After Gordon Murray had made a name for himself at the Brabham Formula 1 team and at McLaren, Murray then turned his attention to smart mobility, the resurrection of TVR, and the Global Vehicle Trust OX. Yup, this thing is called the OX.
According to Murray, the Global Vehicle Trust OX is the world’s first flat-pack truck. Envisioned by entrepreneur Sir Torquil Norman and designed by Gordon Murray, the OX has been created with a single purpose in mind. That is to provide all-terrain mobility for people living in the most remote parts of the world, including developing countries.
The detail that first caught my attention about the Global Vehicle Trust OX isn’t its boxy shape, nor the old-school round headlights, small off-road wheels or three-window windshield. Can you see the XP3 lettering at the rear? Well, there was an experimental prototype McLaren F1 and a pre-production McLaren P1 gifted with the same XP3 lettering.
Truth be told, that’s the most exciting thing about the Global Vehicle Trust OX. On a close second, it so happens that the driver of the flat-pack truck is seated centrally, just like in a McLaren F1. The tailgate also doubles as a loading ramp, which is a pretty nice touch.
Photo: Global Vehicle Trust
The OX is animated by a 100 PS (97 hp) 2.2-liter turbo diesel engine, it’s equipped with a five-speed manual transmission, the tires measure 16 inches, and that’s about it. On a different note, this 4,229 mm x 2,070 mm vehicle can seat up to 13 people, carry eight 44-gallon drums or three Euro-pallets, and it boasts a payload of 1,900 kg (4,188 lbs). To put the latter into perspective, the Mitsubishi L200 pickup manages 1,050 kg (2,315 lbs).
“The OX design and prototyping program is undoubtedly one of the most interesting and challenging I have undertaken during my 45 years of car design, including my years in F1,” declared Gordon Murray. “The added challenge of a flat-packed vehicle design over the already tough targets for cost, durability and weight saving made for a fascinating and stimulating journey from concept to prototype.”
Now that three prototypes are complete, the next steps in turning the OX to fruition is raising funds for testing, then to put the flat-pack truck into production. “My dream is to one day see an OX in every village in Africa,” declared Sir Torquil Norman, the man who founded GVT five years ago.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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