1. The child of Scottish immigrant parents, Murray was born and grew up in Durban, South Africa.
16 Facts About Gordon Murray
1. 2.
Gordon Murray's father was a motorcycle racer and later prepared racing cars.
3.
Gordon Murray studied mechanical engineering at Natal Technical College, now Durban University of Technology.
4.
Gordon Murray built and raced his own car, the IGM Ford, in the South African National Class during 1967 and 1968.
5.
Gordon Murray moved to England in 1969, hoping to find a job at Lotus Cars.
6.
Gordon Murray developed a reputation for an innovative approach to design, applied not only to car concepts and details but to race strategy.
7.
Between 1973 and 1985, Gordon Murray's Brabhams scored 22 Grand Prix wins, finished 2nd in the Constructors' Championship in 1975 and 1981, and gave Nelson Piquet Drivers' Championships in 1981 and 1983.
8.
In 1986, Gordon Murray received an offer from Ron Dennis to join McLaren as Technical Director, taking over the role formerly held by John Barnard.
9.
Gordon Murray brought his Brabham experience to the McLaren design team, led by Chief Designer Steve Nichols.
10.
From 1991 to 2004, Gordon Murray headed the offshoot McLaren Cars team to design road-going supercars, starting with the McLaren F1 in 1992.
11.
In 1981, Gordon Murray was involved in improvements for Midas Cars.
12.
Gordon Murray independently designed the Rocket, an ultra-lightweight, open cockpit roadster powered by a 1-litre motorcycle engine, which has an appearance similar to that of a 60's era Grand Prix car.
13.
In September 2016 it was announced that Gordon Murray had been appointed to develop the OX truck, a flat pack low-cost vehicle, for the British charity Global Vehicle Trust.
14.
From 2015, Gordon Murray collaborated with TVR to design the upcoming TVR models, with the TVR Griffith released in 2017.
15.
In 2022 Gordon Murray was awarded the inaugural FIA President's Innovation Medal, 'for his constant innovative approach to race and road car design'.
16.
In 2024 Gordon Murray was awarded the BBC Top Gear Lifetime Achievement Award as 'arguably the greatest and most original thinker in both Formula One and the wider automotive sphere'.