M12S Warthog CST

The M12S Warthog Civilian Sport Transport (M12S CST) is a civilian transport alternative to its militaristic cousin, the M12 Force Application Vehicle.

Design details
The 2554 version of the M12S Warthog is approximately twenty-five percent smaller and thirty percent lighter than the militarized M12 "Warthog" Force Application Vehicle, while having a stronger resemblance to the 2558 M12B model overall. As a civilian model of the Warthog, the M12S inevitably lacks any form of armament. The M12S has two seats, one for the driver and the other for a passenger.

Like the 2554 version of the M12 FAV, this version of the Warthog uses a version of the second chassis. It also features an SLED searchlight and an antenna at the rear. The M12S also uses a similar duel spring suspension to keep the vehicle stable in different environments. The size of both the front and rear tires is 420/60/20. Unlike the Halo versions of the Warthog, the M12S Warthog CST's speedometer is dynamic and changes along with the vehicle's speed.

There are four manufacturer colors available for the M12S Warthog:
 * The default color scheme
 * Urban
 * ONI
 * Corp

Engine
Unlike the M12 FAV, the M12S lacks the more ubiquitous four-wheel steering in an effort to sacrifice low-speed maneuverability for better high-speed handling and performance-wheel steering. The M12S features an 8 liter (7,990 cc) twin-turbocharged V8 engine with identical power and torque specifications to the M12 FAV (720 hp and 855 ft·lbs of torque), as opposed to the 12.0 liter liquid-cooled, hydrogen-injected internal combustion engine that its FAV counterpart contains, making the M12S significantly faster. This version also has seventy centimeters of total suspension travel and an advanced dampening system. As with the M12 FAV, the engine is housed in a compartment at the front of the vehicle. This Warthog is equipped with all-wheel drive.

The M12S has a maximum speed of 192 kilometers per hour (119 miles per hour), a 53.6% increase from its Halo counterparts, though gearing, while adjustable by default, is limited at such speeds. The M12S Warthog can reach a speed of 60 miles per hour in 3.7 seconds, while being capable of reaching a speed of 100 mph in 9.81 seconds; in-game, though, it accomplishes these in 5 and 13.9 seconds, respectively. The M12S can traverse a distance of a quarter mile in 12.4 seconds at a speed of 109.4 MPH (176.1 km/h). The vehicle's mid-housed transmission is a 6-speed automatic with manual override. The M12S Warthog boasts heavy duty, offroad, double wishbone suspension at both the front and rear of the vehicle. The suspension travel (full droop to full compression) is 0.7 meters (27.6 inches). The M12S Warthog CST utilizes a 35 centimeter (14 inch) disc brake, as does the M12 FAV.

Advantages
Being AWD, the M12S Warthog CST is capable of launching off the line without wheelspin and features the best handling among the Extreme Offroad vehicles, only bested by several Rally Monsters vehicles. With its superior handling and braking over most other offroad-oriented vehicles partly thanks to its AWD drivetrain, the M12S Warthog CST is ideal for offroad applications and Cross Country Circuit races. With proper driving skill, it is capable of reaching at least top 25 in Class A Rivals leaderboards on short Cross Country Circuit or Scramble routes.

Disadvantages
With a Speed rating of only 4.3 (out of a maximum of 10), owed to by its aforementioned top speed of 119 MPH (192 km/h), the M12S Warthog CST's top speed is among the lowest of all the Extreme Offroad vehicles, making it unsuitable for long distance driving and leaving it at the mercy of the likes of other Extreme Offroad vehicles like the Local Motors Rally Fighter and, obviously, hypercars like the McLaren Senna. Even with gearing adjusted for higher top speed, it is still disadvantaged by its slower acceleration at speeds above 112 MPH (180 km/h), discouraging the use of this vehicle for drag races past a quarter mile (402 m).

Behind the scenes
The M12S was created for the video game Forza Horizon 3 as a playable vehicle and one of only two fictional vehicles in that game, alongside the Quartz Regalia from Final Fantasy XV. To unlock the M12S in Forza Horizon 3, a free download to everyone who had played either Halo 5: Guardians or Halo: The Master Chief Collection on Xbox One would be available. Eligible players would receive codes to download the Warthog via an Xbox Live Message, and codes were sent out between September 6, 2016 and September 23, 2016. In addition, players who did not play an Xbox One Halo game later had the chance to earn the Warthog via special #Forzathon events that were added to Forza Horizon 3 in October 2016, February 2017, January 2018, and March 2018. Players may also purchase it through the in-game Auction House.

The M12S reappears in Forza Horizon 4. It is featured as the main vehicle of the Showcase Event named The Halo Experience Showcase, with John-117 behind the wheel.

Trivia

 * Unlike the M12 Warthog in Forza Motorsport 4, instead of Cortana narrating the M12S Warthog's Forzavista description, Warren does it instead.
 * In the internal game files of Forza Horizon 3 and Forza Horizon 4, the M12S Warthog is named "343_Warthog_15", with "343" being an obvious reference to 343 Industries and "15" referring to 2015, the year that Halo 5: Guardians was released in.
 * "343" is used in the internal game files as the three-character name for AMG Transport Dynamics, presumably to avoid confusion with the AMG performance sub-brand of Mercedes-Benz.