Forget The Supercar Power War: It's Now About Weight, Says McLaren

Although we've seen a huge leap in the power outputs of supercars over recent years, McLaren says the horsepower war is done - and that the key battleground has shifted to weight
Forget The Supercar Power War: It's Now About Weight, Says McLaren

The power war in supercars is ending, according to the maker of a 710bhp runabout and a 789bhp road-legal race car.

McLaren CEO Mike Flewitt made the comments at a meeting of the UK’s Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders yesterday, and added that a ‘weight war’ is coming instead. We’re fine with that: lighter cars are more fun, more of the time.

Forget The Supercar Power War: It's Now About Weight, Says McLaren

Lighter materials will be key to advancing both performance and efficiency, said Flewitt, noting that McLaren has been working quite hard on that area lately. The Senna, for example, features front wings that weigh just 600g each (vs 2kg on a 720S) and carbon seats that tip the scales at only 3.35kg each.

McLaren’s focus on new carbonfibre manufacturing techniques is said to be aimed not just at its own cars, but at others. The firm is opening a new Composites Technology Centre and low-volume car makers around the world could potentially be able to buy materials to help them meet their own weight and efficiency targets.

With the diminishing returns associated with R&D spend on combustion engines, lowering weight is becoming an easier and more effective route.

Forget The Supercar Power War: It's Now About Weight, Says McLaren

Speaking to the assembled industry delegates yesterday, Flewitt said:

“We now have a fantastic opportunity for the U.K. to be at the very forefront of a new automotive ‘weight race’ that can help achieve increasingly tough environmental targets.

“While McLaren has a long history in using lightweight materials to boost vehicle performance, it’s something we are also heavily investing in as part of our future with the opening later this year of the brand-new McLaren Composites Technology Centre in Yorkshire.

“It will lead to innovations in the technology going into our cars and not only provide a significant boost to that region, to jobs and the supply chain but also to the U.K.’s reputation for innovation.”

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Comments

OctyVRS

I am completely on board with weight saving initiatives means lighter more fun cars, better fuel economy less damage to the road from heavy vehicles it will take a while to trickle into every day affordable production cars but its looking bright for the future of car manufacturing.

06/27/2018 - 08:29 |
206 | 0

…and more fun from relatively low-power engines

06/27/2018 - 08:58 |
84 | 0

Especially if it leads to more n/a engines

06/27/2018 - 09:20 |
26 | 2

This is important for all cars, but as electrification adds weight, we will have to wait and see if this will get affordable in time for us to see it implemented on combustion engined cars

06/27/2018 - 09:26 |
2 | 0
☆★THEBOOSTEDBRIT★☆

In reply to by OctyVRS

Or you could just engine swap a Caterham with a Ferrari V12, either way, it’s a win win situation 😂

06/27/2018 - 10:31 |
6 | 4
DL🏁

I’m on board with this

06/27/2018 - 08:31 |
12 | 0
Anonymous

lotus intensifies

06/27/2018 - 08:40 |
42 | 0
UnknownCat13

Colin chapman is that you?

06/27/2018 - 08:52 |
6 | 0
Jakob

Simplify, then add lightness.

06/27/2018 - 08:58 |
24 | 0
Tomislav Celić

In reply to by Jakob

Lotus SUV disagrees

06/27/2018 - 17:57 |
6 | 0
Anonymous

I weigh 62kg,am i a supercar?

06/27/2018 - 09:02 |
10 | 0
Shane Koshie

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

No, ur a fat ass

Jk

06/27/2018 - 10:14 |
14 | 0
Anonymous

Sure, there still is quite a way to go

06/27/2018 - 09:09 |
0 | 0
Joel Lundin

This makes me so happy

06/27/2018 - 09:10 |
2 | 0
SuperSnake7

He had the chance to say it but didn’t. “It’s now about weight reduction, bro”

06/27/2018 - 10:55 |
10 | 0
Anonymous

2 comments on this one:

  1. Lighter means more expensive as well (thus more profit, but it has economical advantages as well)
  2. That car is still ugly.
06/27/2018 - 11:24 |
0 | 14
[Flux]

In reply to by Anonymous (not verified)

  1. It’s a hypercar. A couple grand isn’t really gonna make a dent in your wallet if you have the cash to buy the thing as it is. Also, since when are lighter cars automatically more expensive?

  2. I T ‘ S N O T D E S I G N E D T O L O O K G O O D. That’s like critisizing the Camaro RS for not being as fast as the SS. It’s not designed to be as fast as the SS. It’s designed to be more economical.

06/27/2018 - 17:11 |
12 | 0