Gordon Murray unveils autonomous Motiv EV

Gordon Murray Design (GMD) has pulled the drapes off a new autonomous, pure-electric quadricycle that's claimed to offer the crash protection of a full-size car.

The Motiv, developed in collaboration with UK-based Delta Motorsport and itMoves, is based on the 2013 Motiv.e city car concept GMD created for Yamaha.

Measuring in at 2357mm long, standing 1628mm tall but only 1310mm wide, the new Motiv once again takes up a fraction of the footprint on the road a normal car would.

Beneath its skin, the small single-seater pod gets a 20kW electric motor supplied by Delta Motorsport that, combined with a small 17.3kWh lithium-ion battery, provides for a range of up to 100km.

Since it's designed specifically for urban environments, the Motiv has a maximum speed of just 65km/h.

Topping up the battery, meanwhile, from 20 per cent to 80 per cent is said to take 40 minutes.

Despite the current concept being for a single occupant, GMD says the Motiv can be converted to accommodate another passenger, a wheelchair user or ditch all occupants altogether and become a pint-sized cargo van with storage space of up to 1100 litres.

Weighing in at less than 450kg (without batteries), the driverless pod is said to feature GMD's patented iFrame design that employs an ultra-lightweight extruded aluminium chassis. The little Motiv also gets an iPanel composite body and full aluminium suspension (iLink.)

Inside, instead of a typical driving environment there's a workspace centred around a 24-inch central display panel. Since there's no pedal box or steering wheel and the powertrain is hidden away, every single inch of cabin space can be utilised.

Together, GMD claim its Motiv is the first-ever quadricycle-class vehicle to meet the European passenger car (M1) crash tests.

Claimed to be ready for full-scale production within 2-5 years, GMD says the next step will be to team up with autonomous technology providers and begin multiple pilot studies.

Since it was developed under the brief to be a 'safe and cost-effective autonomous vehicle' when it finally goes on sale, thanks to its simple production technique the Motiv is expected to come with cut-throat pricing – an added incentive to consider the small car in a big city.

As well as the tiny battery-powered Motiv, GMD that's still run by the famous McLaren F1 designer is readying a wild new hypercar that will be unveiled later this year.

Named the T50, the state-of-the-art hypercar uses ground-effect fan technology that maximises downforce without increasing drag.