A Selection of Early Gordon Murray Sketches

Above: Gordon Murray's initial sketches of potential spaceframe arrangements with one (of 6 September 1989) showing the first incarnation of the final Rocket body shape. Sketches copyright Gordon Murray Design

Above: Job lists for early 1990 showing the chassis work still to do. Detail sketches illustrating both how the body might be fixed to the lower chassis tubes and the attachment of the engine to the chassis as a stressed member. Sketches copyright Gordon Murray Design

Above: Chris Craft had a keen interest in the styling of the car. Shown on the left above are a selection of the sketches that he sent to Bob Curl in early 1990. Chris was particularly taken by the styling influences of the streamliner cars of the 1930s, although his interpretation of that style is far more modern. A comparative sketch of Gordon's is shown on the right. 

In direct competition with Chris, Gordon Murray had his own clear ideas as to how the car would look. While most of his sketches are clearly like the final product, some continue to flirt with more contemporary styles and have similarities to Chris' own offerings.

Above: Another Gordon Murray sketch on hotel notepaper, this time to work through how radiator heat might be evacuated out of the car's nose. Although this points to the use of vents in the nose, à la the Ferrari Formula One cars of the mid-Sixties, Bob Curl's interpretation of extensive scalloping behind the front wheels was sufficient to draw the heat away from the car, as can be seen in the bottom sketch above.

The above has been taken from The Light Car Company Rocket - The Singular Vision of Two Men.