Bruckell Moonhawk - Overpowered

First, why doesn't the Moonhawk have it's own official thread in the official content section?

Second, if they ever get around to remastering this one, the developers should consider de-tuning the Moonhawk, especially the 1976-1978 facelifted version. But even the 1973-1975 version makes too much power for what would have been available at the time.

Three things conspired to reduce power outputs in the early/mid 1970s: Pollution controls, unleaded gasoline (which necessitated lowering engine compression at the time), and the transition from Gross to Net horsepower ratings in 1972.

The 448 cubic inch V8 generates between 277hp to 367hp depending on model. These ratings are the same from 1973-1978

By 1973, these would have been Net horsepower, which should be lower than the gross ratings manufacturers used previously. And these would have been tuned to run on unleaded gasoline.

A proxy for the time could be the 455 cubic inch engine used by Pontiac. It was rated between 250hp and 290hp in 1973. By the time it was dropped in 1976, it only managed to muster 200hp because of the changes needed to pass emissions standards.

The most power anyone could get from a Pontiac by 1978 was 185hp from the 403ci V8

No real car that I can think of that would be similar to the Moonhawk would have made 367hp in 1973, let alone by 1978.

 

1. i think at some point there was a technical issue that led to the threads of various vehicles like the h-series and pigeon being deleted. i'm not sure why they haven't returned.
2. if ibishu can develop and sell a mid-engined hatchback a year after group b homologations ended and hirochi can sell a rear-engine shooting brake, then it's likely that a lot can happen in the beamng automotive world that can't in real-life. the gas crisis may have had less of an effect on american manufacturers in the beamng universe.

 

The MR Covet and SBR are both weird, but nothing really would stop them from existing. There were a few cars built for 1987's Group S before it got cancelled with Group B's end, so the MR Covet isn't that far off of something like the Toyota 222D (It is pushing it a bit but it's not egregious IMO). The SBR is certainly unique, but Japan isn't a stranger to taking on the European counterparts, so a conglomerate company putting their sights on a Cayman/baby 911/baby R8 competitor isn't implausible. The eSBR, well... Converting a ICE car into an EV and using the transmission tunnel for the battery is an old idea, as bizarre as that thing is (still wish they would do something else with it though, like turn it into a concept car or a third party conversion).

The Bruckell Moonhawk's power output is just straight up not realistically possible in the Malaise era. The defining feature of this era was how low powered these cars were, to the point where the fastest American passenger vehicle was a Dodge D-Series pickup truck. While yes the Beam universe is it's own thing and I love to see some "what if" type content, I also like to see vehicle content kept realistic since the game is trying to be a simulator. If it's a question of game balance and fun then just give slow cars cheap engine swap options. The Moonhawk is just one of several cars that are a good bit quicker than they should be factory stock (Autobello Piccolina and Gavril MD are two of the worst offenders off the top of my head).

 

i really want a remaster of it some day. the 309 makes the same power as what a 350 of the time made and the 448 is just not realistic for the time