McLaren Automotive has celebrated the manufacture of its 15,000th car at the McLaren Production Centre (MPC) in Woking, Surrey, just seven years after production first began.
The 15,000th car, a 570S Spider in Curacao Blue, represents a further significant milestone for the British sportscar and supercar brand, and comes less than 18 months after the 10,000th car was completed in December 2016.
The introduction of a second production shift in 2016 to meet rising demand for McLaren vehicles has seen production double from around 10 cars a day to 20, with over 90 per cent of vehicles built in Woking exported to more than 30 markets around the world.
Read our McLaren 570S Spider road test
McLaren achieved record sales in 2017, selling a total of 3,340 cars. Demand has been stimulated by the launch of two new products, the 570S Spider within the Sports Series and the 720S within the Super Series. Around two-thirds of sales in 2017 came from the Sports Series and one-third from the Super Series. A new Ultimate Series model, the McLaren Senna, has recently entered production and the first of just 500 customer cars will shortly be completed.
In 2017, 33 brand new McLarens were registered in New Zealand according to Motor Institute Association data, outselling Ferrari and Lamborghini in Bruce McLaren's homeland. In the first four months of 2018, 14 new McLarens have been registered.
“Reaching 15,000 cars built is a significant milestone for McLaren Automotive and comes under 18 months after we hit 10,000 vehicles, showing how demand and production have increased," said McLaren Automotive CEO Mike Flewitt.
"The Sports Series has been pivotal to driving this growth, with the 570S Spider now the most popular of the range. The fact we are now able to produce 20 cars a day is of course a great testament to the hard work and dedication of every one of our workforce, who should feel justifably proud and part of this great team effort.“
McLaren Automotive timeline
2010 – McLaren Automotive founded as an independent company
2011 – McLaren Production Centre (MPC) opened in Woking
2011 – 12C Coupe launched
2012 – 12C Spider launched
2013 – McLaren P1TM, the world’s first hybrid hypercar, launched
2014 – 650S launched
2015 - 570S, 540C, 675LT and McLaren P1TM GTR launched
2016 – 675LT Spider launched, 10,000 cars built, Track 22 business plan launched
2017 – 720S, 570S Spider and McLaren Senna launched
2018 – 15,000 cars built milestone, MCTC set to open in Sheffield to produce carbon fibre chassis
-Driven