Gordon Murray GMA T.50 debuts at Goodwood, and it sounds like an F1 car
Gordon Murray's newest GMA T.50 fan car not only made its first public debut at this year's Goodwood Festival of Speed. It also ran three laps at the Goodwood Motor Circuit, and it sounds like a modern F1 car on steroids. With former racing driver Dario Franchitti behind the wheel, the GMA T.50 is turning out to be the most highly anticipated supercar to date, and it has more to do than just unleashing a ferocious, naturally-aspirated V12 wail.
Similar to Prof. Murray's first creation – the iconic McLaren F1 – the GMA T.50 has a central driving position with room for three passengers. Behind the cabin is a bespoke 3.9-liter Cosworth V12 gasoline engine pumping out 654 horsepower and 344 pound-feet of torque. Most importantly, the motor spins up to 12,100 rpm, making it the highest-revving and most power-dense naturally aspirated engine fitted to a road car.
And with most exotic hypercars focusing on outrageous acceleration and top speed numbers, the GMA T.50 is the exact opposite. Sure, we bet it accelerates faster than a hungry cheetah with its mighty powerful engine and lightweight carbon-fiber monocoque body. Still, Prof. Murray has other essential things in mind, like making GMA T.50 the lightest, most driver-focused, and best-engineered supercar ever made.
Helping the cause is a 40 cm aero fan in the car's rear, which you can see in the video above. Working on the principle of "boundary layer control," the fan works by sucking the car to the ground and creating downforce. There are six aero modes to choose from, and the fan works with two active aero ducts in the undercarriage and a pair of dynamic aero wings to channel the air.
And if you think the Yamaha V10 engine in a Lexus LFA is astonishing, the GMA T.50's V12 is on another level. It spins from idle to max rev (12,100 rpm) in under 0.3-seconds, so you better be quick in shifting its standard Xtrac six-speed manual gearbox. It also weighs under 392 pounds, making it the lightest road-going V12 gasoline engine in the business.
However, only a privileged few will get to relish the GMA T.50 in its entire splendor. GMA is only making 100 units of the T.50. Each will be custom-made, and each will carry a sub-$3.1-million base price. In addition, GMA is also making 25 race-ready T.50 S Niki Lauda versions starting at $4.3-million each. The first deliveries will arrive to lucky owners in the first half of 2022.