First off, thank you all for the kind words, really appreciated. He was 16 years old and lived a fantastic, indulgent life, but still not easy. Also, thanks for your patience, now it is time to get this done.
17th. SME Banshee (07CobaltGirl) 345,79 points:The Banshee definitely has the wow factor, and with some arguments internally was crowned best looking car in the challenge. Sadly for the Banshee, no points were given for looking pretty and even though it was top of the class on prestige and had the (edit: not highest) second highest displacement, it was also worst on utility and running costs and close to the highest emissions. Still, the Banshee won our hearts and will be getting a full review near the end.
GH Time: 9.07.89
16th. NPC Garrish Throwback (Vri404) 398,46 points:The Garrish Throwback was one of the oddballs in this competition. While being the car with the most seats in the competition, it was also the least reliable which netted 30 noncompliance points, the most in the competition. But even without the penalty points it would have finished last, mainly because the designers had put the money in the wrong places. Double wishbone suspension all around on an estate with a single overhead cam and too big tires. As the heaviest participant it also had the worst fuel economy at 12,24 L/100km, lowest top speed at 168.6km and highest emissions. Combined with second highest running cost and you get a car not suited for the norwegian youngsters market. At least it has the small consolation of not placing dead last.
GH Time: 10.19.07
15th. Legatus Njörðr (strop) 456,29:Aesthetics and design are apparently the hallmarks of Matteo Miglia, and the Legatus Njörðr impressed us right from the start with this. The ad, which was voted the prettiest this round, is a thing of beauty, highlighting the very best part of the car, its rear end. Where the front end is quite amazing by itself, it pales in comparison to that rear. It lightens your day when you are passed by it and have a few moments to admire it before it blazes on, which it will. The Legatus Njörðr is not just beautiful, it is quick. Boasting the highest sportiness, highest top speed and second fastest time around Green Hell with 240 hp, However, this is where the problems begin. With the lowest practicality and quite a few below average stats, it just is not competitive in this field. And where the triple seating arrangement is interesting, it accentuates the main problem. It tries to be best in many areas, and too many compromises leaves this beauty in 15th place.
GH Time: 8.54.90
14th. Ignis H20 (earincon198) 480,95:Just minutes before entries were closed, the Ignis H20 arrived. With one of the largest engines in the competition at 1998cc and 169 hp, this hatch definitely had the right attitude. The front end means business, and if you don't hurry up and move, the Ignis H20 will take you out back and whoop your sorry behind for not listening. This attitude comes at a price though, and this car earned the most non compliance points being very slightly over the maximum market price and just below the reliability threshold. While being a general allrounder, it does not excel in any specific area either. Standard interior, standard entertainment, basic safety. The feeling we are left with after examining the Ignis H20 is that while good looking, it feels rather rushed and would probably have done a lot better with some different choices in the process. Also, the lack of an ad cost them 25 points. combine this with -40 points for non compliance to the rules and it could have done a lot better with just small tweaks.
GH Time: 9.48.01
13th. Vichingo (Stensen) 481,74:The Vichingo is something out of another world. With 320hp and 332nm, it does 0-100 in 5,1 seconds and 100-0 in 32,62meters. With utility of 45,9 and offroad of 36,1 this car is the affordable version of a rally car. Yeah, and those are all the best in class numbers, albeit the hp does include a lot (-220) penalty points, which also explains not being higher in the standings. Blasting through the gravel roads all the way up to 241 km/h is outright insane, yet I have never felt more alive. Especially when I got out and it felt like my spine was broken due to the poor quality of the seats. There was no stereo, it had been replaced with gauges for oil pressure, fuel pressure and so on, but only half of them worked due to poor quality. Where the Legatus Njörðr had tried too much to compromise, the Vichingo probably had not compromised enough. I think it will always have a faithful fanbase of rally purists, but for your average enthusiast it is probably just a bit too extreme.
GH Time: 8.49.65
12th: Tord Hemming D-Sport (Slax), 490,06As I approached the Tord Hemming D-Sport I thought I noticed the faint smell of old cod. Strange. Anyways, looking at the specs of this car was quite promising, seeing the double wishbone up front and multilink setup in the rear, and the roof spoiler. With 157hp moving 1241kg, this hot hatch was in the upper third concerning speed. However, some of these choices meant sacrifices in other areas, and the Tord Hemming D-Sport is the least safe car (29) with the worst environmental resistance (81,07) in this challenge. All in all, it promised more than it could deliver and the designers could probably have gained more points by balancing the costs more evenly around the car. I don’t know, there is just something fishy about this car.
GH Time: 9.21.18
11th: GSI Geit RS (oppositelock), 557,89Looking at the GSI Geit RS, my first impression was cute. But a macho kind of kind of cute, like a Jack Russell Terrier, cute, but still tough enough to include both male and female customers. With a 1998cc Na delivering 161hp to the AWD system it is proper quick even though the suspension leaves something to be desired for the G-freaks. The main issue for the GSI Geit RS is that it does not stand out in any particular way. It is neither best nor worst in any category. The best selling point is probably the market price @ 24600$ which is the second cheapest of all the cars we have looked at. Unfortunately, this is not a scored category for the GSI Geit RS, but they will probably be able to sell quite a few cars thanks to this. Also, Geit means goat in norwegian, and we assume this is not an accident by the manufacturer in the US.
GH Time: 9.34.10
10th: PartietVogn (VicVictory), 559,30From Ardent Overseas Design Bureau, a rather shady holding company residing in the Cayman Islands we received the PartietVogn. I assume they just used google translate in place of a proper translator and meant to call it the Party Wagon (FestVognen), but ended up calling it consignment in norwegian instead. But naming has no scoring implications and we are used to weird names on cars here (Honda Jazz had a norwegian word for a womans genitals for a while internationally). Moving on, PartietVogn went the loads of space route and had the highest comfort(36) and practicality(81) of all participants. With a 2,1L inline 4 I expected more than 105hp, even with an extremely flat torque curve. This also meant the worst sportiness(8,2), acceleration(15,4) and braking distance(41,49) which was worrying. In the end it beat the benchmark car on Green Hell with 0.28 seconds, which I would consider a loss.
GH Time: 11.12.27
9th: Storm Photon (Madrias), 587,19First off I have to comment on the price for the Photon; 21750$! You can buy three of these for the same price of two of most competitors, which is wicked good. But once again, this is not a scored category unfortunately for Storm. I think this is the entry level model from Storm to the european and asian markets, and there could probably more optimized trims in the future. That being said, the Photon is still a great little car, sporting the highest peak rpm @ 7600 and revving on until hitting 8000 rpm, providing a beautiful roar from the tiny 1200cc engine. Aesthetically it should also appeal to the younger generations, with an aggressive front end and ...interesting rear. The low price leaves plenty of room for modifications for young petrolheads learning the ropes, and the lowest service costs (1580) giving room for more mods every month. With the 6-speed manual and AWD it is really a great beginners car, but the competition is getting tough. We look forward to following the Photon’s future evolution.
GH Time 10.35.31
8th: Luther Wildcat S (Sebesseg) 595,48Sporting one of only two inline 6 engines in this challenge, this short sedan definitely looks like it means business. It has one of, if not the most coherent designs on the front and rear, aggressive, yet not flamboyant. The Wildcat has the best drivability(57,3) of any car in the challenge, without being worst in any class, and the smoothness of the engine is remarkable. I was suprised to see this car with 166hp spend 9,3 seconds to reach 100km/h as it is not particularly heavy. And that is probably my biggest dissapointment with the Wildcat S. It looks great, and the name gives me expectations of some untamed beast, where in reality it is quite controlled to the point of almost boring to drive. It drives like a stripped down version of an executive sedan without the interior to match, great for transversing long streches of highway, but does not get your blood pumping. I am getting a bit picky at this point, but we have passed into the upper half of competitors.
GH Time 9.53.74
7th: Solo Beaver BM Adventure (thecarlover), 608,92Crossing into the 600+ points bracket, we find the Solo Beaver BM Adventure. This estate reminds me of a Scubaru Vorester and appears to be perfect for the rough roads we have plenty of with proper ground clearance and protective details for the chassis. While the front end design is good, there are certain parts of the rear end design that makes me do a double take as it looks great. The turbocharged 1800cc I4 spits out 177hp and 262nm which is more than sufficient even for this rather heavy body. The Solo Beaver BM Adventure is another participant that is neither best nor worst in any particular category, and overall slightly above average in most categories. So while being a good looking car it does not stand out in any way, which suits the general norwegian population if not always the younger enthusiasts.
GH Time9.52.88
6th: Bogliq Storaj (HighOctaneLove), 634,28The very first car to enter the competition was the Bogliq Storaj, and it has been irking my mind every now and then out of the blue (pun intended). This is not what I would think of when I heard young car enthusiast, but perhaps Bogliq have been able to think of a box outside the box or something. This deserves a closer inspection, and will be getting a full review.
GH Time 10.38.54
5th: Erin Merna Vox (DeusExMackia), 636,16Erin themselves describe the Merna Vox as a bit boring, and while the 1,4L engine might indicate this, it still provides a decent 94hp to the front wheels with double wishbone suspension all around to compensate for the lack of umpf. The narrow tires combined with 17” rims and rather low profile does sacrifice a lot, giving the Merna Vox both the worst driveability(34,3) and off road(16,5) in the challenge. Then again these compromises allow the car to perform very well in other areas such as emissions, fuel economy, running costs and environmental resistance and gaining bonus points for low displacement and hp values. Considering the looks I still stand by my initial thoughts on the car, I am decidedly undecided. I think it is the kind of car that grows on you, one that initially feels a bit uncomfortable or off, before you get accustomed to it and realise the lines work quite good together. One thing I am certain of is that there will be a lot of opinions regarding the design and no definite answer. Which again really doesn’t matter, as this is a great car close to the top of what you can get for 33000$ in Norway at this time.
GH Time 10.39.44
4th: IV-C SW-1.8 4x4 (viovannelli), 642,05The SW 1.8 4x4 is the enigma of this challenge. When this car was delivered, the driver just handed us the keys and left without a word. In the front passenger seat we found a single sheet of paper with the heading IV-C SW 1.8 4x4 and some technical details. Neither have we received any ads or other information regarding the car, and the lack of an ad cost it 25 points, yet the car still managed to grab 4th place and beat several strong competitors. Adding to the mystique it was delivered in all black with black interior and an overall eerie vibe emits from this car. Looking at the stats, it does not really stand out in any particular category. Then I started comparing it to the average and realized it was quite a bit better than average in almost every category without incurring any heavy penalties besides the ad issue, only a small hp penalty. All in all, this is one of the better options out there, and I believe there will always be an aura of mystery around the history of this car
GH Time 10.02.58
Top 3 full reviews coming soon
ABR (ambitious but rubbish) Designs, freshly founded car company in 5th floor apartment, looking for more suitable workshop
Will be updated soon... ish... perhaps... hopefully