Some suggestions for the car designing process

[Eric.B]

Thank you very much for the reply. You have just added a great advantage of Gear City over Automation - you take time and effort to reply to users' remarks and suggestions.

I try, bigger post however tend to get slower response as I try to maximize my time in code instead of on forums.

I am very glad that the fuel systems can be implemented.

As I pointed out, pretty much everything can be modded into the game inside the current sub-components. For example combining fuel types and fuel deliveries into one selection. This however will not be done by me and will have to be done by the community as a whole.

As far as the valve train - I think that a sufficient addition would be splitting SOHC and DOHC heads into 2 or 4 valves and adding variable timing to the latter. Would this be feasible, please?

Officially no. We will be unable to do this. Modders could make additional valves however adjust valve timing would not be possible for modders and won't be officially done either.

The exception is if we make the multiplayer expansion, which is unlikely, but if we do make it, emissions and possibly valve timing (may be abstracted in a series of emissions sliders.) Will certainly make it in.

So we are left with cooling systems and brakes. The former should be fine if you include air cooling for single, twin, inline and flat engines, other layouts can be water cooled only.

Again, these won't be officially added, it'll be up to the modding community to add it if they want it. (Possibly your self after the tools are made! )

Brakes, on the other hand, are really difficult (after your explanation I understand it now), but in my opinion - they are one of the most important things.

Having driven 1920s Bentleys, 1960s Ferraris, fancy 6 figures Mercades, recently a Morgan, and many other vehicles throughout automotive history, I do understand the brakes did progress rapidly in the early years. After a certain point however brake development stalled. There hasn't been much change outside of minor subsystems in the last 60 years such as ABS or power assisted which are both a little too detailed to be added to the designer. If I were to add a sub-component for brakes it would boil down to 4-wheel drum, front disc / rear drum, 4 wheeled disc. Not very much selection. In any event it is too late to add a new sub-component group to the chassis listing. Brakes are abstracted in the performance and safetly sliders. You may be able to talk me into it in the aforementioned Multiplayer Expansion. But there are no plans to develop that while GC single player is in Early Access. Outside of that, you could very well mod it into the game. Frames for instance are pretty much fleshed out to all possible selection. Removing a few obscure ones and combining the remaining frames with brake data may be your solution. Or if you don't mind longer list, combining brake choice and suspension would be perfect. Again, not something that will be done officially, but can be done through modding.

In the Model T the reverse gear and the first gear could be engaged by separate pedals, and the second gear - by a hand lever which also operated the brakes....

Interesting to know, I have been around Model T's but never driven one.

And one more thing about the bodies: I know it is far too late now, and probably most users would disagree with me, because nowadays everyone wants fancy 3D models, etc.,

I do agree in some ways, but we are the minority. By adding even the dated 3d models we've probably sold more copies of the game than we would have otherwise. If you read our reviews, our biggest knock is typically complexity and graphics. SO it's a lose lose for a really under budget, over worked, developer such as me.

On a side note, we will have premade vehicles to choose from if you don't enjoy the designer. Just waiting on the artist to finish all the artwork.

Again, thank you very much for taking your time to respond, and above all, for creating this wonderful game!! (unfortunalteu, I ony learnt about it last week, so could'nt give you my thoughts any earlier...)

Quite welcome, and thank you for playing. Sorry we're too far into development to implement most of your suggestions! We've been around for about 5 years! Where have you been~!