MCLAREN ARTURA
Ninety-eight per cent new, and powered by a hybrid V6, the Artura is the debut model for the next generation of Mclarens. Henry Catchpole has all the details
Mclaren’s first decade was a whirlwind of super and hypercars, highs and lows, and endless special editions. Now the Artura’s here to start the next chapter
LARRY KING, THE MUCH-CELEBRATED broadcaster who died in January, famously said: ‘I remind myself every morning: Nothing I say this day will teach me anything. So, if I’m going to learn, I must do it by listening.’ Now, listening is not something that supercar companies are famous for. While the Fords and Kias might put a lot of effort into market research and customer surveys, you expect Ferrari to simply invoke the spirit of old man Enzo and tell people what their heart desires. On a scale of one to five, five being completely satisfied, how would you rate the ergonomics of your dashboard? A question put to people by Peugeot, perhaps, but likely not Pagani.
I recall there was an element of this almost-condescending conviction when Mclaren launched the MP4-12C. Journalists were very much told, sometimes by Ron Dennis himself, why the Mclaren way was the right way. If you disagreed, well, there were usually numbers to prove you wrong.
Part of me admires and even commends this approach. Not everything should be put to a vote or aim to please the majority. That way blandness often lies. We desire the inspired and even the flawed, because they make the world more interesting. Product innovation should give you something that you didn’t know you needed, but subsequently can’t imagine living without.
All of which brings me to a small, subterranean theatre in the bowels of the grandly named Thought Leadership Centre at Mclaren HQ in Woking. It is dimly lit and an archetypal mid-engined supercar shape lurks under a cover on the stage. A presentation about the new car is underway and what’s caught my attention is not the power figure nor an acceleration time, but the fact that Mclaren has said it has listened.
You see, Mclaren has got an awful lot very right in the decade since the MP4-12C, but there is an argument to be made that all the cars since the original 12C have been very closely related to the 12C. Possibly too closely. The same engine, the same shunning of a limited-slip diff, the same modes, the same switches. People often voiced their dislike of certain elements, big or small, but generally the next model would arrive with the same elements unchanged. Was this an inability to alter – or a lack of inclination to alter? Now, with this completely new car, I think we have the answer. Mclaren has listened.
It has kept the things that people have liked and for which the company’s cars have been praised. Things such as the
deliciously tactile, hydraulically power-assisted steering. The pedal layout. The brake feel. The performance and attention to paring weight. But other facets, things that after ten years seemed like they might become the norm in Mclarens for evermore, have been changed. Adios, Active button. Hello, limited-slip differential. So long, awkward seat buttons. A friendly welcome to Apple Carplay and Android Auto. Greetings, better throttle response. Yes, you can even fathom how to activate the nose lift on this new Mclaren.
But let’s go back to the beginning. This freshly minted supercar is called the Artura. Which, from my brief onomastic research, is a female variant of the name Arthur. Curious. Within the Mclaren range, it will sit below the 720S but above the GT and we’ve been told to expect a starting price of around £182,500 when it goes on sale later this year.
It is a plug-in hybrid. The petrol-powered part is an all-new, twin-turbocharged, 2993cc, 120-degree, hot-vee V6. If you like your engine codes, then it is designated M630. This is augmented by an axial flux e-motor that is situated within the bell housing of the new eight-speed, dual-clutch transmission. It is, as far as I’m aware, only the second time that we have seen an axial instead of radial flux motor used in a supercar, the first being in Ferrari’s SF90. The advantages are the slimmer packaging and reduced weight for a greater power density, making it ideal for an in-transmission application.
Power is delivered to the rear wheels via an electronically controlled limited-slip differential. And there is, as you’d expect, a lot of power. Maximum outputs are 671bhp and 531lb ft of torque. The V6 provides 577bhp at 7500rpm (the red line is another 1000rpm higher) and 431lb ft of torque between 2250 and 7000rpm. Meanwhile the e-motor is capable of producing 94bhp and 166lb ft of torque, although that maximum of 94bhp (and therefore the entire 671bhp) is only transient, lasting for 15sec of full throttle before reducing to 49bhp (giving a measly 626bhp in total).
That might be of some concern should you ever find yourself with a clear run at the full length of the Döttinger Höhe straight on the Nordschleife (luckily Mclaren has never gone in for lap times around the Ring), but is unlikely to worry most owners. After all, 0-62mph is dispatched in 3.0sec and 0-124mph in just 8.3sec. Top speed is 205mph.
So, the power and performance are everything you would expect from a modern junior supercar, but as this is a hybrid, you’re probably wondering about the weight. Well, the bad
news is that it weighs more than the 570S that it replaces. The good and frankly quite extraordinary news is that the Artura weighs only 46kg more. It has a DIN weight of 1498kg (its lightest dry weight is 1395kg), which is 7kg lighter than a base Porsche 992 Carrera.
According to Mclaren, everything associated with the hybrid part of the car adds 140kg to the overall weight, 88kg of which is the batteries. This means the engineers have managed to claw back 94kg from the rest of the car. The biggest saving was in the V6 engine, which weighs over 40kg less than the old V8. The standard Clubsport seats (apparently so comfy you won’t need the comfort option) save another 8kg, the doors a further 6kg per side, while the new, future-proofing Ethernet electrical system has reduced wiring by 25 per cent and saved ten per cent in weight.
The all-new carbonfibre tub (or Mclaren Lightweight Architecture, as they call it), which is designed and produced at the new Mclaren Composites Technology Centre near Sheffield, weighs in at 82kg compared to its predecessor’s 76kg. However, like-for-like the new tub is lighter, as well as stronger and safer, because its weight encompasses the newly integrated battery housing at the back as well as the B-pillars and various other fixings not previously included.
Despite the extra gubbins, Mclaren has also managed to keep the Artura neatly compact, with the engine and transmission coming up 150mm shorter than the previous V8 powertrain. Yes, a V6 should be shorter than a V8, but the new drivetrain has to squeeze in not only the clutch that sits between the engine and gearbox (disconnecting one from the other during EV driving) but also that new e-motor.
Now, I’ve mentioned an awful lot of fresh, new stuff so far. In fact, the Artura is 98 per cent new. However, I think there is a good chance that if you passed an Artura on the street, you wouldn’t instantly clock it as the brand new Mclaren. Particularly if it was in one of its more subdued colours instead of this striking Flux Green.
That’s not to say it is a bad looking car, far from it. I love the single-piece rear deck, which gives the Artura a wonderfully clean look. The fact the A-pillars now flow seamlessly into the roof also adds subtly to the smoothness of the design, aided by the fact the rear buttresses make it look as though the top of the car is being pulled tight. I’m less keen on the pressurerelieving vents over the front arches (even though I know they are extremely effective aerodynamically) and the door mirrors look a touch fussy, but I like the eye-socket design of the headlights, even though I know others find it awkward. Switching to a big, motorsport-inspired, single windscreen wiper is also an aesthetic win in my book.
Overall it looks pleasingly compact, and I suppose there is mileage in Mclaren continuing in a similar design vein, creating a clear, familiar identity for its cars. I just think that it perhaps looks too similar to a 570S on the surface when so much beneath the skin is new.
Anyway, open the driver’s door, drop down into the new seat and you will find yourself in a cabin that has certainly had more than a light refresh. Aside from the design, a host of driver aids such as lane departure warning, road sign recognition, adaptive cruise control and auto high beam headlights are now present. However, what most customers will probably appreciate more is the introduction of smartphone mirroring, negating the need to do battle with the native system, although that is said to have been improved. The hi-fi has been revamped and the HVAC system has also been significantly upgraded to the point where it’s said to be rather over-specced now.
Having said all that, the first thing that greets you is rather like an old friend, because the steering wheel remains beautifully uncluttered without a button in sight. Look through it and you’ll see the new instrument binnacle, which is attached to the steering column. This means that, however you adjust the wheel for reach and rake, you should have a perfect view of the screen behind it. Overall the Artura feels like it has retained that trademark Mclaren view out, but the binnacle isn’t the most svelte item (certainly compared to the 720S’s foldaway item) so it will be interesting to see how forward visibility feels out on the road.
Mounted on the top corners of the binnacle are two rocker switches. These replace the old P(owertrain) and H(andling) rotary switches that were on the centre console. The Artura also does without the Active button, which is what you’ve previously needed to press to instigate any changes. Instead you simply stretch out your fingers and tune the dampers or drivetrain to your preferred setting.
Within Handling, there are three very self-explanatory damper modes: Comfort, Sport and Track. By the way, the Artura uses a new version of the Proactive Damping system that was debuted on the Mclaren GT. This uses multiple sensors to read the road and adjust the damping in as close to real time as possible.
The new multi-link set-up for the rear suspension has been aimed at increasing camber stiffness for more grip, and toestiffness for more stability. I’ve always liked the slightly loose feeling of the rear of the 570S that was particularly evident under hard braking, but I can see why it wasn’t for everyone. The Artura should be much more secure and stable in this regard, but if that sounds a touch dull then don’t worry, because in turn it has allowed the engineers to ratchet the steering up to 600LT levels of directness, while the Artura also has a slightly shorter wheelbase, so agility should be every bit as good.
Linked to this new rear suspension is one of the biggest changes in the dynamic philosophy of the Artura: the addition of an e-diff. Chris Goodwin, who was Mclaren’s chief test driver until a couple of years ago, was always adamant that a limited-slip differential wasn’t necessary and merely added weight. It might just be coincidence, but he has now left (to work at Aston Martin on the Valkyrie project) and lo and behold the next major Mclaren has an e-diff fitted. Like the suspension, it should help with stability under braking, but it should also make the car less busy when it’s sliding, with greater predictability on the limit for the driver.
Then we have the Powertrain modes. The Artura will always start in electric mode, and it’s worth mentioning that reversing is carried out entirely by the electric motor turning backwards – there is no mechanical reverse gear. When you are in electric mode, a full charge of the 7.4kwh battery (which takes 2.5 hours at 3.3kw AC via the EVSE cable) will allow you to travel about 19 miles and attain speeds up to 80mph. If you have been using the V6 prior to switching to EV mode then the petrol engine will periodically switch on for under a minute to keep temperature in the catalysts for emissions.
Comfort mode sees the V6 running alongside the e-motor. However, under 20mph and with small throttle openings, the Artura will still run predominantly with the V6 off. The car can also be set to use the engine to charge the batteries more quickly – useful if you’re approaching a low-emissions zone and will imminently want to run in electric mode.
Sport and Track are generally similar modes, with both targeting maximum performance from the powertrain and high levels of charging to maintain that performance. The e-motor is used for power/torque infill – torque at lower revs to boost acceleration and power at higher revs for speed. This is, perhaps unsurprisingly, where Mclaren feels the real gains have been made in throttle response, with reaction being twice as fast as in non-hybrid models. In Sport the gearshifts are carried out with cylinder-cut while in Track the more aggressive ignition-cut is used, which should give a nice loud crack from the exhausts. Hopefully the V6 will sound good too (never the V8’s strongest suit), although it will obviously be the silent running ability that will attract some.
What you’ve probably gathered by now is that this is rather a sophisticated supercar. There is a lot going on. And, because it is complicated, Mclaren needs to inspire confidence in its reliability. Yes, it listened to those comments, too. So there is a five-year vehicle warranty, a six-year battery warranty and a ten-year corrosion warranty on the Artura.
From a driving perspective, the trick it needs to play is to make all its new technology feel simple and natural to use. From behind the wheel you need to be able to feel like it has melded into one harmoniously tactile experience. But, as its back catalogue shows, Mclaren shouldn’t really need to listen to anyone to figure out how to do that.