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| Gordon Murray interviewed on BBC. Source: Telegraph.co.za |
WHEN Gordon Murray grew up in Durban, he was already obsessed with
saving weight. As his former school-mate, journalist Malcolm Kinsey, explained,
this is because less is always more in the quest for the most effective
efficiencies.
Murray went on to become the award-winning McLaren F1 designer
before renouncing that sport to focus on designing a process to slash the cost
of producing cars.
Murray called his process iStream production and Yamaha has now
become the first manufacturer to use it to build cars.
Motor Authority reports that the motorbike builder
revealed its first car — built using Murray’s streamlined process — at the 2013
Tokyo Motor Show last week
Called the Motiv city car, Yamaha built the two-seater entirely
using iStream in conjunction with Gordon Murray Design.
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| Just add panels: The future of motoring will see more of this: roll cage and a couple of hub-wheel motors, and away you go. |
Motor Authority reports the Motiv is only a concept
at this stage, but Yamaha has already included many of the attributes one would
expect from a company that specialises in fun vehicles. These include a
lightweight chassis and body, high rigidity and thorough engineering — including
a rear-mounted drivetrain and independent suspension on all four wheels.
While the concept is electric-powered, Yamaha suggested at the show
a petrol version would be possible, since the iStream process allows easy
adaption for different powertrains and lay-outs.
The car, while not yet production-ready, would be the first true
competitor for Daimler’s Smart Fortwo since that car first emerged in 1998.
Motiv is around two inches lower, over two inches wider and similar in length to
the Fortwo, but weighs 100 kilograms less thanks to light but strong tubular
construction, composite panels for strength, and a non load-bearing skin.
“Forming a partnership with Yamaha is a dream for us,” said Gordon
Murray, who started developing the iStream concept of building cars more than a
decade ago.
“Yamaha has completely embraced the principles of iStream, and
could not be a more ideal partner. They have huge technical resources, but their
team on this project has been tightly-knit, very skilled and very quick-acting.”
Murray has previously revealed that the first iStream built car
would launch in 2016.
