- McLaren is introducing a completely new design language for its future vehicles, ditching the short-lived 12C aesthetic.
- Teaser images hint at the future, but no launch date for the first car under this new design philosophy.
McLaren’s design has come a long way since the launch of the 12C, a car that looked old before it had even arrived in showrooms. But the company is about to overhaul its entire design process, introducing a new design language and today, it’s given us the first taste of what’s coming up.
The supercar maker released just one outline image of a supercar in profile that is hardly the most revealing to those of us who aren’t design graduates. But it also explained in some detail the five new principles that will shape the look and feel of every future McLaren model.
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The company also released pictures and sketches from its back catalog to help us understand how future models will take inspiration without falling down a retro rabbit hole.
Tobias Sühlmann, who recently returned to McLaren as design boss following a spell at Bentley, oversaw the development of the new ‘Performance by Design’ philosophy, which the company claims won’t only answer criticisms that the cars have looked too similar, but also be versatile enough to work with cars in “new segments and with future powertrain technologies.” Yes, that’s a coded reference to EVs and SUVs.
Design elements that will be common to every model, regardless of segment, are a low nose with two symmetrical elements, a swooping shoulder line McLaren refers to as the ‘Performance Line’ and is most obviously visible in the firm’s Can-Am legends, and an open rear-end design as used on the F1 to draw hot air from its BMW-designed V12.
McLaren also says that future models will feature wraparound cockpits to provide a link to the brand’s F1 exploits, but promises that intelligent design, such as the use of concave surfaces and a horizon-like forward view will mean interiors will never feel claustrophobic.
Sühlmann has come up with five design pillars that will guide the look and feel of every future McLaren. They’ll have to be Epic to grab our attention, like the aerodynamics of an F1 car do, Athletic to show us how efficiently they’re packaged, and Functional because everything on a McLaren needs to have a purpose.
The other pillars are Focused, which could relate to ergonomics designed to help the driver use the available performance, and Intelligent, because reliability, longevity, and sustainability are just as important to owners as traveling at Mach III.
McLaren didn’t say when we’d see the first fruits of this new design philosophy, but following last week’s announcement that Bahrain Mumtalakat Holding Company, the sovereign wealth fund of the Kingdom of Bahrain known as Mumtalakat, has upped its stake in the company from 60- to 100 percent, there’s a stronger chance that the company will be around to deliver on today’s tease.
