Any news?
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I heard briefly from the main host yesterday, but comms have been sporadic from the other side of the Peopleâs Republicâs Great Firewall. Does anyone know when heâs due back? If that date comes and goes, I guess Iâll take over. We have all the data, including preliminary scoring and four bins - two for excessive aero, one for price, one for WES7.
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I remember they quoted the first of October as a return date.
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Thatâs too long. If thereâs no sign of life for⌠how long? Or if how many people speak up, whichever happens first? Five days, ten people?
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7 maybe?
A week is qfc standard and its been that so far
Another and probably good to do it
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The quicker the better, I definitely want to see how the Enigma GT4 Estate holds up against the other cars.
We should have some patience on this. I have messaged the host asking for an update/clarification; the way I see it, with the customary but often-ignored QFC week deadline passing, we can wait for one more before we explore options like a spreadsheet dump.
EDIT: Having reviewed GAlexZillaâs discord messages, the issue with them being in the PRC is indeed very disruptive. If they cannot access Discourse from there - and if moroza has at least some communication with them - moroza asking them to let him dump the reviews and results would be the natural course of action. With as little delay as possible.
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Is it written up and he canât post it because of the firewall? Iâm sure we can wait a bit in that case. Maybe you can do photos or something
The spreadsheet is done but there are no reviews. Otherwise, what you see is the latest I know.
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Is there any news on a solution or such for this?
GAlex messaged me two days ago saying they could get reviews âhopefully tomorrowâ (as of then). Itâs not the detailed directive I asked for, but itâs a sign of life. Iâm not sure what to do here.
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Well, thereâs still hope then I guess, I havenât really gotten the situation but I understand that it is special.
Ok, compromise based on Discord discussions. The host seem most interested in reviewing the finalists. So I will start from the bottom and dripfeed the rest a bit at a time over the next couple of days.
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I hope GAlexZilla is good, F*%&$ what I said earlier.
Round 0: Bins
Valerie paced back and forth, no longer admiring the vast view from the full-length windows of the 37th floor apartment she recently moved into with Alex, instead beginning to resent its permanence. That the urban skyline of Singapore was there, day in and day out, was increasingly contrasting with the fact that her partner wasnât. The auto show was coming up soon, he was due back from what was to be a weekend business trip long by now, and she didnât know what to do. She had resolved to go to the show anyway, but what to make of whatever she learned there? A few dozen twiddles of the thumbs later, she decided to get her mind off this irritatingly constant scene in the window, and do some advance research on what the Sport Wagon section of the show was going to have on display.
Opening the showâs website and navigating to the Exhibits page, she was greeted with a recently-posted note apologizing for the last-minute removal of some of the cars, apparently following an inquiry by the Singaporean Ministry of Transportation advising that the following cars were illegal for one reason or another.
- The Azura Ascent RS by @sweetener is binned for meeting only WES7 instead of the required WES8.
âEhh, no major loss there, I think. Itâs kinda cute, and thereâs nothing really wrong with the design, but it looks like a compact MPV, not a wagon. Details are rather flat, boring, the taillights donât line up well, and the front is clean but a bit soulless. At least itâd sound more unique, with its 60-degree V8. I wonder if itâs that Yamaha design used in the Ford Taurus SHO? Fast, too, but not as fast as the impound notice would come as soon as I tried to drive it on public roads. And the speed sounds like itâs too much for the rest of the car.â
Of all entrants, it has the lowest prestige (49), the least grip at all speeds, and by far the weakest brakes (52.1m 100-0; second place is 46.7), together amounting to the worst handling. Blame the 195mm medium-compound tires, which in 1998 were on the small side for a base-mode commuter car, let alone anything with sporting pretenses, let alone with a 341hp V8.
- The Axxus Enigma GT4 by @DuceTheTruth100 is binned for using more than the legal maximum of functional aerodynamic aids. Specifically, two front lips (plus one legal rear spoiler) where one aero fixture per end is the limit.
âAttractive profile, alright rear, weird headlights⌠and what on earth is going on with the neon red accents? An Enigma indeed. The concept mightâve worked had they been a bit more subdued, but here itâs just bizarre. Beyond that, reading comments sounds like it misses the mark on a sport wagon - very comfortable, pretty boring to drive. Safe and solid, not especially fast or with anything to brag about.â
The most comfortable entry, itâs also the slowest to complete 1km, the second-least sporty, second-least prestigious, second safest, and otherwise fairly unremarkable.
- The Voltari Auraelion 2.9t Sport Prestige Estate by @vero94773 is binned for using more than the legal maximum of functional aerodynamic aids. Specifically, two front lips (plus one legal rear lip, used as a spoiler) where one aero fixture per end is the limit.
âA bit of a shame, this one makes a good first impression. Though a bit scary, looking into its eyes; how are those headlights supposed to work, I wonder? The greenhouse is on the tall side, and the rear door a bit MPV-like between its size and minimally-openable rear window, but itâs still very much a wagon. The front is attractive, while the rear is properly good-looking and well executed. Reliable, quite fuel-efficient, excellent handling, adequate power, not the safest⌠still, Iâdâve given this one a second look, were it legal.â
Goofy suspension tuning (positive front camber yet toe-out, staggered tires, standard springs but adaptive shocks) but it ends up working, at least after the illegal aero. Extremely quiet, which helps its otherwise low-ish comfort rating, but likely does more damage to its utimately good Sport rating, keeping it from the upper ranks despite the best overall handling. Despite the turbo, tied with Mara for second-highest reliability. Third-lowest safety.
She skimmed the exhibit roster. A few dumpy-looking generics, some souped-up JDM tuner-looking things⌠a weird but weirdly good American entry, a very nicely shaped but oddly-detailed one fromâŚSpain? A sharp Swedish-esque car. Something thatâd pass for a van or SUV. A large 3-door hatch that somehow qualified⌠Then her eye caught a blaze orange wedge, at first by its outlandish appearance, but a split second later by a glimpse of the price.
- Torrent Frigate Stowaway by @crwpitman1 is binned for exceeding the $38k price cap, costing $44700.
âHuh. The more I look at it, the more my thumb oscillates from up to down and back, both in frequency and amplitude. It certainly stands out⌠and I do like the rear, no doubt, even though itâs at least a decade old. I think where that thumb will ultimately settle depends on how the car goes, whether the attention it draws will be on solid performance or it falling on its face. Not that itâll make a difference, because itâs well over our budget, but Iâm curious⌠Meh, sounds like it lives up to neither its price nor its appearance. Handles ok but serious brake fade. Economical but not especially fast. Nor very comfortable, prestigious, safe, reliable, or anything else really.â
By far the worst brake fade, second-lowest safety, otherwise middling stats.
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Thank goodness, my car did it and was not binned. The bin part is always a suspense, and so are the other rounds (although probably a bit less).
Glad to see I made it past the bins. At the very least, I remembered not to add too many aero bits and the like. Now to see if it gets to the finals.
Are the aero devices really two seperate or just mirrored? I already fell into that trap when hostingâŚ
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i couldâve sworn it was wes8 but oh well, good luck everyone else