The new pinnacle of McLaren’s supercar range has debuted in New Zealand, just in time for the company’s fifth anniversary on our shores.
The first $1.5 million McLaren Senna — one of six due to arrive — was showcased to select media at the brand’s Auckland showroom this week, before going on public display this weekend.
Named after Formula 1 champion Ayton Senna, who claimed three world titles with McLaren, the Senna honours the late driver’s legacy with an emphasis on performance, the foundation of Senna’s reputation in motorsport.
Read more: Jaw-dropping 340km/h McLaren Senna hypercar lands in NZ
“The Senna is the purist’s expression of McLaren’s DNA,” said McLaren Auckland Sales Manager Luke Neuberger.
“To make a car worthy of bearing Ayrton’s name, McLaren’s engineers have pushed the boundaries, obsessing over weight and power to create a machine that’s all about lap time, just like the man himself.”
Read more: McLaren Senna #001's epic first road trip
The Senna has been designed, engineered and developed with a single focus – to be the company’s ultimate track-focused car, while meeting all the requirements of a road-legal vehicle.
While the Senna will wear number plates allowing customers to enjoy the hypercar on-road, the Senna is a step into new territory for the Woking, England-based company. Traditional McLaren traits like daily usability and drivability take a back seat in the pursuit of outright performance and driver connection.
The Senna features an ultra-lightweight carbon fibre chassis and body panels helping to achieve a dry weight of less than 1.2 tonnes, the lightest road-legal McLaren since the 1990s’ F1.
The two-seat Senna is powered by an updated 4-litre twin-turbocharged V8, producing 588kW of power and 800Nm of torque. Paired with a dual-clutch, seven-speed gearbox, the Senna can accelerate from 0-100km/h in 2.7 seconds, 0-200km/h in 6.8 seconds and onto a top speed of 340km/h.
Senna production was limited to 500 cars, all of which were sold before the car or its name was announced.
McLaren Auckland Showroom on Great North Road. Photo / Driven file
Fittingly, the first Senna arrives on McLaren’s fifth anniversary in New Zealand.
“In our first year we sold 14 cars,” said Neuberger. “We’re the 50th dealership to open, and on McLaren’s 50th anniversary.”
There are now 170 McLarens on New Zealand roads and the brand proves immensely popular with Kiwi supercar customers — so much so that McLaren Auckland was awarded back-to-back Retailer of the Year awards for the Asia-Pacific region in 2016-2017.
In 2016 McLaren Auckland also played a pivotal role in organising the McLaren Epic Drive NZ involving 32 supercars from around the world.
In 2017 McLaren Auckland where then selected as one of 10 retailers worldwide that can sell the company's factory-built race cars.
First official sketch of three-seat Speedtail. Photo / McLaren
McLaren Automotive has also recently announced a bold $2.3 billion 'Track25' business plan that will see 18 new models before 2025, including a P1 successor and three-seat 'Hyper-GT' now known as the Speedtail.
As it stands now, the Senna is the second McLaren model in the company’s top-tier Ultimate Series, after the hybrid P1 that debuted in 2013.
The 720s occupies the lineup’s middle-ground Super Series, while models like the 570S Spider and forthcoming 600LT represent the company’s entry-level Sports Series.
Read more: McLaren 600LT revealed as limited Sports Series track weapon
