Phaeton (company)
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| Public (S.A.) | |
| Industry | Automotive |
| Founder | Lucius Geta |
| Headquarters | Sacrament , |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people |
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| Products | Sports cars |
Production output | 11,426 (2019) |
| Revenue |  $4.5 billion (2019) |
| $1.03 billion (2019) | |
Number of employees | 4,281 (2019) |
| Subsidiaries |
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| Website | phaeton.com |
Phaeton S.A. is a Confederate sports car manufacturer based in Sacrament, Blackhelm Confederacy. It was founded in 1949 by Lucius Geta, and the company built their first car in 1950. Phaeton's road cars have been a symbol of luxury and wealth throughout Astyria.
History
In 1932, Exponential businessman Lucius Geta founded the Stabulum Phaeton racing team, fielding Angelbridge racecars in competitions throughout the Empire of Exponent. The team won several races throughout the 1930s and received a significant amount of money from Angelbridge to race their cars. However, this partnership was brought to a sudden halt with the outbreak of the 2nd Great Astyrian War, which resulted in a temporary halt to all motorsport activity.
After the war, Geta founded Phaeton in 1949 and built his first road car in 1950, the Equus. It was a V12 front-engined sports car that also participated in races. The brand quickly became popular among the aristocratic class of Exponent, providing a steady stream of income for the racing team. In 1957, Phaeton was reorganized as a public company.
In 1967, Phaeton debuted the Sarana, its first V6-engined sports car. It marked a departure from traditional Phaeton models of the time, which were front-engined V12 sports cars, and a shift towards mid-engined sport cars beginning in the 1970s.
To mark 40 years of the company, Phaeton debuted the Helios, a twin-turbo V8 supercar that served as its flagship model. It was the first production car in Astyria to officially reach 200 mph (322 kph). It was planned that only 399 models would be made, however this was increased to 1,426 due to high demand from customers.
Lucius Geta died in 1993 and was replaced by Aurelius Graywood. Under his leadership, Phaeton underwent significant growth at a time where other Exponential companies were declining due to the dissolution of the Empire. The company also saw diversification of their models as well as in non-motoring luxury products. Phaeton produced three more flagship models during this time: the Invicta, the Lucius, and the Akhal. Graywood was instrumental in rebuilding the Phaeton race team into the dominant force in AstyF1, especially with the signing of Augustus Tertullius and Tertius DiParadisa.
Graywood departed Phaeton in 2015 and was replaced by several new chairmen and CEOs throughout the mid-to-late 2010s. Severinus Baro was appointed CEO in 2019 while Theodorus Lockfall was appointed chairman in 2021. Phaeton has recently announced plans to make a fully-electric model.
Road cars
Phaeton models throughout the 1950s and 1960s were typically two-seater front-engined V12s, ranging from sports cars to grand tourers. In 1967, the company introduced its first mid-engined sports car, the Sarana, which was offered with either a V6 or a V8 engine. Since then, mid-engined cars would form part of Phaeton's lineup up to the present. Currently, their road cars either have V8 or V12 engines, with the former being the more popular option.
Many of Phaeton's historic models have consistently been some of the most expensive vehicles ever sold at auction. A Phaeton 250 Competition sold for over $75,000,000 in 2018, which held the record for Astyria's most valuable car.
Current models
- Destrier - two-seater V12 grand tourer (model code DT55), hardtop convertible (model code DT56)
- Runcinus - 2+2 V12 grand tourer (model code RC22), 2+2 V8 grand tourer (model code RC23)
- Courser - V8 mid-engined sports car (model code CZ39), hardtop convertible (model code CZ41)
- Blazer - 2+2 V8 grand tourer convertible (model code BL20)
- Percheron - V12 high-performance SUV (model code PX12)
- Lusitano - 2+2 V8 grand tourer (model code LS10), softtop convertible (model code LS11)
- Nokota - V12 mid-engined hybrid sports car (model code NK30), hardtop convertible (model code NK34)
Marketing and identity
Brand image
Phaeton is currently one of the strongest and most valued brands in Astyria. Much of its brand identity is founded on its racing heritage, developed over decades of success at the highest levels of motorsport. Phaeton positions itself as an exclusive and luxurious automotive brand that brought racing innovation and technology to road cars. The brand has also been marketed as a dream car, the pinnacle of a person's wealth and success in life, and the company has taken to great lengths to carefully manage its brand perception and image.
Vehicle production is limited to below customer demand, prioritizing clients based on their loyalty, passion, and brand friendliness. Certain models require customers to have owned multiple Phaetons, while flagship models such as the Nokota are only available to the most loyal customers through personal selection by the company.
Name and logo
Phaeton is named after the mythological figure Phaethon, son of Helios, who nearly scorched the earth in attempting to control his father's chariot of the Sun. Its logo features a horse alluding to the fiery steeds in the myth. Two versions of this logo exist: the "Dark Horse", which shows the horse in its entirety, and the "Light Horse", a circular emblem featuring a horse's head surrounded by the sun. The former serves as the company's corporate logo, as well as the official logo of the race team, while the latter serves as a badge on its road cars.
Color
Phaeton's most iconic color is blood red (rufus sanguis), which originated as the national racing color of the Empire of Exponent. Despite changes in regulations that allow for race teams to deviate from their national colors, Phaeton has continued to paint its cars red, creating a long-standing association between the color and the Phaeton brand. Red remains a popular color for its road cars, despite the growing popularity of other colors such as yellow, white, and silver in recent years.
Motorsport
Main article: Stabulum Phaeton
Phaeton participates in motorsport through its racing division, Stabulum Phaeton. Historically they have competed in several races and motorsport classes, though currently they are only officially involved in Astyrian Formula One (AstyF1). Phaeton is the only team to have competed in every Formula One season since 1960.
Grand prix racing and AstyF1
Stabulum Phaeton was founded in 1932 as a grand prix racing team. They became affiliated with Angelbridge starting from 1933, due to Geta's former association with the company as a racing driver. With some of the Empire of Exponent's top drivers such as Publius Burrus, Augustus Coldwell, and Claudius Miller, Stabulum Phaeton dominated grand prix racing in Hesperidesia and Teudallum throughout the 1930s. After the 2nd Great Astyrian War, Phaeton returned as an independent constructor.
Phaeton joined the Astyrian Grand Prix Drivers' Championship (AGPDC) in 1951 with the Equus 125 GP. It was immediately successful, winning the championship that same year with Quintus Strabo. Phaeton went on a dominant streak in the 1950s, taking three more drivers' championships before the AGPDC's dissolution in 1959. Their first grand prix racing championship as a constructor came with the E156P "Torpedo", which dominated Astyrian Formula One in 1961. Despite their initial success, Phaeton lagged behind its rivals in the 1960s. A resurgence in form emerged in the 1970s due to the performances of Alan Digby, who helped Phaeton win three Constructors' Championships and two Drivers' Championships between 1975 and 1977. Further success came in 1979 and 1983 with drivers such as Eddie Powell and < name >.
A lengthy championship drought followed in the 1980s and 1990s, having come close to winning a championship in 1992. A period of restructuring began in 1993 which culminated in the signing of Augustus Tertullius. Phaeton went on a dominant streak in the early 2000s, with the team winning six consecutive Constructors' Championships between 2001 and 2006, while Tertullius won five Drivers' Championships beginning in 2002. In 2004, Phaeton achieved a 100% win rate, becoming the only constructor in AstyF1 to do so. After Tertullius departure in 2008, Phaeton won two more double championships with Tertius DiParadisa in 2010 and 2011. Another championship drought followed between 2012 and 2020 due to the rise of other teams, but it was broken in 2021 with Pekka Koivu as champion.