In our recent fang of the new McLaren 570S Spider, we noted the age — or lack thereof — of McLaren. It's impressive to think that such a relative 'young buck' can be so consistent and inventive straight out of the box, with the 570S Spider and all-new 720S both illustrating the high level the marque are playing at.
Later this year McLaren will unveil the P15 and next year they'll unveil the 'hyper GT' BP23. The P15 will be the latest chapter in McLaren's family of toppy tippers hyper cars — named the Ultimate Series for obvious reasons. But, according to fresh reports, a fully electric beast could be the next thing on the Ultimate Series agenda.
Autocar UK have reported via a private source that McLaren are developing an EV for their Ultimate Series range, and that it will be a production car — not just a test bed as McLaren have previously confirmed. While procuring performance figures for a car that's several years away is unlikely, the publication's source said that the team's goal is for the EV to “perform like a 675LT”.
According to the source, McLaren's plan is to build five of these electric hyper cars before offering them to ‘favoured McLaren owners’ to help hone the car during the development process. Hybrid powertrains are also supposedly on the cards for the 570 and 720's future replacements.
It's early days in all this, of course, but know that McLaren are no strangers to EVs. They're the official suppliers of the powertrains used in the FIA Formula E series — something that will have likely provided the manufacturer with plenty of feedback on electric technology.
Their progress with those powertrains has already climbed one significant hurdle; next year's Formula E machines will be able to complete a race on a single charge. Those mid-race car-swapping pit stops will be a thing of the past.
Five years ago, the idea of a fully electric hyper car would've rippled far and wide. Today though, in 2017 — an age of electric people movers and sedans that will beat Ferraris and Porsches in the race from zero to 100km/h — it's no surprise at all.
We'll follow this with interest.