History[]
While part of the country was still occupied, allies in the Verdatenland Party for a Republic were able to begin relocating the Ospian government back into their own borders as early as 1936 where preparations could be made to bring the nation back from the brink. In 1938, Congress passed the fairly unimaginatively-titled Great Economic Reunion, a sweeping reform of key trade regulations and establishing a wide array of “programs” that effectively turned the Ospian economy into a semi-planned one, with a government-owned competitor in “critical” sectors. Coincidentally, nearly all of these sectors were entirely unoccupied by a local manufacturer during this period, leading to complete state dominance over the domestic market in everything from simple goods to logistics and large scale manufacturing.
As for SUMA, following the New Harvest War, there was no domestic maker of automobiles, trucks, or other related machines in Ospiana; Brache remained in Verdatenland and had since absorbed the coachmaker Alcetti. To solve this issue without imports, provide mobility to the people at low cost, and build whatever the government needed without license or oversight, they created the State Office for the Manufacturing of Automobiles. Officially, they were a recycling program, a sibling to Fillerite pre-mixed dry concrete and OERS recycled steel, but were actually intended to make new vehicles from recycled materials.
Effectively a state-backed manufacturer, SUMA organized themselves like any other auto company, complete with a marketing department and making use of a new brand emblem to legitimize themselves. For a time the program was entirely on paper, until a suitable factory complex had been identified on the waterfront of Tuscana; originally used for making motorcycles, during the New Harvest War and subsequent occupation under the Verdatenland rebels, it made everything from artillery shells to armor plates to being used for breaking down reclaimed weaponry. SUMA set up shop as soon as possible, and within only two months had reactivated the original tooling and begun production.
Their primary purpose was the use of low-quality sheet steel made by another program from recycled refuse and ruined steel structure, both to generate income and produce vehicles needed by public services. They began by producing motorcycles using the factory's original layout before pivoting to copies of prewar cars that had survived and were on-hand for study, which itself funded the further reverse-engineering of other key automotive technologies from abroad, eventually leading to SUMA assembling these concepts into their own (mostly) original cars.
Production continued during the Interloper War (1975-1981), though with reduced capacity for consumer vehicles in favor of military hardware. Following the War, the company was officially privatized as the government tried to capitalize on newfound relations with large, overseas powers (planned economies being a controversial subject at the time) with their first private product being the redesigned Selecta platform, available that year. They have remained self-owned since then, rebuffing many attempts at acquisition by foreign entities.
Into the next two decades SUMA would continue their trend as a manufacturer working outside the box, and is still active today, producing the immortal Selecta whether anyone likes it or not. Thankfully, recycled metal was dropped from structural components in 1985 and is not something new buyers need to be concerned about.
Table of Products[]
| Name | Production | Body Style | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Valori | 1939-1952 | Hatchback | Developed under occupation by the Verdatenland Republican forces when most resources were being used for reconstruction and logistics, the Valori was an RR subcompact equipped with a fairly rudimentary I3 powerplant. Although it was exceptionally mechanically simple - with all the drawbacks that entails - its low price competed with livestock in every regard, and it tackled bombed-out terrain surprisingly reliably, if not well. A refresh in 1946 improved fuel efficiency and power output, but did little else to make it a nicer car. |
| Crucera | 1958-1960 | Sedan | A very short-lived FWD mid-size sedan that predated and was ultimately replaced by the Selecta only two years later. The nameplate would later be revived again as a FWD car, but now placed a segment above the Selecta as a slightly more premium option. |
| Selecta | 1960- | Sedan, Hatchback (M3) / Pickup (M2) / Van (M5) | SUMA's flagship family of compact family cars and derived trucks and vans, available anywhere they can be shipped. Mechanically they have remained largely unchanged since their introduction, and can still be purchased new as an FR sedan with a solid rear axle. |
| U601 | 1955 | Inspired by the success of light offroad vehicles elsewhere, the U601 4x4 light truck filled the logistical gap between regular cars and large truck platforms in the Combined Army. Available in both van and passenger forms, the rear bench seat was interchangeable between all of them as a form of modularity. | |
| L603 | 1962-1969 | Sedan | The model started life as a purpose-built all-terrain law-enforcement vehicle. Extremely overbuilt, it later became a platform of choice for a variety of large cars including political transport, armored cars, and even civilian versions. |