Murray signs off first T.50

By Wayne Batty

Judging by recent happenings, it’s safe to say the gestation period for a contemporary hypercar is nothing less than four years. Croatia’s Rimac, maker of the blisteringly quick battery-powered Concept One, first showed that car’s follow-up, the unimaginatively named C-Two, at the Geneva Motor Show in March 2018. Quickly rebadged Nevera, development and testing took four years, with the first production car being delivered in August 2022.

Even the mighty Mercedes-AMG took almost five years to deliver a production version of its F1 hybrid-engined Project One hypercar.

Topping both is the Aston Martin Valkyrie. Aston and Red Bull’s collaborative project to build a Formula 1 car for the road was first announced in July 2016 under the code name AM-RB 001. Five-and-a-half years in the making, the first customer Valkyrie was delivered in November 2021.

All of which makes Gordon Murray Automotive’s mid-March 2023 T.50 customer car assembly announcement seem pretty impressive. After all, the T.50 was only unveiled in August 2020, a mere two-and-a-half years ago. Justifiably pleased with the significance of the moment, Professor Murray signalled the start of T.50 production by signing the carbon fibre monocoque of what his eponymous company calls ‘Job 1’.

If you’re tempted to think this means the T.50 has the potential to turn out half-baked, remember this is Gordon Murray, the guy principally responsible for cooking up a Le Mans-winning road car. He knows how to build a winner and there’s plenty of evidence to suggest the T.50 has been put through the test wringer – on road, race track and ice pack. Sorry but I have to ask, are you also a fan?

By Wayne Batty