Yahoo Autos Gordon Murray Starts New Lightweight Car Company
Automotive design and engineering legend Gordon Murray announced today that he's launching a new car company, Gordon Murray Automotive. And it sounds very interesting.
Today's announcement is full of plenty of words and phrases to pique the car enthusiast's ears. The first car built by Gordon Murray Automotive will be a "flagship model" that will "buck the current trend for ever more complicated and heavy vehicles."
Murray himself says the first model from the new carmaker "will demonstrate a return to the design and engineering principles that have made the McLaren F1 such an icon."
Yeah, you could say we're interested.
Murray, as you're no doubt aware, was the visionary mind behind the McLaren F1, still held by many as the greatest supercar ever built. Murray's dedication to lightweight design, simple engineering and unconventional approaches gave us a 627-horsepower, three-seat machine that weighed 2500 lbs and could do 240 mph.
And while the F1 shattered records and helped create the modern-day definition of a supercar, Murray didn't rest on his laurels. Nor has he stayed focused on hyper-limited, ultra-expensive performance cars. Recent Murray projects include the Global Vehicle Trust OX, a lightweight, rugged truck meant for the third world that can be shipped as a kit in a crate and assembled with hand tools; the Yamaha Sports Ride, a lightweight two-seat sports car concept; and the return of the TVR Griffith.
Gordon Murray Automotive will use Murray's iStream production method, which uses composite panels bonded to a steel tube chassis to create an incredibly rigid and lightweight space frame.
Autocar reports that Murray aims to keep the cost of his new vehicles low, and that he hopes to build a supercar that weighs less than 2000 lbs.
Gordon Murray Automotive will release details on its first production vehicle on Friday, November 3rd. The new automaker's website, tellingly, shows an image of an early Lotus Seven, a car defined by its light weight and simplicity.
We can't wait to see what Murray has up his sleeve.
You Might Also Like
