This is the most intense round so far, a lot of close contest. I could have easily been cut for any number of reasons in the last 3 rounds, but somehow am doggedly hanging on. My regret was not sending the 2+2 trim, because I want the extra weight (4400lbs in a track capable muscle car? Come on.)
But hindsight is just that, and not that useful. This is shopping, not finding the best car!
I did not expect to be in the top three, and I’m up against two Automation Veterans. This is an intense round, and my heart was racing in this one when I saw the little 1 by my name. Was wondering how far I’d made it before the drop, only to see the top 3.
This is one really good round.
So our finalists are a pair of big saloons and a supercar-slash-grand tourer. Hats off to anyone who figured out that @strop named his car after Malochio’s ride in Interstate '76! Problem is, with an all-steel construction, it weighs almost as much as an HSV GTS Gen-F, and is actually thirstier than my entry… At least it’s normally aspirated.
@thecarlover must have used the front and rear fascias of the Ocelot Jackal from GTA V as inspiration, but it’s no bad thing given that the Jackal is also a looker.
@Madrias actually built a true luxury (not just premium) car, but will its more upmarket interior be the clincher? I am eagerly awaiting the final result.
On everything that’s been considered thus far, I’d put my money on @thecarlover and his Solo Jetstream SM if I actually had any - of all three finalists it’s the closest thing there is to a street-legal V8 Supercar in terms of performance and styling, but its rear wing and front splitter are nowhere near as large.
I kinda felt the small block was a bit of a risk but I wanted to keep it fairly economical. Plus still managed 0-100km/h in 4.3 seconds. I totally forgot I went with a flatplane V8 instead of a crossplane V8 which certainly pushed it more to the sports side of things though. At least I made it to Round 4! I was cut in good company, I mean this whole round just about every car looked great.
There were exceptions. My car - and yours - weren’t among them. But I perfectly understand why HSV-style crossplane v8s are king here: they are smoother and require fewer production units to assemble. Plus, eight cylinders really is the sweet spot for a high-performance NA engine, with an ideal balance of firepower and affordability.
And yes, my car’s engine produces 670 metric (or DIN) bhp, so @KLinardo was right about the output being 661 bhp (under the SAE NET system in use in America - Japan and continental Europe use DIN bhp, or PS).
Malochio’s not the only one who likes the Manta. It is the single most OP car in the game, if you can get past the mildly flimsy armor rating. Just whack on 4 7.62mm MGs, or 4 30mm cannons, or 4 Dr Radar Missiles… it’ll completely destroy everything that gets in its way.
But it still only takes a single Cupid missile to whack Malochio 
EDIT: Reactions to the last round of cuts:
@airjordan is now a very strong competitor in a lot of contests so no surprises I had my eye out on this one. It just goes to show that the only reason I got away with two seats is because everything else was better that way. Oh, and more power. I now no longer regret getting rid of the VVL in order to accommodate more power per mass.
Saying this about @titleguy1’s cars just goes a long way to show just how bloody strong the field is. In his own company thread, his cars (not to mention the graphics jobs) sends people drooling and reaching for their fantasy chequebooks.
A range of 30-40k may not seem that huge but considering 40k is a good 33% greater than 30k, and that a number of entries snuck in under 30k (my own included), that made relative pricing very important.
If @sillyworld had put in a big fat V8 with 600hp, this competition would have been over already. No amount of 2 seater coupe would overcome exactly what the host was looking for. So in a way I was kind of relieved to see that the engine went all noughties Aston Martin. They’re the number one culprit I think of when it comes to specific outputs of 60bhp per liter from big fat V12s.
Agreed, I thought this might be a shoe-in for a win too, except for the fact it’s based on a Nissan body. Then again did not know anything about the interior, and in a way, my default action would have been to do the same thing. It’s an exception to my rule that I didn’t.
Actually, they’re called Cherub missiles, and they are only usable at the end of the I76 campaign. Speaking of which, your car certainly has the firepower - and handling - to blow away the opposition in the final stage of this round like a Cherub missile 
Moreover, I always implement VVL to improve the engine’s power delivery at low revs and increase fuel economy even further than if I used VVT on its own.
So the recipe for success seems to be a four-door saloon with a 600-bhp v8… I just hope you can prove otherwise since your car has two each of doors and seats.
But I was right to build a V12 with a specific output of >100bhp/litre. Slotting the CS60 Coupe’s engine into a saloon would have created the ultimate Q-car!
Cherub!? Damn, I literally played the entire campaign yesterday, how did I miss such a detail?
Here’s to hoping the car’s superb balance will appeal to the driver side of the host.
Yeah, funny thing was @abg7 my original design for the Lera (which was a 2010 design I was going to use for the Big Fruinian Muscle Car Thing too) was actually a crossplane V8 more along the lines of a classic muscle car HSV style design. But I accidentally went into the whole factory thing and forgot what the estimated pricing was so I ended up creating two separate designs.
I could have entered the CS60 Coupe in stage 2 of the Big Fruinian Muscle Car Cup if it had cost $3-4k less with a 10% markup; it would have cost even more to run due to its high capacity (>5 litres). And the Chieftain 5.0 GT I entered into that challenge would have been too slow here.
Yeah, I think a lot of us focused so much on speed here that didn’t realise how important the other issues were like a few extra seats 
I feared that my engine will not be enough. The reason it’s “only” 5.0 is (as stated) this cars is refresh of BFMCC and in Frunia cars with 5.0+ engines pay higher tax. So I guess if I would put a new engine in I would be more competitive…but than again, V-Block is more of a gt and it was not intended to have 600hp.
Good point, haven’t thought of that.
Why two seats? I wanted to stay under 1.7 ton, not a fan of muscle cars being land yachts 
Thanks, I’ve learnt a lot in past year.
Great round, looking forward to top 3!
i took a nap. a long one. came back and saw this thread explode.
it’s getting more and more hyped every round.
so much ragrets for missing that one freakin rule…
Interesting fact about I-76. Malochio was voiced by John De Lancie, the actor who played Q. (Star Trek, not James Bond)
I know I was going to lose for that, hahaha! but I just had the idea for a nice big sedan with a lazy big engine, kind of like a metaphor for big powerful things (giants, tanks, big robots) that are imposing and nice to look at, but slow, the slower the more omnious and majestic. and I just HAD to do it.
So we must not underestimate the amount of power and practicality required to win this challenge, or we would end up being cut earlier than we’d like.
@Sillyworld should have increased his engine output by at least 100 to 200 bhp - it’s not that hard, and you won’t have to sacrifice too much economy in the process.
Just to touch base: work kicked my ass today. I’ll be getting back on the review expedition hopefully by tomorrow evening. I spend my whole day reading, writing, and editing legal work product, so I apologize if I don’t have the energy to write at the end of a difficult day. I don’t intend to drag this out, I just need at least one more day. Let’s just say that the dealers are being difficult about scheduling each other. 
Nice to know that you have not forgotten about this contest. You just have your hands full with other stuff.
Rest assured, when you declare a winner, you will have definitely made the right decision, and one which every participant will agree with, myself included.
Not a problem. I’m sure all of us can wait one more day (or more if needed) to get the results. Plus, this builds up the anticipation.
