The successor to the McLaren P1 is expected to arrive in 2024 and will, in all likelihood, feature a hybrid powertrain, Car and Driver reports.
Talking to the publication shortly after the Geneva Motor Show was canceled, the automaker’s chief executive Mike Flewitt said they will continue to build internal combustion engines for many years to come and appeared unconvinced the time is right for an all-electric McLaren hypercar.
“We haven’t announced the powertrain for that. Obviously, looking forward, it will either be hybridized or EV,” he said. “I like EVs, I’ve driven them quite a lot lately, and for regular use they are responsive, refined, and have incredible performance but the charging times are really restrictive. Take the 765LT as an example: we know a lot of customers are going to take that to the track. If it was an EV, you’d be looking at maybe 30 minutes of running time and then plug it in until the next day. That’s not a persuasive position.”
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Interestingly, the British government recently announced it will move to ban the sale of all petrol, diesel, and hybrid vehicles by 2035, shifting the nation’s entire new car market to electric and hydrogen vehicles.
Flewitt revealed McLaren will join with a number of other car manufacturers in lobbying for hybrids to be excluded from these new laws. Regardless of whether these lobbying efforts prove fruitful, Flewitt says other important global markets will continue to be offered hybrid models well into the future.
“I’ve always thought that EV rollout would see different market segments responding at different speeds,” he said. “I also think there will be geographic differences, with some markets like China pushing aggressively and other markets having a more relaxed time frame. Add all that together, and you’ve got a mixed powertrain strategy for the next 20 or 30 years.”
