[ad_1]
Gordon Murray is a professor who, in 2019, was appointed Commander of the British Empire by Prince William. He is a serious man. And this is a very, very serious car. And yet the big man can’t resist a small smile when he tells TopGear.com about his latest endeavors.
“I’ve really had twice as much fun,” he says, unable to hold back a smile, “just going crazy with the body and the aerodynamics. It seems quite outrageous. “
It is. Meet the car codenamed T.50s, a racing version of the T.50 supercar. “If you take the McLaren F1 as an example, the T.50 is more ‘GTR’ than ‘LM’,” says Murray. “We have gone straight through the car and it has been driven by performance and aerodynamics.
“It’s quite outrageous.” There is that word again.
So at its core it rests the same carbon monocoque from the road T.50, but Murray’s team has changed the body panels and every element of the chassis in an attempt to save weight. “It’s coming out at 890 kg… which is pretty ridiculous. That is to say literally a Lotus Elise, ”he says, again with another smile. Yes, it is also 94kg lighter than the T.50 supercar, which is already a feather. Any lighter and it would have to be tied up.
Although we suspect that keeping it glued to the track is as simple as stepping on the gas. Enter the 1.7 meter wide hang glider mounted at the rear of the car; a spoiler that echoes the front wing design of Murray’s 1983 Brabham BT52 Formula One car.
Coupled with a new underbody aerodynamic profile, front splitter, adjustable diffusers and the existing T.50 fan, the T.50s is capable of generating… 1,500 kg of downforce. Let that number roll through your head for a while. “We had a race where we got to 1,900 kg at full speed,” Murray tells us, “but we had to back up a bit because we don’t have huge tires on the car.” In fact, the tires are wider than the T.50, but not massive; they still run Michelin Cup Sport 2 on forged magnesium wheels.
There’s a nice party trick, if you like to party in long tunnels, of course, as Murray confirms, “the aerodynamics are so effective that the T.50 would be able to drive backwards, and they could do it at just 175 mph.” .
There are no driving modes to speak of, only one, which we call “resounding.” It operates in high downforce mode at all times. “When you get on this thing and start the engine, the fan comes on at 7,000 rpm and stays there,” he says. You’ll also see the fin, which is said to improve cornering efficiency and stability, and cleans / channels air into the hang glider. Too bad this air, because there will be a lot to control. And used: The T.50’s naturally aspirated 3.9-liter Cosworth V12 has been suitably redesigned to extract even more power and torque. There are revised cylinder heads, new cams, a higher compression ratio, and a new free-flow exhaust system.
The aerodynamics are so effective that the T.50s would be able to drive backwards.
All in all, the T.50s develops over 700 bhp and up to 720 bhp at high speed thanks to the ram air induction system on top. It’ll keep revving to 12,100 rpm, and we’re promised “it’s going to sound good too.” The engine is paired with a new Xtrac six-speed gearbox with paddles, which replaces the manual door on the T.50.
In fact, between and, although we can’t see it at this early stage, we are told that it has been totally stripped away. The center riding position remains (now a lightweight carbon fiber seat with a six-point harness), but the right-hand passenger seat has been removed to allow for the installation of “a GTR-style switch panel and system. extinguisher and some electrical control boxes ”, leaving only one passenger seat on the left.
Turn off the air conditioning. And infotainment. And the storage compartments. And the carpets and the instrumentation. The steering wheel is now a rectangular F1-style rim, and the only buttons left are the traction and launch control.
We asked if the T.50 is Murray dropping the T.50 supercar from the strap. “That’s exactly what it is. I said to myself, ‘How wild can we go?’ This isn’t a road car with a rear wing. It’s a pretty serious machine.” However, there will still be time to have fun. “I would like each car to be different,” says Murray. “Not just in extravagant specs and color schemes to match the extravagant bodywork, but also in providing personalized attention to each driver.”
And so each T.50 customer will receive a ‘Trackspeed’ package that includes setup, training, racing and support, with each car tailored exactly to the customer’s specifications. “If they don’t want as much downforce, we can remove it and adjust the aerodynamic balance. The idea is that we have an ongoing relationship with every race car or track owner. Until we have a series of races, we organize events and track days, and [customers of the T.50s] become a kind of ‘GTR family’. “Murray has already contacted SRO’s Stéphane Ratel to potentially create a ‘GT1’ racing series.” He wants to be driven, and people deserve to hear him driving around the world too. circuit, ”he adds.
The only chance most of us will ever see one, anyway. Only 25 of these T.50 corridors are being built, each will cost £ 3.1 million (before tax, so just over £ 3.7 million). And … more than half of the 25-car race has already been counted, before anyone has even seen a photo.
“Prototyping begins next year and production runs immediately after T.50, in the same facility,” Murray tells us. “So T.50 is 2022, and we will build these cars in the first quarter of 2023.” So, a lot of time to practice your serious face when driving.
