You may have never heard of the MOTIV Quadricycle. Presented in March 2020, the vehicle conceived by Gordon Murray Design may one day become an autonomous pod for a single passenger. While the technology is not there yet, what the MOTIV can offer as a contribution is something Gordon Murray has been speaking about since 2010, at least. At the 2021 Cenex-LCV, the designer presented the iStream structure that underpins the MOTIV.
The construction method is based on the intelligent use of composites, something Murray brought from his years in F1. Despite that, the designer knows the automotive industry has budget restrictions related to making a profit with each car it sells. That said, the iStream mixes these composite panels with a metallic frame called iFrame. It is this metallic structure that houses the mechanical components of the vehicle.
The composite panels (iPanels) are bonded to the iFrame, giving it more rigidity than a regular vehicle could present. The iPanels allow a car to have 50% fewer components, which helps vehicles made with it be 20% lighter than comparable ones built with traditional methods. Murray is proud of how they keep their integrity for much more time than a typical monocoque structure.
The way it is conceived, the iStream makes it possible to build cars in smaller structures, saving CO2 in the process. Being lighter, these vehicles also are more energy-efficient, naturally emitting less carbon.
Although iStream was presented in 2010, it is the sort of apparently good idea that sits for years without any application. Gordon Murray would have given up on it a long time ago if it were a bad idea or something that was not feasible. At the same time, all the companies that got interested in it have failed to produce iStream cars.
Apart from GMA (Gordon Murray Automotive), TVR is the latest company that may use the system. We’re still waiting for any company to put the T.25 and the T.27 into production. The innovative urban car Murray conceived more than ten years ago certainly deserved a shot.
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