Written by Michael Garrity
New Omaha Vehicular Association
garritym@hotmail.com

Web Posted May 01, 1998
Updated August 05, 2000

Longtime fans of autodueling know that the information used when designing a vehicle can often mean the difference between first place and a trip to the nearest Gold Cross facility. The purpose of this article is to analyze the vehicles used in the Final Round of the 2046-2047 AADA WDC and compare them on the basis of design and performance.

The event description and the vehicles used in the 2046-2047 AADA World Dueling Championships may be located on the AADA News Archive on the SJ Games Web Site, courtesy of Pyramid 28.

AADA News: 2046-2047 AADA World Dueling Championship Results
http://www.sjgames.com/car-wars/aada/news/aada_28.html
 

Body Style: Out of a total of eight cars in the championship round, five were luxuries. Six of the eight combatants had Carbon-Aluminum frames (not very surprising, considering the amount of money involved).

Chassis: Unlike in some previous championships, every car had an extra-heavy chassis. In the higher divisions, the increased weight capacity of an x-hvy. chassis is a vital asset.

Propulsion: Six cars had gas engines. Three of these were 150 ci engines and three were 200 ci engines. Tim Jacques' A-Wing 2047 used a sport power plant fitted with platinum catalysts and Kowalchuk Special 2047 had a conventional super power plant.

Suspension: All cars had heavy suspension. In addition, Jim Beecher's Boom Boom was fitted with active suspension, allowing him to keep on fighting even after his tires had been destroyed.

Tires: There was some variation in this category. In general, six cars had various types of solid tires (two had FP solids, one had SB solids, one had radial solids, one had FP solid snow tires and this writer's Eviscerator had regular solid tires). The Kowalchak Special 2047 had radial PRs and Phillip Swim's Black Buticus had FP radial PRs.

Crew: Six cars only had drivers. Darrin Marquez's Mob Buster and Tony's Kowalchak Special 2047 both had a driver and a gunner.

Armor: With two exceptions, the cars in the Final Round had very heavy armor. The two exceptions were the Mob Buster (which had 182 points) and the Kowalchak Special 2047 (which had a minuscule 116 points). Of the six cars with heavy armor, four used the tried and true combination of metal and plastic. The other two (Eviscerator and A-Wing 2047) used regular plastic armor. Further particulars are given on the table listed below. Vehicles are ranked according to from highest armor ranking (1) to lowest armor ranking (8).

1. Black Buticus -- Mid-size. Sloped LR metal/FP plastic armor: (52 points/101 points). 2,888 lbs.
2. Victory -- Luxury. Sloped LR metal/FP plastic armor: (44 points/52 points). 3,040 lbs.
3. Shredder -- Luxury. LR metal/FP plastic armor: (28 points/160 points). 3,000 lbs.
4. Boom Boom -- Luxury. Sloped LR metal/standard plastic armor: (6 points/125 points). 2,810 lbs.
5. A-Wing 2047 -- Sedan. Sloped plastic armor: (280 points). 2,520 lbs.
6. Eviscerator -- Luxury. Sloped plastic armor: (260 points). 2,600 lbs.
7. Mob Buster -- Luxury. Sloped FP plastic armor: (182 points). 1,820 lbs.
8. Kowalchak Special 2047 -- Van. Sloped RPFP plastic armor: (116 points). 1,624 lbs.

Armor ranking was determined on the basis of the percentage of the vehicle's maximum load devoted to carrying armor.

Aimed Firepower: Three cars had blast cannons loaded with HESH ammunition. Garth Anderson's Shredder had an extra magazine with a partial load of standard ammo. The Mob Buster had two blast cannons, one of which was concealed on the right side. Two cars had front-mounted HVMGs loaded with HD ammo; this writer's vehicle (the Eviscerator) had two of them. (Can you say ouch?) The A-Wing 2047 used a pair of front-mounted lasers, while Boom Boom used the ever-popular choice of twin ATGs loaded with APFSDS ammo. Kowalchak Special 2047 had a pair of front-mounted WGMs (for distance shots) and a turreted laser (for sniping at the top armor on other vehicles). Black Buticus had a single front-mounted rocket launcher with an extra magazine, both of which were loaded with incendiary rockets. The rockets were guided by an IR medium laser in a turret.

Dropped Firepower. As far as dropped weapons are concerned, every car had them in one form or another (except the Mob Buster). Of those which did have them, two had FCEs, two had SDs (1 with explosive spikes, 1 with incendiary spikes), one had an FOJ and one had a pair of MDs loaded with radio-detonated mines. The use of three (Yes, three!) underbody-mounted SMDs loaded with radio-detonated TDX mines on the Shredder was innovative and lethal. The average damage from this trio can instantly remove the tires from any car (even if they are SB solids). Dischargers rounded out the selection of dropped weaponry, with Shredder having six flame-cloud dischargers, Grady Elliot's Victory having three hot-smoke dischargers and the A-Wing 2047 having two sand dischargers and two flaming-oil dischargers. Interestingly enough, the Kowalchuk Special 2047 had a rear-mounted GL which Tony triggered along with his linked MDs (possibly he was trying to combine their effects).

Accessories: Seven cars had a computer or computers of some type. Four of those with computers used SWCs, while the other three had HRSWCs. Four cars had HD shocks (including those with HVMGs). Two cars mounted the spoiler/airdam combination, while one (Boom Boom) had active suspension. Only one car (Kowalchak Special 2047) had wheelguards and one (Eviscerator) had component armor. Also, four cars had overdrive and two cars had turrets. Additionally, one car had a ramplate. If this car (the Mob Buster) had been in a position to use it, the Championship might have has a very different outcome.

Performance: The car with the best handling was Boom Boom, whose radial solid tires and active suspension gave it an HC of 5. Honors for highest acceleration also go to Jim's car, as its 200 ci gas engine with supercharger and VP turbocharger gave it an acceleration of 20 mph per turn. The A-Wing 2047 was the fastest car in the arena, with a top speed of 155 mph (including the bonus for overdrive). The other cars had a top speed (including overdrive bonus) of 90 mph, except for Black Buticus (top speed 85 mph) and Kowalchuk Special 2047 (top speed 95 mph).

Conclusion: Among the eight competitors, those cars best suited for front-line combat were Boom Boom, Eviscerator and A-Wing 2047. These three had the requisite combination of thick frontal armor and heavy firepower. Black Buticus is best used as a team player, as its moderate firepower handicaps the driver when contending against more heavily-armed cars. Shredder is a classic "wall-hugger" design, invulnerable from the right side (but dead meat if caught anywhere else by decently-heavy weapons). For reasons already stated, beware its TDX mines. Victory can be an effective general-purpose war machine if its armor is properly placed. The biggest assets of the Mob Buster are its ramplate and concealed blast cannon. As far as the Kowalchuk Special 2047 is concerned, its weapons and armor are far too light for its Division.