Gordon Murray Reveals T.25 City Car Seating Layout
By Thami Masemola
September 4, 2009 4:13 PM
Filed Under: European, Green, Specialty Marques
Could Gordon Murray's T.25 City Car be this century's Beetle? It certainly looks to have the potential. One of the central themes of the car is environmental friendliness in all its processes, from manufacture to operation. In other words it speaks to the now-generation, just like the Beetle spoke to the then-generation.
Murray is probably best known for designing the classic McLaren F1 three-seat supercar. Adopting that layout the T.25 is based around the idea of the driver being in the middle of the car. There are six different possible seat layouts which will satisfy different needs for specific times. Up to 750 litres of stowage space is available for the equivalent of six shopping trolleys.
Called the iCentre this driving position was first conceptualised by Murray in 1966 when he was a young student in South Africa. It was later implemented in the McLaren F1. The main advantage of the three-seat configuration with the driver at the centre is greater outside visibility. Of course this depends largely on the width and height of the car. They say the T.25 is quite narrow so it's ideal for this.
The driver will control motion functions using two pedals and buttons to go forward, backwards or to stay in neutral.
Murray's design group is still trying to find partners with whom they will produce the car using highly innovative processes that can save up to 80% of space invested in a typical manufacturing factory.
Press Release (Click to expand)
GORDON MURRAY DESIGN REVEAL T.25 CITY CAR SEATING LAYOUT
Gordon Murray Design's T.25 City Car is not only designed around a central driving position but an MPV package offering 6 internal layouts within the same vehicle, each layout being easily achieved within 30 seconds.
The T.25 City Car has been packaged to accept three 95th percentile occupants and the central driving position has been named ‘iCentre®', although the actual concept dates back to 1966 when Gordon Murray first came up with the idea during his Mechanical Engineering studies at Durban Institute of Technology in South Africa. The three-seat configuration was put into production with the McLaren F1 and then resurrected in 1999 during the original study for Murray's City Car - then known as Project 3.
The central driving position gives unparalleled control and visibility whilst supporting the ultra-flexible interior space. This gives the T.25 a potential market advantage over the Smart Fortwo which is purely a two-seater with a small luggage capacity. In maximum ‘shopping mode' the T.25 can be driver only but offers 750 litres of stowage space which is equal to 6 shopping trolleys in volume!
The two pedal vehicle does not have a gear lever but instead relies on push buttons with the options of fully automatic or manual using Forward, Reverse & Neutral.
Gordon Murray Design are currently in discussions with several interested parties to move the car into production using the iStream® Manufacturing process. iStream® is a unique, innovative method of producing cars invented by Gordon Murray Design which, amongst other things, reduces the area and investment of a typical car factory by 80%.
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