McLaren Performance Hybrid in Showrooms Next Year
McLaren has named its upcoming hybrid supercar the Artura while devising a new electrified category the High-Performance Hybrid (HPH).
This latest acronym together with the automaker’s statement trumpeting the recent arrival of its fastest ever model, the 250mph Speedtail Hyper-GT, suggests the Artura is probably not going to be that far behind in the performance stakes. McLaren says the car will mark the beginning of a new era as it builds on expertise in electrification first showcased in the McLaren P1TM hybrid hypercar unveiled in 2012, making Artura is McLaren’s first HPH series production supercar.
It features an all-new compact twin-turbocharged V6 gasoline engine, designed to combine with an electric motor in a new lightweight HPH powertrain that claims the performance benefits of the automaker’s larger capacity V8 engines. Yet it also boasts improved torque response at low engine speeds to deliver extra acceleration and can also run on electric power alone for everyday emission-free urban journeys.
Its the first car to be built on an all-new, platform architecture for electrification and designed and manufactured in the UK at the McLaren Composites Technology Centre. The additional mass of the hybrid system has been largely offset by the application of weight-saving technologies throughout the chassis, body and powertrain.
Mike Flewitt, chief executive officer, at McLaren Automotive, said: “Every element of the Artura is all-new – from the platform architecture and every part of the High-Performance Hybrid powertrain, to the exterior body, interior and cutting-edge driver interface – but it draws on decades of McLaren experience in pioneering super-lightweight race and road car technologies to bring all of our expertise in electrification to the supercar class.”
— Paul Myles is a seasoned automotive journalist based in London. Follow him on Twitter @Paulmyles_
