sports car in a communter car body, it still needs to be reliable as the commuter car it’s based on

Service Costs/Fuel Economy: This car is going to be driven almost daily, and as such any running costs that occur would be preferred to be lower

1 Star

Comfort: Nothing ruins the fun of a car faster than dreading spending time inside said car. He’s not expecting the lap of luxury however

Safety: While he believes he is nigh invincible, his father knows otherwise. So anything to help his boy to live to be a man will help

Practicality: Added to give incentive for making cars with 5 seats over 4, will probably only be used as a tie breaker more than anything

INSPRIATION

Rather than a whole bunch of pics, I’ll add a link that have done the legwork for me, and you may look for further inspiration beyond that.

DEADLINE

I will leave rule deliberation until Thursday the 24th of August, 11:59 UTC, and then the car submissions deadline will be until the Thursday after, on the 31st of August, 11:59 UTC

FINAL NOTES

I’m hoping that everyone will be as excited about these cars as I am. I know it does seem quite similar to the TMCC I hosted but three decades older, but hopefully that age difference is enough to give a different feel of sporty economy cars to what the 2000s offered. It’s a little bit more restrictive in some regards so we’ll see how it plays out.

Also, I am on the fence about the allowance of twin scroll turbos which are available for 1979 in Automation with the +5 techpool, but I cannot seem to find any documentation as to their first introduction. Any insight into if it is fair to have allowed or not would be appreciated.

And finally, good luck and don’t die

abg7 · 20 August 2023 02:12

One more thing - with the catalytic converter mandate, each car must use 91 RON regular unleaded.

Anyway, the rule set is similar to what QFC12 would have been like had it been set in the 1970s.

xsneakyxsimx · 20 August 2023 02:14

Yes, 91 RON will be required. Always miss something with these first posts…

I was aware of QFC12 when I was making this, since I went back and looked at every single QFC before making a test mule. But hopefully the 13 year difference will be enough to make things interesting here. And QFCs having similar premises isn’t an rare occurrence.

abg7 · 20 August 2023 13:18

Thinking of submitting a version of one of these for this QFC:

It’s the '79 LVC LC80 1.6iS, powered by a 100bhp 1.6L NA SOHC I4 with MPEFI - and it’s a 5-door.

xsneakyxsimx · 20 August 2023 14:08

Once the rules deadline passes you totally can, looks to fit the theme of this QFC.

Riley · 20 August 2023 17:07

What’s the deal with a body like this, 2door in game, but clearly 3 door.

abg7 · 20 August 2023 20:25

I used a 5-door body style because the 3-door version can only have a +2 or +3 rear seat instead of a full-sized one - sounds odd to me, but that bug(?) hasn’t been fixed yet. Besides, the first Golf GTI was offered with 5 doors in some markets.

xsneakyxsimx · 20 August 2023 23:48

Since the text string has ‘3DR’ in it, I am happy to allow it to be included as a body choice

passengerpigeon · 21 August 2023 06:41

Will making a more coupe-like RWD hatchback akin to the Toyota AE86 or Opel Manta liftback, as opposed to Golf-like cars, either be disallowed or incur a desirability penalty?
Since you said “approximate cost”, are you just using the standard build cost the game gives you as a limit or will there be a cost adjustment for depreciation? If it’s the former I am not entirely sure build cost (as opposed to running cost) should be a three-star priority because 30 years of depreciation will have compressed the initial price differences between cars.
High-flow three-way cats are available in '79 with default +5 techpool; will using them earn a car significant penalties due to realism cheese?
What are the limits on loudness?

xsneakyxsimx · 21 August 2023 07:18

Nope, no penalties for a RWD Hot Hatch. The Vauxhall and Talbot mentioned in the inspiration post are rear wheel drive.

No depreciation. My head canon is that this won’t be during modern day but still will make these slightly closer to used cars.

I will look into how this will affect cost and such, I am also on the fence about the twin scroll turbo so it may be bundled into this.

Give me some time to look into this. May start with a 50 estimate and see how that feels for these cars.

passengerpigeon · 21 August 2023 07:20

Give me some time to look into this. May start with a 50 estimate and see how that feels for these cars.

I was working on an engine candidate as you were typing; I likely won’t be using performance intakes now anyway because I only got 3 extra horsepower in return for 45 loudness.

passengerpigeon · 21 August 2023 07:29

No depreciation. My head canon is that this won’t be during modern day but still will make these slightly closer to used cars.

So will he be buying a car in 1979 or buying a used one later? The fact that you said “classic hot hatch” is what made me think it was a used car challenge as those hot hatches weren’t classics when new. I’d just like to know for the sake of my ad post, i.e. whether I should write it like a new car advertisement or a listing at a used car lot.

xsneakyxsimx · 21 August 2023 07:35

You may do either or, whichever you think advertises it the best. I’m trying to keep things short and sweet since this is meant to be a Quick Fire Challenge.

mart1n2005 · 21 August 2023 10:24

I know this specific car is a year too new to enter but as long as it says “hatchback” in the game is this body style ok?

Obviously it is more of a coupe thank your normal “hot hatch”, but it does have a hatchback as opposed to a separate load space

xsneakyxsimx · 21 August 2023 10:46

Exactly that. So long as within Automation, I can look at the car body selected and the game says it is a hatchback and the appropriate markets get the correct bonuses, then it is a legal body.

shibusu · 21 August 2023 21:39

fuck it, we ball

Saberin Motori

Solsti 1500 R

At Saberin Motori, we put engines in the wrong side of the car. We’ve been doing this for three decades already - and we’ve gotten pretty good at it. Can you have a practical hatchback with the engine in the rear? Yes! Can you get lots of fun driving it? Absolutely. Let the power of the sabercat propel you to speeds of 180km/h, and reach 100km/h in 9.9 seconds, and let its tires steer you at a full G.*

Opponents may comment on the impracticality and instability of rear-engine designs, and while we recognise the added difficulty in piloting a machine like this, it is no less practical than any other hatchback - and you get a sizable frunk, along with the remaining trunk space.

Because I was stupid and inspired enough to do a bespoke interior for this:

Interior

Some of these are premade, but the centre console and the gauge cluster are all custom made. Pain.

*stuff still subject to rule changes and minor optimisations along the way

Happyhungryhippo · 22 August 2023 13:08

I dont really like the front design, the rest is superb. It would even do well in a CSR.

Happyhungryhippo · 22 August 2023 13:37

In general, I think catalytic converters in 1979 were only a thing in the USA and Japan. I remember having them introduced in Germany around 1985. When I got my new Audi in 1984, the dealer handed it out with the converter in the trunk - since unleaded gasoline was still very rare. I got the tax advantage anyway, just because I was carrying it around in the trunk.

So I assume that mirror universe Clarkson is based in the USA?

mart1n2005 · 22 August 2023 19:55

I too would have to guess these are to be American market cars with the low quality fuel and catalytic converters being mandated.

I do feel the rules penalise the small, actual hot hatch cars though due to the use of five full size seats. Some of the smaller bodies can’t offer even full size rear seats, and I do wonder if it’s possible to fit five in an autobianchi a112

Happyhungryhippo · 22 August 2023 19:58

I second this, I can fit five, but that would be absurdly tight in the rear of my entry. I would also suggest four seats minimum, although a fifth one might get a small bonus if provided.