Where did you lose points?

[R 73 454]

I see a lot of 96,97 98 point NCRS cars in magazines, what were the missing points?

[JohnZ]

NCRS scoring is based on a 4500-point total for the whole car; the raw score after judging is then converted to a percentage, by dividing the raw score by 4500. For instance, a "96-point car" would have scored 96% of 4500 (4320 points), so during judging it got 180 points deducted. Those 180 points could have been deducted in any area of the car, and are detailed on the scoring sheets, which remain with the owner. Flight Judging is very comprehensive - it takes 8-10 manhours (five 2-person teams, each taking 45 minutes to an hour for their category - Operations, Interior, Exterior, Mechanical, and Chassis) to Flight-judge a car.

[j3studio]

Here's an example from the last time around with my 1985 - all point amounts greater than 1 deducted are listed:

Operations: even the cigarette lighter worked!

Interior: scratches on seat backs (2), slight wear on carpets (2), missing end caps on security shade (2 - I later found out the judging manual may be wrong here)

Exterior: parking damage on front spoiler (2), gas door nuts were the wrong kind (2), tires are service replacement (22 and there's nothing to be done about that - yet)

Mechanical: completely incorrect oil fill cap (10), rust on fuel rails and injectors (2), rust on exhaust manifolds (2), service replacement spark plug wires (4), service replacement alternator (6), service replacement battery (8), cleanliness (2 - I drove it to the meet but I probably could have done better)

Chassis: fluid leaking from master cylinder (2), dirt and wear on underside of hood (3), dirty service replacement oil filter (3), replacement oil pan and plug (2), cleanliness (5 - but one kind judge wrote "drives car")