The Efficient Future - Make the Best of it Competition

[carskick]

19th of 20
User: earincon198
Company: Ignis
Car: Stella R200



Another good looking, well balanced, but low scoring car, the Stella R200 is quite a treat! For just over $32k, you get a very usable 1.7 Liter Turbo 4 with a quick spooling turbo that still puts out a nice consistent stream of Horsepower. But you’ll soon realize the tradeoff. For this tiny, well-tuned little engine just devours fuel! This is in part to engine tune, but also this car is not light. The sturdy AWD hatchback tips the scales at 3470lbs. But due to the engine’s small size and quick spooling turbo, it still achieves 24.6 MPG and burns it’s fuel pretty thoroughly, meaning the green party will give it a pass, but not recommended.

So how does the car drive? Quite well, actually. The geared LSDs at both ends of the car gets the power to the ground extremely effectively, while the suspensions’ stiff Active Dampers and Sway Bars keep the car planted. However, this extremely firm ride makes for some discomfort on bumpy roads, and undrivable on bad roads. On the track, smooth as butter. The sporty interior maintains this theme, as do features such as Launch Control & fully adjustable ESC & TC. You’ll also feel safe whipping around in this car, not just because it’s good at avoiding accidents, but it’s weight, rigidity, and safety features are enough to give you peace of mind. The theme of sportiness continues with the Soft compound low profile tires and Double Clutch Gearbox.

But the engine just felt too small for the weight and sportiness of the car. A little more displacement would give the car better performance on a leaner mix, including more torque and better economy. Or keep the engine small, boost economy, save weight by skipping AWD, and make the suspension more comfy to make it a more practical eco car. But the current combination felt like it was trying to hard to be everything, so it ended up excelling at nothing. Well, save handling, which again, sporty handling seems to be this cars primary focus above all else.

So just like the AMU-O, a well balanced car finishes near the back of the pack. Not because it’s bad at something, but it just doesn’t really stand out in any particular way. And that’s important in today’s market.

The Efficient Future Rank: 19/20 @ 1057.8 points
Summary: Very balanced car, but relatively high fuel consumption & emissions output, lack of comfort, and lack of many stand-out features hold the R200 back. The handling is phenomenal despite the car’s weight.

Carskick’s Overall Subjective Score: 7.0/10
Summary: A Very sporty hatchback for only $32k does capture my heart. But I find the engine and aggressive handling combination a little puzzling.

[strop]

CALLED IT!

I'll Never win anything

LOL dude you made an overly short-shifted gas guzzler in a tournament with "Efficient" and "Future" in the title, what else were you expecting It's like you wanted to build a rallycross sedan.

[koolkei]

*snip* didn't remember it was stated in the OP

anyway. i think my submission name in the OP is a bit wrong.

LEAFCO is the car name. it's made by komodo motors

i'm curious on where it would end up? i'm 90% sure that it won't be anywhere near the top 5, but by how much?

[Puffster]

Somehow, through blind luck and pure idiocy, the Rhino Nightshade is not last. Baffled is the only way I can describe my feelings atm...

[carskick]

18th of 20
User: Harizvet1
Company: Infinity Motor
Car: RS330



I first saw the RS200 and thought, ‘Lamborgini made and affordable hatchback!’ It’s quite stylish . The aggressive black/yellow theme, the slits on the sides of the bumper, giant front brakes, and the huge spoiler all scream Hot Hatch. I will order mine with a toned down spoiler, though.

This car puts down quite a tempting package! The engine is a 3.2 Liter V6 with two small turbos which fully spool at only 2700 RPM, but carry a full 15.4PSI of boost almost to the top of the engine’s 7900 RPM redline! It’s quite economical if you keep it at reasonable Revolutions, and averages over 25MPG in daily driving. But the engine will burn enough fuel to achieve 330HP at 7100 RPMs. Then you have the modern DC Transmission with electronic AWD. To top it off, relatively low maintenance and engine reliability make this a great track day/daily driver combination. And that also shows in the suspension tuning. The springs are progressive and sturdy, but there is enough give as the shocks seem to adapt to the road quite well. The aggressive camber and bit of body roll from the 3300lb car make it super fun on the track! But eventually, you’ll have a problem…
The airflow to the cooling system in this car is just not good enough. During daily driving, it’s not a problem, as the actually cooling system itself is good. However it gets heat soaked very easily under load conditions which will wear things out quicker. This was likely done this way to maximize fuel economy and top speed, but it just kills longevity.

Another interesting design choice is to make the body panels out of carbon fiber! This flows with the sporty nature of the car, and gives it the prestige that much of our market is interested in. This greatly adds to the value of the package in terms of sportiness and economy, but I’m sure it was not an inexpensive decision. I believe the non-sport version has standard body work and a more basic engine, but this does help this sports car stay relatively economical. Surprisingly, this hatchback is still over 3400 pounds despite the carbon fiber body work.

So why is this car 18th place? Well it’s fast, sure! It’s pretty practical, comfortable, and versatile, but it doesn’t have anything that really stands out to put it ahead of the pack. Plus, the fuel economy and efficiency isn’t fantastic.

Great balance, fast, fun, comfortable, and good looking! I was disappointed to not see this car score higher and a few revisions on the next version could make it quite a catch!

The Efficient Future Rank: 18th/20 @ 1086.5 points
Summary: Excellent speed and good suspension give it good track scores, but it just does average everywhere else, which means it misses out on any major bonus points for excelling in a category. It’s also just ok in the fuel
economy and emissions department.

Carskick’s Overall Subjective Score: 8.5/10
Summary: Me personally, I really like this car. While there are a few issues and tweaks to be addressed, its balance gives the best of many worlds. To top it off, it looks great!

[Puffster]

Great read, really like the reviews you are doing for all carskick

[cpufreak101]

wow, i'm really scoring higher than i expected

[carskick]

Great read, really like the reviews you are doing for all carskick

Thanks! I think everyone deserves a review, dispite the rank. Plus, that's part of the fun!

I hope you guys like the reviews coming in gradually like this.

Oh, and please excuse typos. Proof reading is boring

[carskick]

Don't worry, cpufreak. You happen to be next!

17th of 20
User: cpufreak101
Company: Galt Automtive
Car: Gemini



Slow. Boring. Practical. Value. Those are the four words that, in a nutshell, sum up this car.

This could be the start of the people’s car of the future! It is a practical and efficient car with quite a unique, but potentially gaudy, look. The aluminum body panels are adequately thick for an eco car, but it does still weight about 3250lbs (1470kg) on its AWD AHS Steel platform. Pretty high tech, especially when you consider the $22,700 price tag. So you’ll want to get inside. How’s it in there? Well, the seats are ok, similar to a 2007 Prius, providing support and descent comfort, but are by no means luxurious. What is luxurious for this price bracket is the high tech HUD system. In this price class, it’s great to see!

So I’m ready for a drive, let’s try it. Is it going to surprise us with power? Or are we going to find out the reason this 40MPG good sized eco car is this inexpensive. Unfortunately, it’s the latter. As soon as you fire it up, you know you won’t be going anywhere in a hurry. It produces the sound of a heavily muffled tiny engine with a hint of turbo whine. And that’s exactly what it is…

Punch it at a stop light, the short gears allow the engine to wind up and the AWD grip initially provides the illusion that the car is accelerating quickly, as the engine flies through the RPMs, the Auto transmission quickly shifting gear to gear. But it’s just that, an illusion. Slow doesn’t begin to define how this goes. With a 0-100kph in 16.1 seconds and 20.55 seconds in the quarter mile, this is likely one of the slowest gas only cars on the market. Almost every hybrid is faster, and some for not much more money. So if speed is important to you, this is not your bag.

The engine is not without its merits, though. It makes good of what displacement it has, all 1169cc of it. The turbo spools relatively early at 2600RPMs, providing mid-range pull that allows the car to move a little bit without seriously burning through gas. In fact, nothing you do makes this car burn gas. I went to the middle of Kansas, I just punched it on a straight road for 15 minutes. Eventually, I somehow made it to 110MPH, but it took several minutes; a tribute to the low drag. But I don’t think the gas gauge moved. In fact, the large tank means you can go 600 to 800 miles without refueling. Incredible!

So it’s slow, is fun to drive? No. The Air suspension is heavily comfort tuned, so you’ll likely fall asleep driving to your destination. Great as a passenger, not so great as the driver. This is a nice car to ride in on the highway with no traffic just to get somewhere. Set the cruise control, play with the tech, and be very comfortable. For that, it’s fantastic. Many ‘luxury’ cars costing double or triple the price can’t provide this aura. But here’s the kicker. It didn’t do enough to bring the car into the luxury category. The mediocre seats and interior paneling remind very kindly that, well, you’re not in a luxury car. And the tiny engine adds a lot of vibrations cursing at high speeds, as it has to ride the boost curve pretty heavily to work at highway speeds. Luckily it’s quiet or the drone could kill!

But to the point, the handling is just plain awful! Sure, it’s ok at low speeds and slow maneuvers, but it falls apart when you push it at all. The primary culprit? Well the suspension’s comfy, but it also keeps the car pretty level. So the issue turns out to be the 135mm tires. With a car this heavy, they just don’t have the grip to turn. Or stop. Heck, this tiny engine can even spin all 4 wheels at a launch, thanks to the short gears and tiny tires. Again, seeming like it might be quick, but not really going anywhere. And luckily it’s not very fast, because the brakes are abysmal, many thanks to the tires that just don’t give you any grip.

So in a nutshell, this is car for those who want a new high tech car, but can’t afford a new hybrid. They want gadgets and goodies, but they can’t afford a luxury car. All in all, it’s basic eco transportation and a descent car for a long road trip.

The Efficient Future Rank: 17th/20 @ 1153.1 points
Summary: This car scores huge points for its low price point, eco friendly setup, comfort and practicality. But, it incurs a huge penalty in many ways because it’s just REALLY slow with squishy suspension and no brakes.

Carskick’s Overall Subjective Score: 5.5/10
Summary: Despite it being a true economy car in every sense, it fails in so many ways in terms of drivability, performance, braking, etc. Maybe I’d buy it for my daughter as her first car.

[cpufreak101]

meh, still higher than expected, because i made an ecobox and i see everyone else making hypercars, so i really figured i'd be 19/20

[Zabhawkin]

Mine should't be far behind. I made a luxury car too. At least the emissions are cleaner than mine when I have eaten too much Taco Bell

[VicVictory]

This will be interesting for me. I made an upscale car, but paid mind to fuel economy too. I know I'm not tops out there, but from what I've seen I don't think (or at least I hope) I'm doing that badly.

[thecarlover]

I paid close attention to fuel economy, but there's only so much you can do between economy and decent performance for a midsize sedan.

[asdren]

Awesome! Keep the reviews coming

[squidhead]

The higher up the countdown, the more I dread having my car displayed next