When Gordon Murray Automotive revealed the T.50, it seemed like a watershed moment in an era of increasingly heavy, complex and hybridised performance cars.
Here was a car designed with the purpose of providing the purest possible driving experience; lightweight, naturally-aspirated, manual transmission and advanced active ground effect aerodynamics.
Today, the Gordon Murray Automotive story continues with the launch of the T.33, a newly developed model that sits alongside the T.50 and T.50s Niki Lauda, is limited to just 100 units and priced from £1.37m before taxes. Below, Gordon himself provides some insights into the creation of the latest member of the Gordon Murray Automotive range.
T.33: A Unique Personality
GM: “With the T.33, our second all-new car, we gave ourselves a very clear brief: to create another timeless design. We designed and engineered T.33 to the same exacting standards as our T.50, with the same emphasis on driver focus, performance, lightweight and superlative, pure design. The outcome, however, is a very different motor car. This is a car where comfort, effortless performance and day to day usability are even more front and centre in its character.”
Engine: Designing the new GMA.2 V12
At the heart of T.33 sits a 3.9-litre V12 – just like the T.50 – capable of revving to 11,100rpm. With near-instantaneous power delivery and 75% of torque available under 2,500rpm, it’s as thrilling as it is easy to live with. And with a new bespoke exhaust system, it promises one of the most spine-tingling soundtracks on the road today.
GM: “The engine is the heart and soul of any supercar. And to ensure driving perfection, it must be bespoke, and it must be normally aspirated. We were fortunate that we had the world’s greatest V12 from the T.50 as a starting point. Even so, nothing was taken for granted, and no part was automatically carried over without due diligence and consideration. When we called upon our technical partner Cosworth to create a bespoke engine for the T.33, every single component was pored over in painstaking detail. Numerous systems and components were re-engineered and re-designed to pursue excellence, and we’re 100 per cent confident that the GMA.2 V12 provides the perfect match for the T.33’s driving characteristics.”
Among the changes are modified cylinder heads, completely new camshafts, variable valve timing, new engine mapping and a new ram induction intake system. Likewise, there is a totally bespoke six-speed manual gearbox, fitted as standard, and an optional paddleshift system that provides the world’s fastest gearchange, free from the complexities of multiple clutches or dog rings.
Design: Driven by Purpose
GM: “The beauty of simplicity is the key to the design of every GMA model, and the new T.33 is no exception. As with the T.50 and T.50s, each component and every curve and radius is a bespoke design on the T.33 and it’s there because it has a function to perform.”
This time there is no fan involved, but nevertheless, rather than large spoilers, protruding skirts and vents that adorn most modern-day supercars. The T.33 utilises ground effect for its downforce. A system of inlet channels and subtle rear diffuser provide all the downforce necessary for the T.33, aside from a small active rear spoiler. Known as Passive Boundary Layer Control (PBLC), the T.33 has a level of aerodynamic efficiency that is 30 per cent more effective than a conventional ground effect supercar.
The Interior: Free from Distraction
GM: “Our focus from day one of this project has been to deliver absolute driving perfection. And while the engine may be the heart and soul of a supercar, the cabin and its controls provide the conduit through which the driver engages with the engine and the car’s other attributes. The T.33’s driver-focussed cabin enables each journey, no matter how short, to be relished free of distraction, but also with the practicality for longer trips to be undertaken.”
The cabin is free from touchscreens and endless sub menus, opting instead for physical switches and rotary controls, allowing for distraction-free operation. The centrepiece of the interior is arguably the large, floodlit rev dial; a visual representation of the importance of the engine to the whole driving experience.
Driving Perfection
GM: “Like the T.50 and T.50s, the T.33 is all about the way it drives. We have engineered the T.33 to provide exceptional levels of highly tactile and deeply immersive involvement to elevate the driver to a higher plane behind the wheel. Our judiciously calibrated, non-invasive traction and stability systems are designed not to detract from the driving experience but are there to provide an additional level of confidence when called upon.”
The T.33 is built around a unique, superlight carbon fibre monocoque and iFrame® which, combined with a meticulous dedication to lightweight in every component, results in a target weight of 1,100kg – about 300kg less than the average supercar. To further hone its unique personality, T.33 is also equipped with a bespoke suspension package.
Lightweight double wishbones are deployed front and rear in conjunction with coil springs over aluminium alloy dampers. The front suspension configuration features an anti-roll bar and aluminium alloy uprights. At the rear of the chassis, aluminium alloy uprights and toe control links are deployed, working as part of an Inclined Axis Shear Mounting system (IASM) system has the rear suspension mounted directly to the transmission casing with the torsional loads supported by the chassis and the entire powertrain mounted on anti-vibration bushes.
Creating Your T.33
If you’re interested in creating your own T.33, you can contact James directly or through the LaSource website. The car you buy will be tailored completely to you, built with your measurements and preferences in mind from the very beginning. Personalisation options range from the simple – colours, gearbox choice, left-hand-drive or right-hand-drive – to the more bespoke as part of the Special Vehicles department.