Gordon Murray Has Designed a Mid Engine Three Cylinder Mini Supercar

The T.43 is the first product available for license or sale by Murray’s new automotive engineering company, Gordon Murray Automotive. The chassis is an aluminum frame overlaid by carbon composite panels and is designed to adopt a 1.5-liter three-cylinder engine and six-speed manual transmission. The three-cylinder makes 220 hp, but with just 1,873 lbs to pull (850 kgs) the T.43 would have a healthy power to weight ratio of 259 hp per tonne. Mated to the 1.5-liter would be a six-speed manual transmission – which is basically a necessity in this exciting little package.

GMA has developed a new modular construction process for cars that it calls iStream, which involves manufacturing lightweight chassis with an aluminum frame and carbon fiber panels in place of metal body panels. This manufacturing process could be used to build not only sports cars, but commercial vehicles, crossovers, city cars, SUVs and more.
The T.43 taps the iStream process, allowing the vehicle to be made fast and efficiently while also remaining light and extremely rigid. GMA designed a new lightweight seat for the vehicle as well, which is 30 percent lighter than a standard seat thanks to its metal and recycled carbon-fibre composite frame.

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The seat design and T.43 are intended to be licensed out to another automaker, which means we could see it enter production badged as something other than a Gordon Murray product. We hear Lotus is in need of some new lightweight sports cars, Gordon, but just about every automaker around today could stand to take a crash course in how to make their vehicles lighter – especially as electronics and wiring threaten to make our already heavy vehicles even heftier.