McLaren Senna: the brand’s most extreme supercar
Immediately about the main thing: this is not the heir to the legendary McLaren F1 coupe, announced a year ago. That car with a three-seater saloon is still in development and will see the light of day in one and a half to two years. In the meantime – an intermediate, but no less interesting project, named after Ayrton Senna. The car bears the same double S logo that is used on souvenirs and motorcycles named after the famous racer.
The new McLaren Senna is based on the production McLaren 720S coupe, which debuted in the spring and became the first model of the new family. However, the design has been seriously redesigned. Even the carrying carbon fiber monocoque is therefore seriously redesigned and strengthened that the developers take into account it the third generation (Monocage III) rather than the second within the “seven hundred and twentieth” model.
All exterior panels are also made of carbon fiber, the shape of which is subordinated exclusively to aerodynamics. The Senna has a large adjustable wing, a huge stern diffuser, and many small air ducts. For the sake of lightening the car, thin transparent sections were made in the doors, excess trim was thrown out of the interior, although the air conditioning system and airbags remained. Control of almost all functions is concentrated on the touchscreen display, and some buttons, including the engine start button, have been moved to the overhead console. The boot has been eliminated: there are only two racing helmet cradles behind the seats. As a result, the dry weight of the coupe is only 1198 kg instead of 1283 kg for the 720S. Only the McLaren F1 (1138 kg) was lighter.
Biturbomotor V8 4.0 boosted to 800 hp. and 800 Nm instead of 720 hp. and 770 Nm for the original 720S: among road-going McLaren, only the discontinued P1 hybrid hypercar (916 hp) is more powerful. The seven-speed preselective “robot” has been improved, the drive remains rear, and there are three modes of driving electronics to choose from Comfort, Sport, and Track.
The chassis is, of course, refined, but the basic design is the same as that of the rest of the McLaren cars. There are no anti-roll bars here; their functions are performed by an extensive hydraulic system that connects the shock absorbers of all wheels and has additional compensation reservoirs. By redistributing fluid in the system, the electronics fight rolls and change the stiffness of the suspension, and the most extreme Race mode is activated by a button on the ceiling. Brakes – carbon-ceramic.
Alas, the company does not provide the dynamic performance of the new coupe. But says the McLaren Senna will be the brand’s most extreme road car. Buyers will be able to make sure of this no earlier than in the third quarter of 2018 when the production of commercial vehicles will begin. You can order them now: prices start at 750 thousand pounds, with a circulation of 500 copies. Surprisingly, they haven’t sold out yet.
