Cartel Cruiser

The Cartel Cruiser (known simply as Cartel in the non-English versions of the game other than the Korean version, where it is known as its full name) is the gang car of the Colombian Mob in Grand Theft Auto III and Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories.

Design

3D Universe

In general, the Cartel Cruiser is a 4-door pickup truck, resembling a generic 1990s Ford F-Series pickup truck with frontal styling reminiscent of the 1979-1991 Chevrolet Suburban. The Cruiser also features a roll bar in the back, side runners, a blue paint job, and foglights on the grill. In GTA III, the reverse lights are mounted in the rear bumper; however they are integrated into the tail light clusters in GTA LCS; rear fog lights take the place of the reverse lights in the bumper instead.

Similar to the Forelli Exsess, Sindacco Argento and Yardie Lobo, it does not have a non-gang variant, but its closest non-gang counterpart, however, is the Bobcat. It is one of the only two 4-door pickup trucks in the 3D Universe.

At one point of game development of GTA III, the Cartel Cruiser was known as the Columbia, which is possibly a reference to the Colombian Cartel's name. The old name is still evidently used in a showcase of the truck at the official Rockstar North website. In the beta, the car was also black. ^{[citation/verification needed]}

Version History Gallery

GTA III

(Rear quarter view)

Performance

3D Universe

Powered by a turbocharged V8 engine, it is powerful enough to send its all wheel drive system into slides, which is unusual for the GTA III engine. However it suffers from turbo lag, where the car has poor acceleration from a standing start, until the turbo cuts in. This can be heard, when the engine noise becomes louder and more aggressive. At higher revs, it can outrun a Patriot or a Sentinel in a straight line drag race. However, its high center of gravity causes the body to roll in corners. Strangely enough, it has the engine sound of a muscle car, which is unrealistic for such a large vehicle.

The Cartel Cruiser in GTA LCS performs similarly to the one in GTA III, only being much heavier, resulting in a noticeable moderate acceleration. It is also have a more appropriate engine noise, being the same as the Bobcat. Its heavy weight, however makes up for better durability and low center of gravity, thus it has a better handling, stability and traction at high speeds. Unlike the GTA III rendition, rollovers and tailspins are less prone to occur in cornering, making it one of the best drifting cars in the game. It is also capable to ram other cars more easily, due to its aforementioned weight. The vehicle is exceptionally durable compared to the GTA III version. It is also the most durable gang car in LCS, together with the Triad Fish Van and the Yakuza Stinger.

3D Universe Overview

Prominent Appearances in Missions

Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories

• Panlantic Land Grab - The colombians escort Avery's Bobcat using two Cruisers.
• Love on the Run - Toni and Love suffer an attack from the cartel men, that will constantly arrive in the mansion driving this vehicle.

Locations

Grand Theft Auto III

• Two of them can be seen and obtained during the mission Bomb Da Base Act II (the only time it will spawn in Portland).
• In the construction site in Fort Staunton, Staunton Island (only until Grand Theft Aero).
• In the Cartel mansion in Cedar Grove, Shoreside Vale.
• Near D-Ice’s phone in Wichita Gardens, Shoreside Vale.
• Driving around Fort Staunton and Cedar Grove. It is quite dangerous to obtain it from these locations, as the Cartel members from the start of the game will immediately attack the player on sight. However, once Grand Theft Aero is completed, Yakuza members will fight off the Cartel. Also, these cars will be replaced by Yakuza Stingers driving around Fort Staunton.
• Six Cartel Cruisers can be found during the mission The Exchange.
• Can be found as one of the burning vehicles during Firefighter missions.

Grand Theft Auto: Liberty City Stories

• Driving around Cedar Grove and Francis International Airport in Shoreside Vale.
• Can be obtained during the missions Panlantic Land Grab and Love on the Run.
• Very rarely spawns in Belleville Park.
• Can be found as a target vehicle in Scooter Shooter.

Trivia

General

• The default radio stations for the Cartel Cruiser are:
  • GTA III: Rise FM or Flashback 95.6, rarely Lips 106.
  • GTA Liberty City Stories: Rise FM.
• The car is apparently inspired from the stereotype of Latin Americans and Middle Eastern, which is typically associated with off-road cars and pickup trucks.

In-game

• The GTA III rendition's performance seems to be reused for the Sandking.
• According to the engine sound, it is strange that in GTA III, the car has a vintage engine (carburetor), but in Liberty City Stories it has a modern fuel-injection engine, despite LCS passing in 1998 and III in 2001.
• In GTA III, the Cartel Cruiser shares the same engine sound as the Slamvan from Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas

See Also

• Bobcat - Closest civilian version.
• Patriot - A four-wheel-drive crew cab truck.
• Cavalcade FXT - A somewhat similar SUT in Grand Theft Auto IV.
• Contender - Another truck in Grand Theft Auto IV which has a similar body design, but not crew cab and is based on a newer model Ford F150.
• Gang Rancher - Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories counterpart which shares an almost similar performance.
• Sadler - Grand Theft Auto V counterpart which is also based on Ford F-Series.

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