- Gordon Murray Design on Monday reveals its T.25 City Car.
- The front section is hinged to open forward instead of using traditional doors.
- The 1,212-pound T.25 seats three passengers.
SHALFORD, England — With Monday's reveal of the Gordon Murray Design T.25 City Car, it's clear that Gordon Murray envisions himself as a postmodern Henry Ford — impacting not only vehicle design, but how cars are manufactured.
The 1,212-pound T.25 stands out with its unusual access — the front section of the body hinges forward instead of featuring traditional doors — and its production method. Company CEO Gordon Murray says a streamlined assembly method means a 20 percent reduction in factory size, while reducing capital investment by 80 percent. The flexible, low-energy manufacturing process is dubbed iStream.
The T.25 seats three in a one-plus-two layout with the driver in a central position and is smaller than a Smart Fortwo or Toyota iQ. Gordon Murray Design says up to three T.25s can fit into one parallel parking space. The hinged front end allows it to be squeezed in tightly next to other vehicles while still allowing access.
"The T.25 car program can support a variety of powertrains and fuels," the company said in a statement. "First markets are likely to be in Europe and Asia."
Earlier this month, Gordon Murray Design and powertrain partner Zytec Automotive released initial specifications and performance targets for the T.27 City Car, with the first running prototypes now due in April 2011. The T.27 is essentially a pure electric companion to the T.25.
Inside Line says: Gordon Murray Design wants to revolutionize the auto industry, but the T.25 City Car seems more appropriate for emerging markets than American roads. — Anita Lienert, Correspondent
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1in250 says:
12:42 PM, 07/02/2010
Imagine all the complaints we'd have here if cars had started with a front-hinge, and then an engineer came out with side-opening doors:
"Why would we add the complication of extra doors, extra hinges, further manufacturing complexity?"
"What happens if the car gets T-boned and the door can't be opened?"
"What happens if I park too close to a wall, or another car, or beside any obstacle?"
I mean really, worrying about parking under a tree with branches that are hanging a foot above your roof? And if you park in a garage where vertical space would be an issue, you'd better be wearing a helmet. If it's raining, you're already going to be wet; exposing the front seat to the rain for 3 seconds isn't going to make a big difference. This is a fantastic solution for they type of driving many people do: solo or with 1 other person. It's mission isn't to move a family, or haul a trailer.
It's so much easier to tear something down than build it up, isn't it?
goaterguy says:
07:29 PM, 06/29/2010
My motorcycle has it's dash and everything else exposed to the elements and has never had a problem but that's not the point, this design is innovative because it works, do some research and although Insideline doesn't mention it, this car does 74mpg, that's 2.5 times what a smart does and carries one more person. That's innovative.
lostboyz says:
07:42 AM, 06/29/2010
@goaterguy
what part about exposing the occupant and the dashboard to weather is innovative? What if a company decided to not give you doors and just a convertible top that you would have to scroll back to get in and out of the car. Is that innovative?
goaterguy says:
06:23 AM, 06/29/2010
I completely agree with 1in250, Mr. Murray is a genius when it comes to cars. The seating arrangement is the same as in his supercar, the McLaren F1. Of course you can make it wider and be able to fit 4 people and make it longer and be able to fit 6 or 10 but the packaging, weight and fuel economy need to met the design. If you have 8 kids, buy a minivan.
For all the whiners, if a strut fails, you pull up with a little more strength (there is very likely another strut on the other side) then go and fix the problem. If you have problems with tree branches, don't park under a low tree, if you have snow over it brush it out, if it's raining, hurry up, if there is a block of ice covering the car, go back to your house and stay off the road!
Geez, I am a red bloded American just like most here but when did we turned into a bunch of sissies and complainers that can't appreciate innovation? Where the lame and boring cars are usually the best sellers and only two rectangle car designs are accepted. Thank God for the Koreans and their innovative styling!
Please understand that the world doesn't revolve around North America, where gas is cheap and apparently eternal and there is plenty of space on the roads to drive a Hummer H1, there are countries (for which this vehicle is targeted) where roads are very small or extremely populated and need all the efficiency they can get.
lostboyz says:
05:34 AM, 06/29/2010
why not make a couple cuts and give it lambo doors.
scottyscooter says:
04:20 AM, 06/29/2010
I'm not as dubious as others are about the hinged front end in regards to the cost, safety or practicality of this design. The Isetta is proof that a hinged front end can be built cheaply and used by the public. When one considers that there were perhaps hundreds of thousands of cars produced in the 1950's with a hinged front end, it can hardly be considered an innovative idea let alone an automotive revolution.
I'm leaning much more in support of the anti front hinged sentiment. I mean, who wants to deal with not only their seat, but basically the entire interior of their car getting wet when they open the door in the rain? You would also have to learn to be mindful of the clearance above your parking space; the low branches of a normally harmless tree could put some nasty scratches in the roof of your car when you open your "door". If I were concerned about space, I would take a sliding door over this any day.
bankerdanny says:
08:44 PM, 06/28/2010
1in250: This isn't intended to be an expensive, low volume sports car. Impracticality is all well and good in a 6-figure supercar, but if mass production and low cost is the goal then a tilt front end is not the way to go.
1in250 says:
06:53 PM, 06/28/2010
With this kind of thinking, jumping in a a Countach would have all the theatrics of entering a Civic. And imagine the first 300SL without gullwings?!
What happens if a lift strut fails on an SLS?
Mr. Murray has a hit upon a novel solution, that is "mechanical." Dual sliding doors would be unnecessarily complex and expensive to produce (the production is part of the genius here).
If there's snow on the roof, take that brush you just used to remove the snow from the windows and give the roof a quick sweep.
We're overdue for a revolution. Hopefully the naysayers won't be able to stop this one.
smihal says:
06:38 PM, 06/28/2010
So, its a smart car?
agnh says:
04:51 PM, 06/28/2010
I have nothing but respect for Mr. Murray, however, Bankerdanny brings up several valid points.
Car is on its roof, how do you get out? And forget about if it's raining, What if there is a layer of ice on the car from freezing rain? You won't even be able to open it. Or a few inches of snow that will dump inside the car.