Supercar

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Friday, August 24, 2007


I recently watched the movie Fracture, in which Sir Anthony Hopkin's character drives a Porsche Carrera GT. The Carrera GT is one of those hideously expensive automobiles built for ultimate performance, known as supercars.

As I saw it being driven and heard the shriek of its V-10, suddenly I had another concept to add to the Tellurian Motors lineup. You have to know I was comparing the GT to the Tesla roadster, and you also have to know that the (still conceptual) Tellurian Brubeck is no match for that ultimate (now discontinued) Porsche and will likely fall short of the Roadster's performance.

Why not an electric supercar? Yes, I know it's an exclusive market, but there are enough enthusiasts out there with obscene amounts of money to throw around to ensure demand for supercars. Heck, the Tesla Roadster goes for around $100K and isn't technically a 'supercar'. My electric supercar would go for around the same price as a Corvette ZR-1...

Oh, but I wasn't even thinking about that. I was just excited to have another flat-panel design concept taking shape within my brainpan. Full lineup? Sure, I had a full lineup before this, but which model was the flagship? It's a feather in any manufacturer's cap to have one car that can approach or exceed 200 MPH, with acceleration and handling to match.

If you're wondering how any flat-panel vehicle can be aerodynamic enough to achieve such speeds, maybe you're not familiar with the F-111 stealth fighter -- not that my supercar will resemble it in any way (except for the flatness of its panels), but you get the point. By the way there have been many angular sports cars and supercars in the past -- maybe half of them 'mere' concept vehicles -- that I'm sure I've been influenced by...

...and if you want to talk about influence, I'd say most of mine has come from Italian design houses -- Bertone, Italdesign, Zagato, Pininfarina, even Ghia. The Italians know design. Throw in Frank Costin, William Towns, Syd Mead, and countless others including architects and furniture designers, and you get the picture. As I said in the first post in this blog, I pay attention...

Right now I want to give 'props' to all those who have come before me, striving to bring form to functional objects. "A thing of beauty is a joy forever."



So, back to the car, the supercar: Imagine if you will, an elongated hexagon. That's the main feature of its 'face', and the upper half of it is windshield. There is a smaller version of the Brubeck's box bumper and grille, with round driving lights, at the leading edge. The car is extremely low, on par with the original Ford GT40 (which was 40 inches tall). This is, as yet, the most visually stunning of my designs. The pure geometry of it will astound -- and that's not bragadoccio. I am astounded myself, just imagining it.

It will be hard to look at. As you circle it, its panels and angles will line up visually to give the sense of optical illusion -- and while that may be true of other Tellurian Motors offerings, in this case, more so.

It will be all-wheel-drive, with electric motors front and rear and (of course) sophisticated software that tells the front motors when to kick in and keeps both transmissions in sync, among countless other tasks. The Tesla Roadster manages over 140 MPH with a 2-speed transmission and a 250 horsepower motor. The Tellurian Electrum will have 4 speeds and a pair of the most powerful motors that will fit -- or even a motor for each wheel.

Electrum? Electrum is an alloy of silver and gold which occurs in nature, the use of which dates back to the beginning of civilization. As much of a tongue-twister as 'Tellurian Electrum' is (say it five times fast), I can't think of a better name for an electric supercar. It rolls off the tongue in a delicious manner.

Remember the car in the movie Tron? That was a Lamborghini Countach, designed by Marcello Gandini while he was with Bertone. I'm not saying the Electrum will be able to execute perfect 90-degree turns at breakneck speed like Tron's car, but I would expect journalists to make the connection.

This is an extremely sophisticated vehicle, and certainly not for everyone. It is something for Tellurian Motors to aspire to, and to work toward. We'll begin with the Runabout, and work our way upward...

September 1, 2007

Only minor editing of the above (composed offline) was done today.

It's almost funny, that the metal I've chosen to name this car after is, or was, 'unrefined'. Besides silver and gold, naturally-occurring electrum would often include copper and other elements. The composition would vary from location to location. Similarly, we expect no two Tellurian Electrums to be alike. Customers can choose from a variety of body materials and specify whatever upholstery and carpet they like. These are handbuilt specials...


...as are, to some degree, all Tellurian Motors offerings. It would take quite a bit of demand for us to invest in robot welders and assembly lines as opposed to assembly areas. Stranger things have happened, and for all we know the Electrum could be the first to become that popular.


To quote John Lennon (yet again), "You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one." I intend to produce a pencil drawing of the entire Tellurian Motors lineup, parked together, to scan and include in a future post. Along the way I'll be sketching each individual model, over and over again, until they're 'right'. The best of those will show up here as well.


Wish me luck.



Phil Smith
Late Summer 2007


PS (after 3 AM)

I managed to reinstall MSPaint... Here is a crude line drawing of the Electrum that I'm only about 50% happy with:







PPS Here's a frontal view:...and a rear (as with the side view, these are preliminary images):

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