Automation - The Car Company Tycoon Game News

[p]It has been a while since we've had an update for the Al Rilma Open Alpha! Most of our efforts in the past ten weeks since the last patch were focused on getting the improved Lite Campaign Mode ready for its debut, which would see the Al Rilma Update switch from alpha to beta status. Unfortunately, we found many more bugs than we anticipated during closed testing, and also that several fundamental aspects of the campaign calculations needed to be changed in order to reshape and future-proof them. As a result, we have made the difficult decision to delay Campaign Mode a little more. We understand that many of you were excited for this and have been waiting patiently, but we did not want to give you a campaign that was too buggy to be enjoyable.[/p][p][/p][p]Muscle with a retro-modern flair, courtesy of ellie.[/p][p][/p][p]Instead, what we've done is we have put together a big update for you that has a vast array of fixes, improvements, and new features. It includes nearly everything else we have been working on in the meantime, including a substantial rework of suspension geometry in cars exported to BeamNG, to make cars handle more predictably and realistically across a wide range of applications.[/p][p][/p][p]In case you missed the discussion on this patch in the last Little Dev Update, you can catch up here:[/p][previewyoutube][/previewyoutube][p]With such a long wait and a massive "non-campaign" changelist on hold, we didn't want you to have to wait any longer. That is why we have decided to release this patch today and continue polishing up the campaign mode some more in the coming weeks![/p][p][/p][h3]General Fixes[/h3]

• [p]Overhaul of how exhaust piping, addressing lot of issues with it and allowing multiple exits[/p]
• [p]Updated and improved AI generation car look-up table[/p]
• [p]Improved AI model body selection to now check for engine fitment[/p]
• [p]Improved stress warnings progression and colors[/p]
• [p]Fixed AI attempting to generate engines with block configurations that have not unlocked[/p]
• [p]Fixed issue with acceleration graph spiking with very tall gearing for automatics[/p]
• [p]Fixed crash that could occur AI generating a car for particular demographics and years[/p]
• [p]Fixed fixtures disappearing when morphing with sliders[/p]
• [p]Fixed sandbox car import-as-new not correctly changing to newly imported engine[/p]
• [p]Fixed memory leak that could result in out of memory crashes[/p]
• [p]Fixed negative scale moving fixture upon rotation[/p]
• [p]Fixed lua error using superchargers in scenarios[/p]
• [p]Fixed lua error importing .car and overwriting existing car[/p]

[p][/p][h3]UI Improvements & Fixes[/h3]

• [p]Greatly improved UI smoothness and performance when switching between parts of the game[/p]
• [p]Added data field and tooltip to quality slider to show maximum setting of other trims / variants[/p]
• [p]Added exhaust count & bypass valves tooltip[/p]
• [p]Improved demographics tooltip UI to show country flags for what regions are averaged[/p]
• [p]Updated stress warnings to only show the most severe warning per part[/p]
• [p]Removed test track being available as a graph (too many inconsistencies / UI headaches)[/p]
• [p]Revised the ordering of the demographics grid[/p]
• [p]Fixed photo mode car selection only showing SANDBOX company cars[/p]
• [p]Fixed Move Car & Engine button not moving engine in sandbox company manager[/p]
• [p]Fixed issue with information in demographics grid display mode[/p]
• [p]Fixed reset of test track not unlocking track location/variant selection[/p]
• [p]Fixed switching between tracks not stopping the simulation[/p]
• [p]Fixed knock warning flashing at 0% with an engine that doesn't flow enough[/p]
• [p]Fixed issue with UI flow after finishing a scenario[/p]
• [p]Fixed default cylinder head art potentially being a mod head[/p]
• [p]Fixed car model quality slider change not causing a recalculate[/p]
• [p]Fixed issue where different model wheelbases were grouped together[/p]
• [p]Fixed fixture list disappearing after visiting photo scene[/p]
• [p]Fixed sandbox project map lua error[/p]
• [p]Fixed sequential displaying RPM instead of Boost pressure when on stage 2[/p]
• [p]Fixed switching between flat- / crossplane crank resulting in different part list order[/p]
• [p]Fixed familiarity UI mode missing / not working \[Left-Alt][/p]
• [p]Fixed issue where sometimes engine part stress would not display correctly[/p]
• [p]Fixed brake size slider maximum not updating until it interacted with[/p]
• [p]Fixed errors caused by pause menu's save button[/p]
• [p]Fixed compound turbo compressor maps defaulting to wrong stage map[/p]
• [p]Fixed empty power to weight and towing capacity data fields in car performance stats[/p]
• [p]Fixed multiplayer to return players to the results screen when a game finishes[/p]

[p][/p][h3]Engine Sim[/h3]

• [p]Implemented all new ignition timing model for pre-EFI fuel systems, centrifugal & vacuum advance[/p]
• [p]Implemented CVVL as a new variable valve lift design option[/p]
• [p]Improved valve flow utilization parameter by including drop in cam curve (torque) beyond max[/p]
• [p]Implemented a fuel cut linked to MAP levels[/p]
• [p]Removed the concept of hard knock, instead it fully relies on power & reliability penalties[/p]
• [p]Added "current effective octane used" value to assist tuning[/p]
• [p]Tweaked boost progression of lambda mapping for fuel map[/p]
• [p]Improved emissions optimization lambda = 1 area vs. slider mapping[/p]
• [p]Fixed issue with flow calculation behavior of turbo's turbine[/p]
• [p]Made boost creep not be a thing for compound / seq setups[/p]
• [p]Fixed several issues with the simulation implementation giving unexpected behaviors[/p]

[p][/p][h3]Gameplay[/h3]

• [p]Revamped throttle response calculations, specifically for forced induction setups[/p]
• [p]Added MPV (Minivan) demographic, removed Pony Budget demographic[/p]
• [p]Significantly altered Passenger Fleet and Pony demographics[/p]
• [p]Rebalanced delivery demographics towards more differences in car size[/p]
• [p]Tweaked balance of timing slider effect on reliability[/p]
• [p]Tweaked various demographics and the body preference penalty matrix[/p]
• [p]Changed block and piston power density progression to be more intuitive[/p]
• [p]Added PS as an option for engine power unit of measure[/p]

[p][/p][p]A selection of new variants from the all-new Rosso_86 body family. Many thanks to Kyorg for his hard work on this new family of bodies![/p][p][/p][h3]Content[/h3]

• [p]Added Rosso_86 car bodies, 11 families, 74 variants total, replaces 90sMR_Cor bodies[/p]
• [p]Added new grm_kompetitor car bodies, replacing 00sSedan02, 1990 unlock[/p]
• [p]Added 30 new headlight families with several variants each added to game[/p]
• [p]Added new eco carb model[/p]
• [p]Many visual improvements for various header configurations[/p]
• [p]Fixed minor cosmetic issues with itl_rosso bodies[/p]
• [p]Fixed issue with z-fighting between chassis and carpet materials[/p]
• [p]Fixed issues with fixture UV problems, specifically regarding wrapping around corners[/p]
• [p]Fixed UV issue for mirrored fixtures on 1966 Sedan body[/p]
• [p]Fixed many car bodies missing accurate camera bounds boxes[/p]
• [p]Fixed 87_us body families have bonnet bounds boxes sitting below the hood[/p]

[p][/p][h3]BeamNG Fixes & Improvements[/h3]

• [p]Weight distribution slider now works in "soft body" mode with movable mass node[/p]
• [p]Fixed beam export starter motor not having enough torque in some instances[/p]
• [p]Fixed tyre load sensitivity data bug causing rear grip loss, fixes most oversteer issues![/p]
• [p]Rework of all suspension export Jbeams, including:[/p]
  • [p]More sane roll center heights and roll axis, should improve handling feel[/p]
  • [p]Improved camber gain with roll[/p]
  • [p]More stable toe gain behaviour, should make cars feel less twitchy[/p]
  • [p]Greatly reduced bump steer issues[/p]
  • [p]Stiffer and generally more consistent live axle link layout[/p]
• [p]Fixed wildly different amounts of maximum steering angle between suspension types[/p]
• [p]Fixed different maximum steering as wheel offset increases[/p]
• [p]Fixed sometimes inconsistent ride heights front to rear[/p]
• [p]Fixed inconsistent swaybar stiffness between suspension types and tyre widths[/p]
• [p]Fixed overly effective swaybars on live axles (often caused terrible oversteer for live axle rears)[/p]
• [p]More consistent Ackermann steering geometry between suspension types and car sizes[/p]
• [p]Better bump stops (more progressive, taller for long travel suspensions)[/p]
• [p]Fixed some suspensions having too much compression travel[/p]
• [p]Fixed MacPherson Strut suspension having very limited droop travel[/p]
• [p]Added some anti-squat and anti-dive geometry to many suspension types[/p]
• [p]Increased ABS thresholds to get closer to lock and give greater braking performance[/p]
• [p]Retuned TCS and ESC to be more effective but less intrusive[/p]
• [p]Fixed camera positions exporting under the floor for some bodies (please report issues!)[/p]
• [p]Reduced excessive tyre stiffness in wide / low profile tyres, making these tyres more forgiving[/p]
• [p]Reduced excessive sliding friction values, these are no longer needed after load sensitivity fixes[/p]
• [p]Fixed too weak FFB on MacPherson front suspension cars[/p]
• [p]Fixed chassis nodes sometimes hanging down below front and rear bumper[/p]
• [p]Improved consistency of camber and toe values vs Automation[/p]
• [p]Made damper rates more accurate to Automation (stiffer fast damp, softer slow)[/p]
• [p]Swaybars stiffness corrections to account for different roll center heights per suspension type[/p]
• [p]Centrifugal superchargers made a bit quieter (better tweaks to this coming soon too)[/p]
• [p]Improved live axle's ability to withstand the stress of locked transfer case on grippy surface[/p]
• [p]Toned down the locking strength of non race clutch LSD, and tweaked decel locking[/p]

[p]Known Issue: Cars are exporting too heavy in comparison with their Automation weight (approximately 12 percent), which happens using the new soft body mode only. We are investigating this issue; it is a high priority fix for the next patch.[/p][p][/p][p]We hope there's something in this for everyone to enjoy! Campaign will be coming soon, we now have fixed all major known issues and are in the final stretches of polishing up the many little bugs. [/p][p]As always, we will be keeping an eye on any issues that come up with this patch; please let us know in the discussion forums or on our Discord so we can address them. Also, be sure to follow us YouTube and the rest of our socials for up-to-date news and community happenings![/p][p][/p][p]Cheers![/p][p][/p][p]DiscordOfficial ForumsRedditYouTubeInstagramBlueskyTikTok[/p][p][/p]

Hello everyone!

One of the things we do is after we post a Little Dev Update video, we host a livestream Q&A session on our official Discord server, where members of the dev team answer questions from the community regarding the current state of Automation and its development. For those who weren't able to join the livestream, we've got a recording on our YouTube channel; go check it out, there's lots of great questions in there!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

As always, we'd love to hear your comments and feedback, and answer any questions you might have!

Hello everyone!

We're hard at work getting everything ready for Patch 7 of the Al-Rilma Update, which is a big one - Campaign Mode is coming back, among many other things! Lots to talk about here, so we decided it was time once again for a Little Dev Update video; check it out on our YouTube channel:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

As always, we'd love to hear your comments and feedback, and answer any questions you might have!

After the massive patch 5, there are few things we need to address with a small patch 6 before moving on to open up some big cans of worms!

What are those big cans of worms? Campaign being brought back on one hand, and serious changes to how ignition timing works in the engine simulation, requiring testing and re-calibration of engine and fuel system performance figures. That will all be well worth it, but we might be "gone" for 2-3 weeks easily as these things get implemented.

Here below, you find the full changelog of notable fixes and additions in Al Rilma OA Patch 6.

[h3]General[/h3]

• Added a new headlight fixture
  
• Fixed AI car and engine generation not working
  
• Fixed issues with exhaust placement
  
• Fixed issue with double-sided materials
  
• Fixed supercharger friction data being shown for 0% instead of 100% throttle
  
• Fixed issues with cars not starting properly on track with automatic or adv. automatic gearboxes
  
• Fixed track data debug UI tooltip look inconsistency
  
• Fixed test track crash when returning from photoscene / export
  
• Fixed gizmo visibility not being possible to turn back on
  
• Fixed paint merging upon export with multiple paints on the car
  
• Fixed livery collapsing making textures go missing
  
• Fixed hiding the chassis only hiding 1 layer of the chassis
  
• Fixed softbody export option string

Cheers!

A whole lot has been worked on since our release of patch 4 about a month ago. Various blocking issues appeared in our way to push this fix out in a more timely fashion - but as always, the wait was worth it with over 70 fixes and features in the update!

Here below, you find the full changelog of notable fixes and additions.

[h3]General[/h3]

• Added 1994 Permafrost Truck and SUV bodies
  
• Fixed -safemode launch option not finishing loading all preview assets

[h3]Car Designer[/h3]

• Added third dimension flip option for 3D fixtures
  
• Added Y & Z Axis flip 90 buttons to fixtures and consolidated X flip into 1 button
  
• Added a saved button toggle for default fixture 2D/3D vs custom 2D/3D spawning modes
  
• Added chassis material & chassis carpet material paint slots
  
• Added basic display for current track camber, slope, roughness
  
• Power & Torque Graph now correctly displays in poster mode, without stress lines
  
• Improved test track gear changes to be much smoother in RPM terms
  
• Distance mode now moves 3D fixtures in a plane of equal distance from the camera
  
• Camera now remembers last used camera (freeroam vs locked)
  
• Fixed another (the final?) instance of fixtures teleporting after specific sequence of actions
  
• Fixed car model year selection not taking techpool into account, nor updating on year change
  
• Fixed fender morphs resetting between sessions
  
• Fixed gearbox with 8 ratios having the same PU/ET as 5 ratios
  
• Fixed instance where a car causes track simulation failure
  
• Fixed engine placement changes not checking for engine fitment or rear suspension validity
  
• Fixed mid transverse and mid longitudinal issues with wrong gearbox art
  
• Fixed distance input for 3D placement converting numbers in strange ways
  
• Fixed issue where mesh of a placed fixture would not load
  
• Fixed solid axles sometimes spawning twice, or spawning wrong meshes
  
• Fixed morph sliders acting inconsistently & not updating when reset
  
• Fixed unchangeable material slot on headlight fixture SW_03_A

[h3]Engine Simulation[/h3]

• Fuel maps are now a function of manifold absolute pressure instead of throttle
  
• Simplified fuel maps generated for engines without EFI
  
• Removed fuel map emissions optimization for carburetted engines with cats
  
• Added quality effect for manifold and header volumetric efficiency
  
• Implemented Boost By RPM option for smart-boosted engines

[h3]Engine Designer[/h3]

• Added a new BSFC graph with normalized torque (y) vs RPM (x)
  
• Tweaked unlock years of twinscrolls ('91) and VTGs ('03)
  
• Tweaked unlock years of sequentials ('83) and compound turbo ('87) setups
  
• Changed scalability settings to help keep to higher engine level of detail (LODs)
  
• Fixed issue with emissions calculation which was making negative emissions possible
  
• Fixed boost limit not working for advanced boost control on superchargers
  
• Fixed intake piping bug for certain supercharged configurations on 60 deg. V6/8/12
  
• Fixed issues with boxer sequential turbo piping
  
• Fixed certain configuration piping not being removed on engine change
  
• Fixed various instances of pinched spline pipes
  
• Fixed various intake and header art issues
  
• Fixed there being orange cylinders in the mounting of centrifugals
  
• Fixed superchargers / turbos not updating when changing their geometry
  
• Fixed change in engine family quality not triggering a recalculate
  
• Fixed exhaust pipes connection being broken by engine scaling
  
• Fixed emissions grade missing from catalytic converter tootips
  
• Fixed changing catalytic converter type not triggering an exhaust system rebuild
  
• Fixed inline engine centrifugal superchargers having incomplete engine art
  
• Fixed turbos meshes not disappearing when changing to supercharger on incomplete engine
  
• Fixed MFI emissions grade being wrong

[h3]UI Fixes[/h3]

• Improved forced induction stage UI interactions
  
• Improved turbo slider UI performance
  
• Improvements to Power and Traction graph showing more data
  
• Coming back from a photoscene now drops you on the panel you were on before
  
• Moved custom paint sliders to be next to each other
  
• Fixed relative cost widget having wrong tooltip
  
• Fixed icon missing on paste from clipboard button in the Car Designer Manager
  
• Changed naming of Turbo option in visibility widget to Aspiration
  
• Fixed comparison engine emission standard always showing N/A in side stats
  
• Fixed coloring of WES standard change in engine side stats
  
• Fixed issues with car trim cloning in grid mode
  
• Fixed fuel economy change coloring the wrong way around for L/100km
  
• Fixed markets manager and car designer missing the tick button to exit up
  
• Fixed individual part reliabilities being displayed wrong
  
• Fixed car stats field in car manager not populating when returning from car designer

[h3]BeamNG Exporter[/h3]

• Overall improvements to the new softbody export functionality
  
• General improvements to exported car stability
  
• Improved car crash deformations
  
• Fixed issue with exporting soft body being stuck on finalizing export
  
• Fixed engine starter not having enough torque in some cases
  
• Fixed wheel rims partially exporting as white
  
• Fixed vanilla automation script decal causing errors in BeamNG exporter
  
• Fixed radiators being indestructible in exports
  
• Fixed 3D-placed exhausts not getting exhaust routing to the fixture
  
• Fixed exhaust routing sometimes going really low
  
• Fixed it being impossible to stall cars due to constant torque below idle RPM
  
• Fixed all engines exporting with their bounding box placed too low
  
• Fixed turbo pipes not exporting
  
• Fixed default camera positions in exports
  

Beyond that, we have been working on many more things than the ones listed. Campaign is being fixed up to make it reappear in the Al Rilma updates, as well as major engine simulation improvements regarding the handling of ignition timing for non-EFI systems. Beyond that there are many more things to address, but we'll get to that.

Cheers!