British supercar firm McLaren today unleashed its first proper production electric-hybrid supercar, the Artura – which can hit 205mph and drive round town on battery power.
Priced from £185,500, the two-seater super-lightweight plug-in hybrid will sprint from rest to 60mph in three seconds – and possibly fractionally less – subject to official validation. And it can cover up to 19 miles under electric power.
McLaren hailed it as the start of ‘a new chapter for the pioneering supercar company and a new era in supercar technology and performance’.
The launch of a major British-built supercar so soon after Brexit is also major vote of confidence in the UK.
Video: McLaren’s planet-preserving supercar: Film unveils its £185k Artura
The Artura is the first supercar the brand has released with a hybrid powertrain, with the only previous petrol-electric combo being the plug-in hybrid P1 hypercar and Speedtail – both part of the firm’s Ultimate series and produced only in limited numbers.
Engineered for road and track, the new model promises a blend of ‘thrilling performance, driving dynamics and engagement’ with some ‘electric driving capability’.
Manufactured at McLaren’s boutique factory in Woking, Surrey, the new mid-engined Artura is the first model to be built on the firm’s new lightweight carbon architecture created in-house at the company’s new McLaren Composites Technology Centre near Sheffield.
The Artura, with a tight ‘shrink-wrapped’ appearance, will be gunning for rival supercars including the Lamborghini Huracan, Maserati MC20 and Ferrari F8 Tributo.
It is powered by a 680 horsepower petrol-electric hybrid powertrain – combining a 585 horsepower 3.0-litre twin-turbo-charged V6 engine with a 95 horsepower electric motor and linked to an 8-speed SSG transmission. Reversing is done via the electric motor.
There are four driving modes: Electric, Comfort, Sport and Track.
Top speed is electronically limited to 205mph and it will achieve up to 81mph in electric power only.
Lightning fast acceleration and ‘razor sharp throttle response’ means 0-to-60mph acceleration in just three seconds, and possibly fractionally less as the predicted 0-to-62mph time is the same.
From a standing start it will also hit 124mph (200km/hr) in just 8.3 seconds, 186mph (300km/hr) in 21.5 seconds, and cover a quarter-mile (400m) in 10.7 seconds.
The Artura’s useable battery capacity of 7.4kWh gives it an electric-only range of 19 miles – enough to cover the school run or 83 per cent of an average UK daily commute (outside of lockdown) of 23 miles.
Battery charging time is 2.5 hours to reach 80 per cent capacity. But the 72-litre petrol tank means a much longer range.
As a hybrid, it also generates and harvests extra electric power from braking and cruising en route.
McLaren say the new Artura is ‘the most fuel efficient McLaren ever produced’ offering fuel economy in excess of 50mpg and, for a supercar, incredibly low CO2 emissions of just 129g/km.
Lightning-fast acceleration and speed requires equally powerful braking performance and the Artura has this with its carbon ceramic brake discs (390mm front, 380mm rear) with forged aluminium calipers, which will bring the car to a stop from 124mph in just 126 metres and from 62mph in 31 metres.
New McLaren F1 driver Daniel Ricciardo has already driven the car, putting it through its paces at the Brands Hatch circuit in Kent.
In an action clip of the Australian drivers sliding the £185,000 supercar around the track, he said: ‘The fastest way around any race track is to take the perfect line. It’s all about precision. Sliding around can cost you the race. But today, I’m not racing.’
However, he appears to be a bigger fan of the car’s most efficient driving setting: ‘This is the bit i really love, EV mode. How awesome is that? Complete silence.’
With the two swing-up doors back in place, the all-new interior has all key controls accessible from the steering wheel.
A new eight-inch high definition touchscreen allows the driver to configure assistance systems and to ‘mirror’ their smartphone. Software upgrades for the car are possible over the air.
Thanks to a lightweight carbon-fibre and aluminium body it weighs just 1,498kg at the kerbside, with a dry weight of 1,395kg, giving a class-leading power-to-weight ratio of 488 horsepower per tonne.
The total weight of hybrid components is just 130kg, which includes an 88kg battery pack and 15.4kg electric motor.
For a bit of leisurely cruising there’s also 160 litres of luggage capacity.
Beyond the standard car, three other enhanced versions – Performance, TechLux and Vision – add £3,500 to the £185,500 list price. But with a huge palette of added extras, most cars will sell for in excess of £200,000.
The Artura also marks the debut of a new Clubsport seat for added cossetting comfort for even the tallest of drivers. McLaren said it ‘uniquely combines the range of motion expected of a moveable backrest with the light weight and support of a bucket seat.’
It explained: ‘The whole seat pivots as one through an elliptical arc when adjusted, combining under-thigh support, seat height and backrest in one movement.’
It promises to allow a driver measuring 6ft 4in (193cm) ‘to stretch out with generous knee- and leg-room, even with the backrest significantly reclined.’ Shoulder room is said to be ‘equally capacious.’
A Comfort seat option is also available.
Sadly the Artura name itself has no link to King Arthur or Athurian legend, but is a broad composite construct derived from Art and Future, said McLaren.
The firm said: ‘McLaren’s first series-production High-Performance Hybrid supercar focuses more than half a century of the company’s racing and road-car experience and expertise into a next-generation supercar that blends ground-breaking technology with McLaren’s dedication to pure driver engagement.’
McLaren Automotive chief executive Mike Flewitt said: ‘Every drop of McLaren’s experience and expertise has been poured into the Artura.
‘Our all-new, High-Performance Hybrid delivers all of the performance, driver engagement and dynamic excellence for which McLaren is renowned, with the additional benefit of EV driving capability.
Mr Flewitt added: ‘The introduction of the Artura is a landmark moment – for McLaren, for our customers who will appreciate and enjoy this car on every emotional and rational level, and for the supercar world.’
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