When Gordon Murray Automotive revealed the T.33, it said the car would be available in global markets. That includes the US, with the supercar now meeting the federal government’s safety standards and crash requirements for street-legal certification.
According to Car and Driver, which spoke with Gordon Murray and GMA CEO Phillip Lee, certifying the T.33 for US roads took a R556 million investment from the company. To receive approval, GMA had to design a two-seat cabin, eliminating the T.50’s central driver’s seat. The GMA T.33 is a follow-up to the T.50, which isn’t considered street legal in the country. However, the two use the same naturally aspirated Cosworth-sourced V12, which does meet US emissions standards.
The 3.9-liter engine isn’t as powerful in the T.33 as it is in the T.50, but it still produces 607 horsepower (453 kilowatts) and 333 pound-feet (451 Newton-meters) of torque. It screams to an 11,100-rpm redline, too. The power routes to the rear wheels through a six-speed manual gearbox. However, GMA will offer a six-speed paddle-shift automatic as an option. The company boasts that its Xtrac paddle-shift gearbox weighs just 172 pounds (78 kilograms). Even the engine is lightweight at 392 lbs (177 kg).
The T.33 is a supercar, but one you can live with every day. It features both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and it has 10 cubic feet of total storage space, which isn’t a lot but more than expected. The simple interior features aluminum and carbon fiber, and it even features an analog tachometer when most other supercars are going digital with screens.
According to the report, the T.50 and T.33 won’t be GMA’s only vehicles. The company has plans for the next decade with two other cars already in development. GMA plans for T.33 deliveries to begin in 2024, the same year it plans to open a US headquarters. It costs R30.3 million, a bargain compared to the R42 million T.50. Production is limited to just 100 examples. However, the car quickly sold out after its reveal earlier this year, so good luck getting one now. Maybe keep an eye out for one of the company’s future models.
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