Build an affordable early 80’s sports car that delivers fun on a budget while also being capable of use as a daily driver
Rules
Open Beta Al-Rilma entries only
Engine Variant/Car Trim Year: 1982
Engine Family/Car Model Year: 1982 or earlier
Both engine family and car model must be named “QFC66-” followed by your user name, and engine variant and car trim names should be the actual names of your car and engine.
Fuel Type: Regular Unleaded 91 RON/87 AKI
Emissions: WES 6 (Gasmea WES requirement for 1982)
Body: 2- or 3-door coupe, sedan, or liftback/fastback (these will show as a hatchback body in-game but are characterized by a sloping rear that resembles a coupe or sedan instead of the upright hatchback profile)
No convertibles
Price: No hard and fast rule, but approximately 12,000 to 15,000 recommended.
Wheelbase: about 91-102 inches (2.3-2.6 m) recommended based on real-world examples from the time, but no hard and fast rule
Tires: Radial tires only, no race radials
Seats: front row with 2 seats required, back row optional
Default tech pool (+5 all around)
No quality restrictions
Submissions should be DM’ed directly to me (new users will need to gain enough trust by engaging with the forums to unlock this)
Must post an ad with at least one photograph of your vehicle.
No particular market is set here, so license plates and exterior lights are up to you but should look like something that reasonably might have existed
Interiors not required and not judged, but you’re welcome to put one in for your own amusement.
Rule violation policy: Minor rule breaks will be forgiven at my discretion, subject to a scoring penalty, and with adjustments made to the entry at my discretion to make the entry compliant.
Resubmissions generally not allowed, but may be allowed at my discretion with good cause
A note on scoring, quality, and realism: I will be using a spreadsheet as a baseline for scoring but reserve the right to deviate from the spreadsheet, including ruling out entries badly deficient in any particular area from being a Finalist/podium finisher. There are no specific realism restrictions, but I reserve the right to give a bonus to entries that nail period-appropriateness or manage to do more with less advanced tech. I am experimenting with unrestricted quality for various reasons, but I reserve the right to penalize an entry if it appears to be exploiting an obvious imbalance in the game design (e.g. you can cut the price of your car by a third while losing just a point or two of score in a category).
Priorities
5-star
Design: A sports car needs the visual flair to look the part. Period-appropriateness will be considered.
4-star
Price: Odds are that a buyer with more money would be buying something faster and more expensive, so buyers are going to be looking to get the most fun for their money.
Sportiness: There are more practical options in other categories, but the promise of a sporty experience sets these cars apart.
Prestige: Buyers want to have something that stands out more than a humdrum family sedan or econobox.
3-star
Drivability: Most buyers in this category are likely to prefer a car that is easy to toss around without worrying about losing control.
Performance (0-60, ¼ mile, cornering G’s): While a sporty “feel” is one thing, most buyers in this category are likely to prefer a car that also has the power and agility to back up the sportiness.
Fuel Economy: While upfront costs are likely to be more of a dealbreaker for a buyer in this category, buyers don’t have a ton of money and are likely to prefer a car that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg to fill up.
Service Costs: Again, buyers are likely to prefer something that makes good use of their money when it comes time for maintenance and repairs.
Reliability/Environmental Resistance: Having a car you can hang onto for a long time without having it in the shop too frequently is another way to maximize the fun-per-dollar.
2-star
Comfort: Buyers won’t have the highest expectations for comfort but won’t want a total penalty box.
Safety: Buyers aren’t going to be looking for safety as a top priority, but they also probably won’t want a deathtrap.
Practicality: While expectations in this category aren’t too high, buyers won’t want to have to buy a second car just to buy some groceries, and some might prefer a couple rear seats that can be used in a pinch or for transporting kids
1-star
Off-road: Some buyers might have a use case where it would be helpful to have some limited off-road ability, like being able to handle dirt or gravel roads in rural areas or on a camping trip.
Utility: Some buyers might have a use case where they would like to have some ability to haul and/or tow things (like the aforementioned camping trips).
If it shows up in the game as a convertible body, then it’s not allowed. Convertibles introduce complications for scoring that this ruleset just is not built to account for, and that I’m frankly just not interested in adjusting for in a QFC that is supposed to move along quickly.
Rules updated to include suggested wheelbase range of 91-102 inches (2.3-2.6 meters) and to include inspirations.
It looks like real-world inspirations ran about $10000 to $13000 in 1982 money, which I believe would translate into about $24000 to $32000 in 2012 money that I think the game uses, but I can’t sanity check this in-game right now and might not have a good opportunity to do so for a day or two.
If anybody wants to tinker in the game with pricing and provide some feedback on pricing, I would greatly appreciate it.
Not having heard other questions or objections to the rules, I am thinking that rules will be considered finalized once I have sorted out pricing guidelines. If you have suggestions or questions about the rules, speak now or forever hold your peace.
Of the inspirations, I believe the smallest was the Nissan, which I just double-checked had a 2.32 meter wheelbase, and the largest was the Toyota at 2.614 meters, followed by the Chevy at 2.565 meters, and with the others in between (I recall about 95-96 inches–excuse my American-ness and our very odd measurements).
At any rate, since 2.3 to 2.6 meters is just a general guideline, you are allowed to go larger if you want, although if you go too much larger your entry will probably be an outlier in a number of categories–for better and for worse–as a result of the vehicle’s size.
If you can point out relevant examples that were noticeably larger than 2.6 meters, I would be happy to bump the guideline range upward, for whatever it’s worth.
Was the 5.0 Mustang “affordable” back in the day? I assume the base model v6 Camaro was, didnt those even at one point come with a 4cyl? To me, those are on opposite ends of the spectrum, and im just trying to figure out which way to go.
Submissions are now OPEN until December 8th. I have added a rough price guideline of about 12,000 to 15,000, but there is no hard cap.
I think there’s some room to play with both ends of this spectrum within (or close to) the suggested price range. An “Iron Duke”-equipped 4-cylinder Camaro and a 5.0 Mustang are toward opposite ends of the spectrum, but I would say they both fall roughly in the range in play here; we’re not talking about V12 supercars.
The MX-5 wasn’t released until 1989, so while something playing on that general concept might be in play here, the MX-5 doesn’t qualify as an inspiration because it didn’t exist at the time this challenge is set.
Good luck to everyone! I’m looking forward to seeing what creations you all come up with.
“Arden, The Alvern you always dreamt about” was plastered across every surface at the Alvern Stand when the Arden was debuted at the 1973 Earl’s Court Motor Show to much fanfare, not long after, The Arden began appearing all-over the British Isles from the humble 1200L to the Fiery 2500RS which blitzed across Rally circuits throughout the Mid 70s, the car was everywhere and quickly gained a place in British popular culture.
9 Years on from its launch, whilst still popular, it was clearly in need of a refresh sooner rather than later. In March 1982 the refreshed “MK1.5” Arden was launched, now looking much more modern, although the early 70s roots were visible regardless, Also new was the ESi [Euro Sport Injection] with Spotlamps, Red trim and sporty wheels. Unlike some of the competition it also came with Back seats*, large enough for anybody up to 11 Years old to POSSIBLY fit.
* [Hacksaw to cut rear seat occupants legs off so they fit [Sold Separately], Alvern is not responsible for any leg injuries caused by the Arden rear seats]
The Typhoon is West Isle’s first departure from high end, high price super cars. For just $13,500 you can buy a small but punchy FR sports car. It weighs 1078 kilograms and has a 3.4 litre inline 6 that produces 193 horsepower and 272nm of torque. It can zip from 0 to 100km/h in just 6.55 seconds, and a quarter mile time of 14.52 seconds, while still maintaining a respectable fuel economy of 11.9 litres per 100 kilometres. And we can absolutely guarantee it’ll last more than one year in average British weather.
Introducing the 1982 Vymer Basilisk - the sports car that proves pure driving fun doesn’t have to cost a fortune. With its lightweight rear-wheel-drive chassis, turbocharged 2.3-litre engine, and sharp styling, the Basilisk delivers a spirited, confidence-building drive every time you get behind the wheel. Agile in the corners yet practical enough for the daily commute, it blends efficiency, reliability, and excitement in one sleek, affordable package.
