How McLaren Is Letting Its Racing History Shape Is Design DNA Of Tomorrow

McLaren has previewed its new design direction under its new Chief Design Officer, Tobias Sühlmann, and as usual, the announcement came with big promises and grandiose language. But it also came with a number of surprisingly clear objectives for the brand’s future vehicles, which are confirmed to include supercars, hypercars, “and beyond.”

As before, the more-door McLaren is being dangled in front of us, with Woking’s masterminds still unsure of whether to pursue a Taycan-rivaling sedan, Urus-like SUV, or some sort of inbetweener like the Purosangue. Whatever sort of body style is eventually chosen under the concept of “shared performance,” where more than two seats and more than two doors are offered, McLaren must also prepare for alternative powertrains.

It’s also been some 13 years since the McLaren MP4-12C stole the Ferrari 458’s lunch money and just over a decade since the P1 stamped its authority on the hypercar holy trinity. The 12C was never that pretty, but it set new standards for supercars. With performance sorted, future Macs got prettier and developed a modern identity with the brand logo defining the shape of the headlights (and several other elements). Now, it’s time to comprehensively overhaul everything that made McLaren great over the last dozen-plus years.

Time For A Change

McLaren has been relying on the same carbon tub, the same engine, and the same basic styling for too long now. The future beckons, and it calls out to every part of the McLaren Automotive division, including the build process. McLaren was building cars quickly enough to keep up with demand, which is something you never want to do as a luxury brand. This was reducing cars’ exclusivity and shattering resale values, thus diluting McLaren’s brand value in recent years and scaring off new investors. This approach was also surely responsible, at least in part, for the questionable build quality that owners regularly report on forums.

It’s time for the brand to figure out what really defines its visual identity. Efficient as ever, McLaren has done so with just five bullet points and three exterior styling principles. We’ll get to the styling principles in detail shortly, but first, let’s deal with the marketing spiel.

• EPIC: McLaren promises bold, exciting cars that instinctively trigger an emotional reaction when you see them. They will achieve this by drawing “direct influence” from the aero and bodywork of Formula 1, Can-Am, and GT race cars. Past examples of “epic” McLaren design include the central seating position of the game-changing McLaren F1, the Solus GT’s sliding canopy that calls to mind a jet fighter, and the quad-exit titanium exhaust of the 765LT. This leads to the next bullet point.
• ATHLETIC: McLaren wants its vehicles to look lean and lithe, with “vacuum-formed” bodywork that is free of unnecessary or visually unappealing mass. This means that body panels will be tightly drawn around the core structure, stretching over it like skin. A Formula 1 car is designed similarly, and by adopting this approach for automotive applications, McLaren will save weight and maximize packaging efficiency. There’s no need for supercars to get any wider or bigger than they already are, and Woking knows that. Therefore, it will use muscular wheel arches and other cues to emphasize width.

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• FUNCTIONAL: All of these key points are intertwined, and the athletic approach above is best achieved by focusing on the functional. For McLaren, that means “everything on the car must be there for a reason,” meaning no superfluous design details just for the purposes of feigning aggression. If a car doesn’t need big cooling vents or intakes, it won’t have them (think McLaren 750S and its double-skinned doors). That being said, there should be plenty of aggressive elements elsewhere thanks to “exposed technical elements where this is the best approach – design and engineering in perfect harmony.”
• FOCUSED: McLaren hasn’t forgotten about the cabin, promising to raise performance-driven ergonomic standards with “the ultimate driving position” and “unparalleled visibility.” This sounds like a subtle hint that the central driving position may appear in more than just the Speedtail and F1, and in cars where it doesn’t, it’s still a promise to focus on the driver first. Speaking of, there will be a “perfect blend” of digital and analog controls. More on the cabin design later.
• INTELLIGENT: The final point pertains to developing innovative lightweight materials, repurposing them for new applications, and increasing their durability, sustainability, and practicality.

Cool Story, Bro, But What Does That Actually Mean?

Before the 12C and all its subsequent brethren, McLaren had little heritage from which to draw, and that back catalog still looks somewhat bare. However, McLaren has found aesthetic links between all of its creations. At the front, McLaren points to a pair of horizontally oriented symmetrical elements on the low nose of every Mac. This is a little weak as most cars are symmetrical when viewed front-on, several headlight and intake designs are horizontal, and most supercars and sports cars have low front ends, but it’s something from which to build. McLaren references the MP4/4 Formula 1 car, the F1 and its LM and GTR variants, and the “eye-socket” headlights of the 750S, Senna, and Sabre, for example.

In profile, every McLaren must have what is called the “Performance Line,” which refers to the forward-slanted shoulder line seen on the profile of McLaren Can-Am race cars like the M8A and, to a lesser degree, the roadgoing F1 and P1. Naturally, short overhangs at each end remain critical to the design.

At the rear, McLaren’s signature will be an open back end, free of unnecessary bodywork that stifles heat and complicates cosmetics. The McLaren F1 is, once again, a good example of this. Straight, horizontal lines are also highlighted as part of McLaren’s design ethos, as these help to increase visual width and reduce visual height.

Finally, in the cabin, future Macs will get a “wrap-around” cockpit that feels snug but spacious. McLaren says this will be achieved with concave surfaces and a “horizon-like view forward,” potentially indicating a semicircular windshield. It also means no unnecessary screens, buttons, or dials – only those that “enable the driver to focus fully on driving performance.” This suggests that the steering wheels of future McLarens may not be as button-free as always, but it also indicates that we won’t get too many silly haptic feedback or touch-sensitive controls. As long as there is physical switchgear for the important stuff, we’ll be happy.

McLaren has not given a timeline for when to see elements of the new design language, but the P1 successor is rumored to arrive within a year with totally new doors… the beginning of a new era of design and performance for the famed supercar manufacturer.