Gordon Murray Automotive has announced a $120 million strategic investment from Halo Cars Group. The funding follows a notable moment for the British brand at an RM Sotheby’s auction last month, where an S1 LM from Gordon Murray Special Vehicles sold in Las Vegas for $20.63 million, setting a record for the highest non-charity price ever paid for a new car.
The result highlights the growing financial value placed on Murray’s modern creations and provides the backdrop for the new investment. Professor Gordon Murray remains chairman and chief designer. The company’s chief financial officer, Darren Jukes, has been named interim CEO. Halo Cars Group managing partners Tarik Ouass and JR Rahn will join the board.
“This is not an investment in size, but in further scarcity. Our investment mandate is the exact opposite of a traditional automotive growth investment. We believe that further limiting allocations to an already very exclusive production will allow Gordon Murray’s bespoke craftsmanship and engineering to endure for generations.” – Tarik Ouass and JR Rahn, managing partners of Halo Cars Group.
Gordon Murray Automotive says this investment will support the fulfillment of its current order backlog, fund research and development programs with a product roadmap outlined to 2039 and strengthen its specialty vehicles division, which focuses on ultra-low volume projects in three areas: bespoke orders based on existing models, reinterpretations of previous Murray designs based on historical reinterpretations of previous Murray designs and completely new vehicles. Access is limited to a small circle of long-standing customers and production numbers are deliberately kept low.
The approach reflects the seven principles that guide the company’s work, including lightweight construction, timeless engineering, exclusivity and driving perfection. Murray has long held that it is critical to maintain control over key areas of design and engineering.
This belief dates back to his time in Formula One in the 1970s and 1980s with Brabham and later McLaren, where a tight integration of aerodynamics, structure and layout produced championship cars and later road cars. This integrated thinking gave rise to elements such as ground effect aerodynamics and the central driving position that are now familiar from its road cars.
“Gordon Murray Automotive has always been a very exclusive family, which is reflected in both our team and the customers who support us. I am confident that I have found the right partners who value our seven principles and will support my legacy in the future. Tarik Ouass was the very first customer to order a T.50 and has acquired every car we have ever built. I look forward to the next chapter as Tarik and his investment partner JR Rahn join me on the board” – Professor Gordon Murray CBE, Chairman and Chief Designer.
Production activity is expected to continue until 2026 and includes models such as the T.50s Niki Lauda, ​​the T.33 range and the Special Vehicles Le Mans GTR. In November, the company completed production of the 100th T.50 at its Highams Park factory in Surrey, England. More than 80 percent of Gordon Murray Automotive’s production is exported, with the United States among its key markets, along with the Middle East, Asia and South America.
Earlier this month, a T.50 worth $5.63 million was sold at an RM Sotheby’s auction in Abu Dhabi, double the original RRP. Daily Sparkz was present at the sale, and the showstopper was another of Murray’s all-time great creations: a 1995 McLaren F1, originally delivered to Brunei and equipped with the HDK package, which exceeded the pre-auction estimate and ultimately sold for $25.3 million.
Taken together, the investment and recent auction results signal a carefully controlled future for Gordon Murray Automotive based on continuity, scarcity and sustained technical independence.
Images: Gordon Murray Automotive
