McLaren’s First V6 Hybrid Supercar Leaks Via Patent Images
It’s essentially an electrified step up from the current V8 Sports Series.
While developing its ultra-limited Sabre hypercar, McLaren has also been busy fine-tuning its first mass-produced hybrid model, the 2021 supercar they refer to as the High-Performance Hybrid for now. This upcoming entry-level model will feature McLaren's new twin-turbo V6, as well as a battery pack that can provide "medium-range EV-only drive capability." The Sports Series debuted in 2015 with the 570S and will come to an end once the last of the limited-run, GT4-inspired 620R road cars leave the McLaren Production Centre at the end of this year. Its 2021 successor will be positioned higher than the cheapest V8s from Woking today, yet just below the Super Series, which is also bound to go hybrid, along with all future products of McLaren Automotive.
Built around a new carbon fiber tub made at McLaren's shiny composite factory up north in Sheffield, the V6 supercar's exterior will follow an evolutionary route, at least according to these leaked patent images. This hardly comes as a surprise knowing McLaren's approach to design.
There's no standard or top exhaust like on the Sports Series, but rather two pipes in the middle like on the 675LT and 720S. Additionally, there's a fairly mild diffuser, the tiniest rear lip and an overall very clean body apart from the front fender vents coming straight off the 600LT. Rob Melville's team also retained the five-spoke wheel design, the rear buttress and the air intakes at the front, while both the headlights and the taillights appear smaller than before. That comes thanks to advances in LED technology, yet 2021's electrified Sports Series feels familiar already.
As always on McLarens, the engine cover and rear bumper is laser-cut to Swiss-cheese levels in order to vent out as much hot air as possible. With no more cooling ducts in sight, it seems that McLaren's battery pack gets sufficient cooling as it is.
In other news, both Maserati and Aston Martin have introduced brand new twin-turbocharged V6 powertrains ready for a mid-engine showdown, so the game is on.
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