Confessions of an Automationeer, Part 246: Rivage Duo

Confessions of an Automationeer, Part 246: Rivage Duo

While revisiting my backlog of fully detailed Automation builds, I stumbled across the 2005 SVM Ravager I had made almost two years ago in Ellisbury, and asked myself: "What if this had come out a decade earlier?" To that end, I cloned the entire car (including the base model and engine family) together, backdated all the years to 1995, and downgraded to a 3.2-liter 32-valve flat-crank V8 developing 380 horsepower in the base GT trim (or 400 horsepower in the 100kg lighter GTS trim) - more than adequate in a car as small and light as what I eventually called the Rivage (which was what the Brussels corner at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium used to be called) - and adjusted the trim options and settings accordingly to retain the razor-sharp handling feel without being unnecessarily wayward or sloppy.

Above, from top: As part of my thought experiment to see what the SVM Ravager would've looked like in the mid-1990s, I cloned the whole car and created the 1995 Rivage, powered by a 3.2-liter normally aspirated flat-crank V8 developing 380 or 400 horsepower depending on trim level, and mid-mounted in a compact, lightweight all-aluminum alloy body/chassis. The red car with a red interior is the GT trim, intended to be more usable on a daily basis; the yellow car with a yellow interior is the lighter, track-focused GTS, which can be distinguished externally by the presence of additional vents up front.

With the engine capable of revving to 9000 rpm courtesy of variable valve timing and lift, even the base GT trim was a visceral experience; this was even more true of the GTS, which shed 105kg (1160kg vs. 1265kg for the GT) due to a lightweight sports interior (replacing the premium item found on the base car), high-flow exhaust (catalytic converter + mufflers), and unassisted steering in place of the variable-ratio hydraulic rack, among others. In terms of philosophy, the Rivage follows the principles of my earlier KMA KX8 line, but takes those ideas to even higher extremes due to it being three years newer overall, and thus less encumbered by heavy techpool usage.

In short, the Rivage would've been a lot like the KX8 to drive in general, being a small, light mid-engined V8-powered junior supercar, but with an even more exciting feel due to its larger, more powerful, and higher-revving engine.