Yep, Dorey's had another amateurish dabble in automotive design. The Gibson GT pictured here is meant as a near-to-mid future design, from a time when electric cars have taken off and become the norm. A recent chance to have a brief ride in a Tesla Model S P90D has convinced me that this is a very possible and realistic future, and that those of us who like our cars fast, exciting and theatrical need not be concerned about this.
Now, I do deeply love the raw explosive joy of a roaring V8 engine, I love the simplicity and charisma of classic cars, and I've been lusting after a Mustang or similar muscle car ever since I first drove one*. But I also really like new cars too, and what's being made possible with modern technologies and forward-looking design. I'm also an environmental scientist with a long view of human civilisation, and keen to see our society weened off of fossil fuel dependence. When done properly and with due care and attention to detail, a modern electric car such as the Model S feels like an incredibly special place to be, such that I don't think this transition will lose us as much as some petrolheads fear it will. (And yes, the acceleration in Ludicrous Mode will seriously reconfigure your understanding of physics.) The entire experience of just being driven in one for a short period is wonderful, to the point that several die-hard petrolheads I know of, who had previously been highly sceptical of this electric car thing, have said that it felt like finally arriving in the 21st century, automotively speaking. Said petrolheads have then either bought a Model S of their own more or less immediately, or at least promised themselves one instead of that Ferrari in the event of a lottery win.
A day may come soon when the roar of a petrol-powered V8 is something you'll only hear when a classics enthusiast rumbles past, and the norm becomes the eerie serenity of electric and/or hydrogen drive. I do not believe, however, that this will herald the end of cars being fun. I do not believe electric drive will kill the idea of the pony car.
The Gibson GT presented here will not bellow its guts out through thousands of controlled explosions per minute, it will not connect you directly to the road through an analog mechanical manual transmission, and it will probably even do the driving for you if you wish it to. It will have the same comforts and conveniences as most other electric cars of its day, but it will show that you care about turning up in style and with a sense of theatre. It will show that to you, your car is more than an appliance. It will seat five and do 0-60 in somewhere around 4 or 5 seconds - not supercar fast, but still rewarding, and like the Mustang before it it's aimed at being priced in a way that relatively normal people can afford one.
I've liked the idea of a 'cyberpunk/Tron-styled electric Mustang' for a while now. I've borrowed the 'Gibson' name from a fictional car following these principles from a lightweight Android OS endless driving game called 'Forever Drive' by RedRobot Labs ( https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.super... ). It's a fairly simple game but the art style is very Tron-themed, so it appeals highly to me. Anyway the obligatory muscle car skin in that game is called the 'Gibson,' and I've stuck with it for my design because I choose to interpret it as a nod to William Gibson, the author credited with largely pioneering the cyberpunk genre. Which I think is fun and appropriate.
* Great story, that: "Welcome to Key West, sir. We have in our records that you're booked to rent a convertible, but unfortunately we don't have any in stock at the moment. I'm really sorry." "Oh... well nuts. That's kind of disappointing." "Let's see, we have a Dodge Challenger we can offer you..." "!!!!!!" "Would that be alright, sir?" "YES OKAY THAT WILL DO FINE I GUESS" "Are you sure? We could upgrade you to an SUV instead if you'd like..." "NO NO I'M OKAY WITH THE CHALLENGER THANK YOU BYE" *VROOOM* :D :D :D 8D
