Rado Automotive Incorporated - New Story 5/1/16

nerd · 7 April 2015 03:32

Noticed my post in the car company directory? Have you noticed that the car I made for the half truck battle is named “Rado Rancher”

Basically, I have already started and even made some of the cars for the company.

Logo: TBD
Car focus: More mainstream cars really, but plenty of performance options too
Country: USA
Founders: John Jake Rado, Sam Johnson

Timeline up to founding of the company:
December 2nd, 1920: John Jake Rado is born.
April 20th, 1945: John Jake Rado comes to the US.
May 13th, 1945: John Jake Rado meets Sam Johnson.
May 20th, 1945: They move in to a house with a garage.
September 2nd, 1945: World War II ends.
September 11th, 1945: They begin thinking ideas on how to make money as they are in debt.
October 2nd, 1945: Rado Automotive Incorporated is founded.

nerd · 10 April 2015 02:23

“In 1945 a group of Americans were in debt and needed money fast. One of them, named John Jake Rado (I am terrible at making founder names), thought of a car company, because John was once on a sinking vessel and he did not want to experience that again. In the 40s air travel was too expensive, and so they thought of a car company. They got some funding from the US government as a base. and in October 1945 they opened up shop and started their first car, the Rado I. After that first car, the company grew fast to what it is today in 2015.”

And that is the back story to Rado, now to their first car the Rado I.

The Rado I:

“The first car by those two people, sporting a small 1.2L carbed I4 producing 37 HP and 51 FT-LBs of Torque. That is enough to propel the car to 62 MPH in 28.7 seconds and a top speed of 79 MPH.
The car was designed to feature a comfortable upscale interior for people who could not afford it, and it did that, at the sacrafice of other things.”

Model years: 1946-1955

The image is quite large, probably because I do not resize the images and I run the game at 1440x900:

One reliability problem with the car was that there was no ventilation. In 1947 reports were made by consumers that the engine was overheating often. In 1948 a design change was made as the company added a chrome grille to the front in a design change to the car.

nerd · 13 April 2015 18:23

Is there anyone interested?

SeriousSimon · 13 April 2015 20:24

Let’s see… Anyone who comes up with their own car company, deserves respect for that.

However, I’d like to point out a few things to you, that will help you as you go on and (hopefully) show us more designs.

“In 1945 a group of Americans were in debt and needed money fast. One of them, named John Jake Rado (I am terrible at making founder names), thought of a car company. In October 1945 they opened up shop and started their first car, the Rado I. After that first car, the company grew fast to what it is today in 2015.”

When you need money, you start a company from scratch? Where did they get the money from?
Then you mention John Jake Rado, but you also speak about two people. Who is the other person? What was their motivation to make cars (other than needing money) ?

As for the car, there is not much to say about it, really. Also I am sure it requires some kind of air intake somewhere…

Maybe you think a bit about what makes your company what it is, what direction you want to take with it (sporty, luxury, technically advanced cars?) and then tell us and show us what you can do! I’d be interested to see that!

nerd · 14 April 2015 00:36

[quote=“SeriousSimon”]Let’s see… Anyone who comes up with their own car company, deserves respect for that.

However, I’d like to point out a few things to you, that will help you as you go on and (hopefully) show us more designs.

“In 1945 a group of Americans were in debt and needed money fast. One of them, named John Jake Rado (I am terrible at making founder names), thought of a car company. In October 1945 they opened up shop and started their first car, the Rado I. After that first car, the company grew fast to what it is today in 2015.”

When you need money, you start a company from scratch? Where did they get the money from?
Then you mention John Jake Rado, but you also speak about two people. Who is the other person? What was their motivation to make cars (other than needing money) ?

As for the car, there is not much to say about it, really. Also I am sure it requires some kind of air intake somewhere…

Maybe you think a bit about what makes your company what it is, what direction you want to take with it (sporty, luxury, technically advanced cars?) and then tell us and show us what you can do! I’d be interested to see that![/quote]

I updated the description, John was once on a sinking vessel, and Air travel was not feasible to them in the 40s. The air intake, they added one late in the '47 model year due to engine-overheating complaints from consumers, and for number 3, basically all-three, with a moderately strong emphasis on being boring cars, but plenty of sport, luxury, and technically advanced cars are made by the company too.
I was working on the 1980 facelift version of the Rado L earlier today, their first generation luxury car.

utopian201 · 14 April 2015 09:12

Who would be your real life competitors?

nerd · 15 April 2015 17:36

[quote=“utopian201”]

Who would be your real life competitors?[/quote]

Most of the big-name brands like Chevy, Nissan, Audi, VW, etc.

utopian201 · 16 April 2015 09:25

The reason I asked was to see if you view your company as a luxury manufacturer (eg Lexus, BMW), exotic (eg Ferrari), or mainstream (eg Toyota, VW) or something else.

If you care about backstory (which not all members here do, so nothing wrong if you don’t), maybe focus where your cars go. The manufacturers you’ve listed are all mainstream manufacturers except Audi which is a luxury marque.
Audi and VW are aimed at different markets (luxury and mainstream respectively) so they aren’t competitors (VW owns Audi, so it wouldn’t make sense to have them compete with each other).

Edit: ah I see you have updated the first post to say you’re mainstream. Look forward to seeing what else you produce!

nerd · 16 April 2015 18:28

Rado L (First Generation, 1947-1981):

Rado got some success from the original Rado I due to affordability and comfort.
Rado used some of this money to develop the I6 Mark I series and the Rado L car…
The car was not a success, it was a slow seller, and most of Rado’s sales were from the Rado I, not the Rado L.

And of course, the car itself.

Facelift model coming soon.

nerd · 16 April 2015 19:00

Rado L (First Generation, 1947-1981) Facelift 3:

Description:
“The Rado L by 1980 was really showing it’s age, it’s bodystyle was not holding up to being in production for 33 years at this point. 1980 marked the final facelift for the Rado L, adding an 8-track system, 3-way catalytic converter, and wider tires, as well as new styling while keeping the same body. ‘The Rado L will go out of production early next model year’ said a Rado spokesman.”

Sales went up for 1980 and 1981, perhaps due to the fact that there was not much time left for the Rado L by 1980.

SeriousSimon · 16 April 2015 22:33

It was also considered to be a the first “Batmobile”!

nerd · 19 April 2015 22:43

LOL, The Rado L before it’s numerous facelifts did look like a Movie bad guy car to me…

Now, for another Rado, the Rado II!

Rado II (Model years 1955-1969):

“The second-generation Rado economy car marked a change in the model that would be kept for 42 years, that is, conversion to a 2-door (not counting the back).
It also added trim-levels for the first time. There were 3 trim-levels: Base, Premium, and Ultimate with the following interior configs:
Base: Standard Interior, -9 quality, Basic AM Radio, neutral quality, comfort rating 10.9
Premium: Premium Interior, -9 quality, Basic AM Radio, neutral quality, comfort rating 13.0
Ultimate: Luxury Interior, +4 quality, Basic AM Radio, neutral quality, comfort rating 19.0
It had a smaller engine with a higher power output, this time with 1000 cc, 50 hp and 53 ft-lbs of torque.”

nerd · 21 April 2015 03:21

A hint about the next car: It will be in the 70s, it is not that Rado Rancher truck, and it nearly bankrupted Rado.

Oskiinus · 21 April 2015 07:37

Your car in the front part reminds me good ol’ Trabant.

nerd · 26 April 2015 18:38

UPDATE: My computer’s power supply just died, and I am not getting a new one until May, so you will have to wait for the next Rado I was going to post.

nerd · 22 May 2015 05:16

Now working on the text that will go with the backstory of one of Rado’s biggest failures, the F-4, and how the company progressed through the 70’s.

nerd · 8 December 2015 01:34

Hehe, oh boy.

(Fast forward to 2015)

This is the Rado NX. A small Mid-engine rear-drive coupe.
In the Base 1.6 model you will find a 1.6 liter Naturally Aspirated DI 16v 4 cylinder. 2.0L and 2.0L Turbo options are also available, and a V6 version is coming soon.
Inside you will find standard equipment of the 2010s, like AM/FM/Satellite radio and CD player with phone connectivity, Cloth seat trim, power windows, plastic dashboard trim and a glovebox.
Standard also comes a 6-speed Manual transmission (6th gear being overdrive in 1.6L and 2.0L models) and medium-grip tires, similar to those found on most cars.
Pricing starts at $19,995 for the base 1.6L model, $22,995 for 2.0L, and $26,995 for the Turbo 2.0L.

Mods used (found on steam workshop)
Weasels Lip Pack
VMO Modpack 1 v1.1
Exhausts and Lip Materials Combination

squidhead · 8 December 2015 03:34

Nice, but what about the performance stats?

nerd · 8 December 2015 03:46

Here you go:

HP:
2.0L Turbo: 255 HP
2.0L NA: 180 HP
1.6L NA: 153 HP

Torque:
2.0L Turbo: 228 FT-LB
2.0L NA: 141 FT-LB
1.6L NA: 112 FT-LB

0-60:
2.0L Turbo 4.8
2.0L NA: 6.1
1.6L NA: 6.9
Quarter Mile:
2.0L Turbo: 13.02s @ 109 MPH
2.0L NA: 14.34s @ 99 MPH
1.6L NA: 15.06s @ 93 MPH

The 2.0L Turbo has a 153 MPH top speed, the 2.0L 137 MPH, and the 1.6L 139 MPH.

nerd · 18 December 2015 22:39

Rado III (1970-1976):

After the Rado II was discontinued in January 1970, many talked within the company on creating a FWD replacement. It was denounced by many as “Immoral!”, “Unpractical!”, and even “Too Dangerous!”.
But what is the result when you mate it to a 1.7l inline 4 going to a 5-speed manual?
That depends on the car, of course.

The car itself has a McPherson Strut up front and a semi-trailing arm in the rear, 125mm wide tires, a gas tank, 5 seats with vinyl upholstery, an AM-only radio, and more.
You can have 2-doors, or 4-doors* The Taillights often seem to break for no-apparent reason, but we assure you it’s fine, as they come on again in a few minutes anyway.
The suspension? Nothing too-fancy, just regular old coils, twin-tube dampers, and a passive swaybar that prevents the car from rolling.

Overall, it did make it off the testing grounds of the company and off on to customer’s hands, at least for a while.

= Four Dour cars available post-1971.

I’ll let the pictures say the rest.