Trafikjournalen: Cars that influenced Swedish car culture (The end!)

[Knugcab]

(OOC info, since I am not in the mood for massive writeups now, I will take the cars one by one)

REPRINT FROM TRAFIKJOURNALEN #6 2021

CARS THAT INFLUENCED CAR CULTURE
PART 6: CLASSICS OF THE FUTURE

Cars from the mid 00s? Can they really belong in a classic car article? Well, we understand that you may be a bit doubtful, but 80s cars have been on the rise in popularity and price for a while, 90s cars are rising as we speak. In 10 years you may say that you regret not buying that 00s car. Also, the more enthusiast oriented vehicles from the mid 90s-mid 00s era are the real bargains as the moment, better performing than their predecessors with values at rock bottom at the moment. But as a future investment, which cars are wise and which are not?

2000 Wells i6 (@DuceTheTruth100 )
When we set the “Very influential” mark on a car, it is all abouth how the car have helped to form the car culture in Sweden. If it had been how it influenced the status of a brand in the country, though, things could have been looking different.

Wells as a brand has not always been a success story in this country, mainly because their cars have been kind of hit and miss. But the 2000 i6 is definitively a car that deserves the “hit” status in that case since it was probably the best car that Wells had ever built when it was released.

Simply put, it was a package that managed to get everything right. People liked the styling, that was very contemporary and elegant for its era. The 2.6 litre inline six was by no means a rocket, but it was smooth and suited for relaxed driving. The fuel economy is nothing to write home about by modern standards, but fuel prices were something different back then, and you could not expect much more from a big 6 cylinder car back then. It was comfortable and felt luxurious, yet it wasn’t utterly expensive to either own or buy (of course, once again compared to other similar cars). It was one of the first cars to get a 5 star Euro NCAP rating. Wells promised decent rust resistance - and they were right. And there was more reliable cars on the market - but there was a bunch of less reliable ones there too.

Suddenly, a Wells i6 in your driveway was kind of a status symbol, and it boosted both sales and image of the brand in a much needed way.

And our hint this time is that you should once again expect this to be a sought after car in a not too distant future.

[DuceTheTruth100]

I appreciate that write up frfr!!! Might not look like it to most on here but a lot of thought went into that design…despite its blandness. I listened to a lot of you on here, I tried not to go over the top with the styling…ditched the turbo…and wahlah!!

Edit; I just hope that one day I can get motivated and create/write up lore for my vehicles…right NOW…I just enjoy designing

[Knugcab]

Well, to put it this way, I nominated you for “most improved designer of 2021” and that was for a good reason.

[interior]

Thought i broke the results system for nearly a month submitting a V12 Luxo-sports car

[DuceTheTruth100]

I respect the fuck outta THAT!!! Thankyou bro!!..I really appreciate that.

On a side note, the car thats posted from the winner of that category from @Urke101 is easily one of the best cars real or fake that I’ve ever seen in my life!!

[Knugcab]

VERY INFLUENTIAL: 1998 Waldersee Ritter K32 (@Texaslav )
A true modern classic is the Waldersee Ritter K32. This was not a “hot hatch” in the right meaning of the word, it was something else. Something more mature. Larger than the usual hot hatch, rear wheel drive and a large N/A inline six to power the whole package, made this a dream back in the days for people wanting to upgrade to something “nicer” than the standard hot hatches.

Performance wise, it was a bomb for its era, the low weight of 1280 kg was contributing to this, the 3.2 litre six was pumping out just under 220 hp which was a lot in the light car for its day. Driving such a car could of course be a handful, especially in the days before the safety nannies, which didn’t bother the enthusiasts of this car, it rather made them feel like being some of “the chosen few”.

This is simply a car that would not happen today, it was one of the last cars where pure brute force did beat refinement. This have also made the K32 a cult car already at a quite young age. Getting one has never been cheap, despite having a relatively competitive price when new, but it will probably never be cheaper either, so our advice if you are in the market for one, buy one now. It is among the few cars from the late 90s that are already a classic without being an “exotic” in any way at all.

2000 MTA Zodiac Patagonia (@Prium )
The Zodiac Patagonia was a product that may have looked good on paper. AWD crossover wagons were really becoming a thing 20 years ago after all. It also looked like a relatively good and well engineered car, with contemporary and clean styling, at a first glance.

Unfortunately, it was not very competitive on the market. Driving dynamics were criticized as bland in car reviews of the era. Due to the compact dimensions it was seen as cramped and unpractical. And then we had the price… $41800 AMU for such a small car made many buyers turn their back to this car.

Some of the attempts to make crossovers back in the day were successful and will probably become classics in the future, even if this is a type of car that most enthusiasts love to hate. Others will probably mostly fade away as some distant memory. Unfortunately, for the MTA Zodiac, we predict the fate will be the later one.

[Knugcab]

1996 F&S Macro (@Tez )
To start with, there is not one car in the world that only has positive sides. When the F&S Macro was released, it could not escape criticism either. Many people were skeptical about electric power steering in a sports car, other people said that the handling weren’t as sharp as one could expect (but that says a lot about the levels of the expectations), or that you could get cars that were more practical, but almost as fast.

In hindsight, however, without putting the rose tinted glasses on our noses, we can still see that those few complaints were a bit unfair. This was one of the last chances you had to drive a pure analogue roadster where focus were on saving weight, without using (expensive) exotic materials. F&S managed to get the car under a tonne, which is kind of impressive for the 90s.

That of course also meant that the 164 hp inline four was enough to make the car fly like a spaceship, that it (with the right driver) could be tossed around like a chunk of warm butter in a frying pan, or to put it this way, it didn’t matter if you took it on a track or for a short trip to the grocery store - it was impressively fun either way.

The competitive price meant that actually quite a few examples ended up here - but sure, a car for a masses was something it never was, being crude and impractical.

“Very influential?”. No, but a cult car that also will remain so in the future. Another car you should get your hands on now while they are still affordable.

[Knugcab]

2003 Cabrera Aneto Scout (@Petakabras )
It is impossible not to draw some parallels between the Aneto Scout and the Zodiac Patagonia. They are around the same size, the styling is kind of similar, so is the concept, with a lifted AWD wagon. But the Aneto Scout could do most things good enough, some of them even better than the Patagonia, and that for almost $10 000 AMU less. Sure, you had to do with “only” 173 hp from its 3 litre V6, but fact is that the weight was a couple of hundred kilograms less, so the performance actually felt somewhat better. The comfort was not really on the same level, and there were some questionable things about the Aneto Scout too, like a small cargo area and low cargo capacity for a station wagon. Another dark cloud on the horizon was a recall due to the engine sometimes pinging on pump gas. But as a do-it-all, allrounder wagon, it was what people was asking for back in 2003, and used car prices have always been high. Probably this is one of the cars that will never get really cheap, even if we don’t see any collectors status anytime soon.

1998 Munot Volonté 341A (@Quneitra )
An economy class Munot was maybe not what everyone had expected, and some people were skeptical when the Volonté arrived on the market. For absolutely no reason at all, it should be proven. Because the Volonté was really a small Munot. It was not the cheapest car in its class, and it might not have been as exciting and enjoyable as the larger Munot models, but the intentions of the model was none of that. Instead, it raised the bar for what a small car was able to do, which meant that other manufacturers had to work harder to catch up.

The Munot Volonté was really nothing you bought as an enthusiast car, though. It wasn’t exactly fast, fun, beautiful or had any sharp driving dynamics (keep in mind that we never said slow, ugly or boring). But it was almost like executive car engineering in a supermini shell, making the car feel much bigger than its dimensions suggested. Yeah, we know, you have heard all the cliches before, but this time there was some truth behind them. It was also very sparse on fuel at only 4.9 litres per 100 km, due to its low weight of 950 kg, both good figures in the 90s. It also held up extremely well. This means that the Volonté was, and to some extent still is, a sought after car on the second hand market.

We don’t expect cult status for the Volonté, but still, hats off for a great little car that could.

2003 AIM Swallow Mk V 8S (@lotto77 )
With an enthusiast’s rose tinted glasses of today, it can be a bit hard to see why the Swallow struggled to get customers interest almost 20 years ago. Because a large V8 sedan with almost supercar performance, ain’t that a cool thing?

Maybe, but the aussie type muscle car was not really what Swedish buyers were looking for in the early 00s, it seems like. Maybe because it kind of lacked refinement. It was kind of a heavy drinker (maybe not when you consider what’s under the bonnet, but still), it was not very comfortable (the Munot Volonté was probably a bit better actually!) despite having a nice interior with lots of gizmos, and in the end, it was not the cheapest to buy, nor was it to service, maybe due to the complicated nature of the 40 valve V8 (3.6 litre / 303 hp). For those costs, many people expected a bit more refinement and not only pure performance.

In Australia, cars like this have always had a place in the heart of the buyers, and of course, it has its fair share of enthusiasts in Sweden too, but when we’re talking performance sedans from the 00s, the AIM Swallow is generally not the first one that comes to mind.

VERY INFLUENTIAL: 1996 Tack Av-vägen Stil (@HighOctaneLove )
There will always be a market for inexpensive work vehicles. The Tack Av-vägen Stil was absolutely one of them at a price of only $19000 AMU back in 1996. Also, it was more or less a totally new concept. You have to keep in mind that if you wanted a crew cab pickup in the mid 90s, your alternatives were more or less a huge yank, or some smaller asian minitruck, but both alternatives would have meant vehicles that was very much truck-like to drive. The Av-vägen with its passenger car roots, AWD and unibody construction was something else, something more refined, yet it still was durable enough to withstand some heavy duty work. Cramming all of this into only 4 metres of truck was more or less marvelous engineering.

For many companies, this was the perfect compromise. Inexpensive and could take abuse, without being too primitive or bulky. And interestingly enough, this simple little pickup quickly spawned a huge aftermarket. Bull bars, canopies, fender flares, you name it. I am sure that many of you remember the late 90s where you saw examples of the Av-vägen more or less looking like Christmas trees absolutely anywhere.

Today most of them are of course run down, but still in use, not only were they extremely reliable, but rust simply could not kill them, despite the unibody construction, which is more than you could say about most BOF trucks of the era. Mint examples are starting to raise in price and could we maybe expect the custom craze that once surrounded the Av-vägen to be the next wave of nostalgia in our automobile landscape?

[Knugcab]

VERY INFLUENTIAL: 1998 Ardent Hood Limited (@VicVictory )

If you remember the 90s, you probably also remember the era when the Ardent Hood was a fashionable car. Remember, we were in the beginning of the SUV craze. Still not a type of car that everyone and his mother was driving around in, yet some of them were starting to become more passenger car like, as for example, the Ardent Hood, which featured all wheel drive, unibody construction and a nicely appointed interior. Despite its size, it was easy to drive, and it was comfortable, and the driving dynamics were nothing to laugh about.

Absolutely, a car like this had its drawbacks. Even if it had a surprisingly low purchase price, it was gulping fuel like if it was no tomorrow - which was nothing unique for the Ardent Hood, the competitors did the same thing, which led to the SUV segment getting criticism from environmentalists back then. But remember - fuel prices were still sane compared to today, meaning that not everyone had second thoughts about it.

Of course, the Hood spawned kind of a customizing craze too, especially in the mid 00s when Pimp my ride and hood culture (no pun intended) was the thing. Underglow, chrome wheels, you name it, found its way to many Hoods.

Today the Hood may be kind of forgotten, not old enough to be interesting, and with a rather unfashionable fuel economy, but once upon a time it was the king of the SUVs. Only time will tell if it ever will get its crown back.

2005 Storm Surge (@Madrias )

If the Ardent Hood was fashionable among one type of people, the Storm Surge was also a status symbol, for a completely different crowd. On the same amount of fuel, you could drive almost four times the distance with a Storm Surge than you could do in an Ardent Hood. For the “conscious” tech nerd in the mid 00s, a Storm Surge was really THE car to have, with its quirky styling, low fuel consumption and emissions that still are on an impressive low level over 15 years later.

And as an engineering marvel, the Surge is still impressive today, with its glued aluminium chassis, aluminium body, very efficient engine, and much more. But it came at a price. $55 000 AMU for a relatively compact car might have caused some hiccups back in the days. Also, it was hardly an exciting car to drive, the performance and driving dynamics were mediocre, the large 3-cylinder engine rough. Maybe it had its market in California, but the few examples that found its way to our shores mostly were leased to companies that wanted a fleet of “green” vehicles to boost their image.

A future classic? No question about it. But in the end, only a player in the margins in our market.

2005 Mara Zorya 1.1e (@AndiD )

The Mara Zorya really had two things that were speaking for it. It was extremely economical, and it held up well. Other than that, it was a showcase of mediocrity. It was slow, the Euro-NCAP ratings were disappointing and not many people seemed to like the quirky styling. This really was one of the bottom feeders of the market in the mid 00s. A laughing stock among people that actually LIKED cars for anything more than just being cheap transportation.

With that said, we want to be fair when rating any car, and that also goes for the Mara Zorya. And bashing it is unfair. People bought it for a sane price of $14500 AMU, drove it for years with very low fuel bills and repair costs. If you wanted nothing more than that, the Zorya wasn’t a bad choice. It was just that it was all it offered, and some people expected nothing more.

But it never appealed to the enthusiast crowd, for obvious reasos, and buying a Mara Zorya as an investment for the future is probably a very doubtful thing to do.

VERY INFLUENTIAL: 1997 KAI KS300 Turbo Evo (@abg7 )

Exactly like earlier KAI sports coupés, the KS300 was a little bomb, offering lots of performance and sharp driving dynamics, for a sane price. And just like the earlier generations, it became somewhat of a success too.

The version that most people are heralding as the greatest one is the 1997 Evo. 358 hp from its 3 litre straight 6 gave it blazing performance for its era. 0-100 was done in 5.22 seconds and the lack of a speed limiter meant a top speed of 286 km/h. The car cornered as if it would have been on rails, stomping on the brakes was almost like hitting a wall. It was an icon of the 90s, a car that was featured in multiple racing games, as well as on posters that were decorating many bedroom walls. And the magic never seemed to fade away either. It has been a highly sought after car ever since. It is not a future classic - it is already a classic.

But sure, there is a price to pay. The advanced technology, combined with a mediocre reliable record and the fact that the cars are 25 years old, means that this is not the car for everyone. Keeping one alive in 2021 means that both dedication, knowledge and a fair amount of money is needed. On the other hand, the reward it gives you is all worth it.

[Knugcab]

2001 Schnell XL60 LSi-500 II (@interior )

To put things in perspective how expensive the Storm Surge was, for just a handful more money, you could get this V12 luxo barge. On the opposite end of the spectrum, of course, but for a 2 tonne car with a 518 hp V12 the fuel economy actually was impressive. And it was fast, 250 km/h top speed was only the cause of the speed limiter, it was said to be able to reach over 300 with the limiter removed, 0-100 was done in 4.4 seconds, it did mid 12 second times on the quartermile and 80-120 was done in a blazing 2.85 seconds. And it was comfortable, right?

Wrong. The rock hard suspension and the (for its size) somewhat cramped interior meant that comfort was disappointing. Also, corners were cut when it came to brakes, they were really not up to the task for such a heavy and fast vehicle. Yes, they had great bite. Once. But fading problems were huge and the brake balance way off.

Another kind of bizarre vehicle from Schnell, that didn’t reach its goal completely, meaning that sales were (to put it nice) mediocre. In this class buyers did only expect the best. On the other hand, 20 years later it is somewhat of an affordable luxury barge for what you get, so we don’t want to be too harsh either.

1998 Moravia Laticia 1.2 (@Maverick74 )

The Moravia Laticia was a kind of lukewarm success on the market. The explanation might have been that it did sell for the exact same amount of money as the Munot Volonté. The cars also were very similar to each other, but the fact is that the Munot Volonté did most things at least as good, and some of them better. The Laticia lacked the refinement of the Volonté, and even if it offered a more powerful engine, it was also heavier meaning that the cars were about equal performance wise.

We’ve seen it happen before, and we’ll see it happen again. A good car that never got the chance it deserved because someone other did things even better.

For the used car buyer, however, the Moravia Laticia, due to its lower second hand value, might as well have been the bargain of the two. Because as we said, not a bad car and equal in many ways.

But the Laticia as an enthusiast vehicle? Nah, probably not in many years to come, at least.

2002 Mons Ghimli (@cake_ape )

The Ghimli is proof that a vehicle doesn’t need to be flawless and excellent at everything to win the hearts of the customers. You just need to build a good overall performer, and that was what the Mons Ghimli was. A damn good sports coupé. Not the fastest, but fast enough. Not a corner carver per se but with good, secure handling. Extremely relaxing to drive, this was a car suited for boulevard cruising, as well as for long distances on the highways, or why not down a twisting mountain road, the Mons Ghimli could do absolutely everything, maybe not as sharp as some of the top performers but man, what a good compromise this was. And the styling then, elegant with just a hint of retro, but to be honest more of timeless, classic lines, meaning that this didn’t look like a parody of something from the 60s, that clearly helped to win the hearts of many customers.

Its impact on car culture in this country might have been moderate, but it is by all means a future classic that probably never will drop low in price, but at the moment it is low enough to give you loads and loads of an enthusiast vehicle for your money. We have one suggestion in that case - just buy it!

2000 AEKI 640R (@conan )

If the AIM Swallow wasn’t exactly what buyers were looking for in a performance sedan, the more compact, lighter, more economical and faster AEKI 640R was more like it. True to their heritage harking back to the 100-series, AEKI did a sportier than average sedan, with high levels of safety and nice fit and finish. Sure, you didn’t get a V8, the 5 cylinder with its remarkable turbo kick are kind of cult among AEKI enthusiasts though. Also, the reliability record was a bit questionable for an AEKI but absolutely no disaster. The styling was absolutely spot on for its era, and we’re sure that many people remember all the bold colour choices you could do.

It was maybe too much of an evolution rather than a revolution, though, It has not gained the same popularity as some of the older AEKI models and prices tend to sit at a low level at the moment. If you want one just go ahead. After all, they are more reliable than the rumours suggests and it is faster, better handling, more fun to drive, everything, compared to older AEKI models. And it is another 2000s car we predict will become a future classic.

Now we have reached the end of this article series, and we want to thank you for reading. Now only time will tell if we were right or wrong in our predictions, and maybe it will be time to look into that again in 10 years or so. But for now, we hope that our investigation of the classic and future classic car market have been helpful, and maybe even inspired you?

So long!

[Knugcab]

So, finally this challenge is over, and sorry for letting the last part take time, but as I have told you, life came in the way.

Also, remember, this challenge only has winners, and I want to thank everyone that has been taking part in it for offering a great diversity of interesting cars.

Now I can finally scrap 4.1 and move on to 4.2.

[conan]

Thanks for the challenge. Certainly had a blast making cars for it!

I did these months back, finally I get to post it.

Hope somebody would make a similar challenge in the future!

[Knugcab]

Whoa, nice!

[cake_ape]

Thanks @Knugcab for this awesome challenge! It was a lot of fun to make the cars for it, and the reviews were superbly written and spot on. Looking forward to all you cook up in 4.2

[vero94773]

not to spoil the party, but this is a challenge that’s been over for almost 2 years

it’s generally good practice here on the forums not to post messages in old threads that aren’t active anymore

[shibusu]

Hi, there is a more concurrent thread running where you can ask your questions;

The 2023 Trafikjournalen 24h of clunkers - (8PM - Midnight)

Unfortunately, I am a bit late on the ball, game updates, COVID, ARM, QFC, things that had to be done before the snow, work, yeah, all of that. But better late than never, here comes the 2023 edition of the thread. THE IDEA BEHIND THIS Now, after all those years, many people have already learned what this yearly challenge is all about. However, newcomers or people that haven’t been into this before, here is a small explanation. The Swedish magazine “Trafikjournalen” has for many years been ru…

…And also a discord link within that thread, if you want to join that.

@AMuteCrypt

That thread is also a pretty different challenge to this one, with different themes, content and reviews.

Luckily, it spawned two others which are still active!

holy crap apologies for my blindness

[AMuteCrypt]

That thread is also a pretty different challenge to this one, with different themes, content and reviews.

Luckily, it spawned two others which are still active!

[Knugcab]

Can someone just lock this thread or something, it is not relevant anymore…