Mclaren Artura
It’s a hi-tech, high-speed hybrid
Another new Mclaren? Do these people ever get any sleep?
The Woking elves have pumped out a new model or variant every year since the MP4-12C went on sale in 2011… but unlike its predecessors, the Artura hybrid really is box-fresh: new platform, new powertrain, new infotainment system, new everything. Even the tyres are smart!
Yeah, they look nice enough…
No, we’re talking about Pirelli Cyber Tyre tech: a chip embedded in the rubber means real-time data can be fed to the car’s stability control systems to optimise performance. It’s all a bit ‘mad professor’ – but as this is a Mclaren, you can let the tech do the hard work and just enjoy the scorching ride.
How scorching, exactly?
Well, the Artura is Mclaren’s first production high-performance hybrid, combining a twin-turbo
3.0-litre V6 petrol engine with an electric motor. The engineers had to create a new Mclaren Carbon Lightweight Architecture (MCLA) for this, so turned to the experts in the Mclaren Composites Technology Centre (MCTC).
I’m not feeling scorched yet… Agreed, Mclaren has a knack for taking extreme performance and making it sound like ‘the science bit’ from a shampoo commercial. All you need to know is that this sinewy animal weighs just 1498kg, chucks out a combined 671bhp and can hit 124mph in 8.3 seconds.
You mentioned infotainment?
Oh yes, and that part’s also new. There’s an 8in HD touchscreen for navigation and entertainment, as well as clever cruise control and all the other gubbins you’d find in an executive saloon. There won’t be many sales managers driving this thing, though.