Gordon Murray shows off ultra-light chassis tech

Gordon Murray has pulled the drapes off its pure-electric GMD Motiv concept's bare bones in an effort to demonstrate the ingenuity of the company's iStream manufacturing process.

Created to underpin a "broad portfolio of vehicles" ranging from a tiny city car to mid-engined sports cars and large SUVs, the iStream process is claimed to optimise the performance, cost and efficiency of future EVs.

Said to cut the weight of a typical family car by more than 20 per cent and the number of components used in its construction by over 50 per cent, Gordon Murray Design (GMD) says rigidity overall is boosted using its iStream method.

Developed over a number of years, it's thought the GMD Motiv uses a tubular metal frame that supports the body panels as a way to reduce costs and complexity.

Instead of stamped metal body panels, the Motiv and iStream manufacturing process employs carbon-composite panels. The battery pack, meanwhile, is claimed to be integrated within the frame.

The result, says GMD, is that the cradle-to-grave carbon footprint is only a fraction of conventional vehicles.

Measuring in at 2537mm long, 1310mm wide and weighing 376kg without the battery in place, GMD says the Motiv has the crash protection of a full-size passenger car, despite its tiny quadricycle dimensions.

Said to feature autonomous tech, the concept is created for car-sharers and has a small 17.3kWh battery that provides a very impressive (for its size) 200km range if you drive it yourself, or around 150km in full-autonomous mode.

Charging up to speeds of 35kW, a 20-80 per cent top-up is said to take around 40 minutes.

There's no word on performance, but the Motiv gets a small 20kW electric motor.

Despite being aimed at some of the cheapest vehicles in Europe, the GMD Motiv gets climate control, ABS brakes and a huge 24-inch infotainment system, plus a pair of electric gullwing-style doors.

It's not known if GMD plans to follow its wild T.50 supercar and green-light the little Motiv for production, but it's thought the engineering and design consultancy will use it as a proof of concept for other car-makers and even aviation companies, which have reportedly expressed an interest for the construction of electric cargo drones and light aircraft.

Commenting on the new iStream application, strategy and business boss at GMD, Jean-Philippe Launberg, said: “Our innovative manufacturing processes delivers many benefits for automotive manufacturers wanting to create, develop and make low- to mid-volume cars and commercial vehicles that can’t be profitably manufactured with their existing methodologies and footprint. 

"It’s a unique and cost-effective way for global manufacturers to improve performance and efficiency in a sustainable way.”