So, 10 years after my first concepts about a very basic, barebones Hirochi Start, and 9 years after those ideas turned into my very first mod, the Sunburst remaster was the perfect reason to also remaster it up to standards I simply couldn't meet before thanks to everything I've learned over the years, and it's not only a simple remaster, but the whole idea reimagined from scratch to suit how the vision has changed over the years, so that's why it's a brand new mod instead of just the Hirochi Start 4.0.
For those who are new to the mod, the idea is as simple as the car. Taking the new lore into account, this is how it goes:
In 2014, after the Hirochi Start stopped production, Hirochi decided to put the moldings and production line into use in an Indian factory bought by them to help motorize the country with a reasonably modern and equipped car, with just the essentials to help the car be affordable to as many customers as possible. Of course, being for the Indian market means all cars were manufactured as RHD cars.
Of course, a boxer engine is not the best choice for such a project, so quickly a joint venture was created between Hirochi and Cherrier, which provided the needed drivetrains with more traditional and rugged i3 and i4 engines, out of which a whole new brand was created to celebrate this venture: Phool (which is Hindi for flower, hence the logo)
The mod offers 5 versions, all of them under the normal Sunburst selection of cars (being placed at the very beginning of course, being also the cheapest) which are as follows:
Phool Start 1.5
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The more 'luxurious' of the range, keeps as many elements of the Sunburst as possible, but mainly the hood and not much else compared to the others.
Standard to it and most versions, you'll find custom steelies with the Phool logo, halogen lights front and back, a black plastic interior with no chrome details, no screen in the gauge cluster, no central rear headrest, simplified central console, and just ABS as electronic safety features go.
But of course, not everything is taking stuff out, so a custom 'panda' exterior design is also standard, as well as a larger bumper grill, fender indicators and a nice rear panel which connects the tailights, to give it a bit of design uniqueness. But the elephant in the room is clearly the engine, a I4 1.5L Cherrier engine which is a quite solid choice for most needs.
Phool Start 1.2
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Stepping down a bit you find the 1.2 with an even more reasonable price, it takes out the panda design, the hood grill and of course the engine is now a I3 1.2 Cherrier engine, which is still a very capable engine.
Oh, it also has a 1.2 badge in the rear. The 1.5 does have a 1.5 badge too as expected, but I kept this info until now so the 1.2 info is not too short...
Phool Start Diesel
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Sitting between the 1.2 and the 1.5, the Start Diesel features a I4 1.5D Cherrier engine designed to suit the needs of those who travel quite a lot.
The car itself is a normal 1.5 inside and out, but of course with a diesel engine and fuel tank, a 'd' in the rear 1.5 badge, and diesel gauges to suit the lower RPMs.
Phool Start SW
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Being actually the top of the range Start (but still chepear than any other Sunburst in existance) the SW has two unique features, being the station wagon body being the most obvious, for those who need the most space for their day to day usage.
Besides that, a special detuned 1.5 engine is on board, designed to withstand lower octan ratings to ensure the car will work with anything you put into the fuel tank...well, maybe not water, but you get the idea.
Phool Start Super
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Please don't get phooled by the name. The Super stands for 'SuperCheap' and was the wildcard of the whole Start project...you got most customers taken cared of, with different engines, bodies and prices but...what if some customers can't simply afford any of the cars so far?
That's were the Super comes to play. A list was made of what makes a car...a car, and everything not essential to drive a car was removed. We're talking the whole HVAC system, the temp gauge and rev counter, radio, most of the door panels, the electric windows, the ABS system, the rear seat headrests, the plastic in the B pillars, even the nicer rear tailights and foglight. Did I mention a special I3 1.0L Cherrier engine which takes almost 20 seconds in the 0-100 km/h?
This is as cheap a car can get without stepping into plain illegalness, and you'll be able to check it for yourself.
So...this is the Start. Or the Start of the old Start. Or...the end of the old Start. Well, take it as you prefer, but hopefully this new...Start is something you'll be able to enjoy (maybe not in a race track) as much as I did remastering it, and hopefully too it will last for...another 10 years at least?
And to finish off...here's a pic of the Super interior. Yes, it's plain. Proudly plain! Please enjoy them
Also included in the mod are static license plates (non-configurable/writable) for the following countries:
Plus a dealer plate for each config (incuding a generic 'Start' one) but please take into account these are optional, since the cars load with a default license plate with no design applied
- Russia
- India
- Kazakhstan
F.A.Q.
Why is the handbrake in the LHD position?
Not an oversight, this also happens in real life, it's simply cheaper to leave the handbrake where it was in the original car.
Rear 'Phool' badge does weird things
Due to that specific badge being a prop instead of a normal mesh (only way to make it disappear when the plastic holding it breaks) sometimes it can be seen out of place, but normally happens only when reloading the car and keeping the game paused.
The moment the game is unpaused the badge should go back to its place, if it doesn't, reload the car or the game if neccesary.
Known Issues
Credits (besides me)
- The steering column clips through the transmission.
Hoang Sean & macutelitako - New parts, Bug fixing, adding TrailCross mod compatibility
Dismiss Notice
In the upcoming weeks mod approvals could be slower than normal.
Thank you for your patience.
In the upcoming weeks mod approvals could be slower than normal.
Thank you for your patience.

Beta Phool Start 1.2
The cheapest Hirochi in the world...is back!