Out of nowhere, McLaren has released their latest addition to their Ultimate Series. Introducing the Senna, a supercar that McLaren says is their most extreme road car yet.
Named after the legendary Formula One driver Ayrton Senna, McLaren aimed to make the Senna a true track car that can legally drive on the road. To make this happen they started with raw power coming from a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 engine that produces 789 bhp and 590 lb-ft of torque. This engine, codenamed M840TR, is McLaren most powerful combustion engine made for a road car. When engineers created this engine, they took inspiration from motorsport for the dry sump lubrication and flat-plane crankshaft.
Dubious amounts of power would be no good if the car was heavy, so McLaren pulled out all of the stops and ensured every component of the Senna was at light as possible. In fact, every single body panel is made from carbon fiber. The final result is the light street-legal McLaren since the F1 at just 2,641 lbs.
READ: McLaren Senna Price & Specs
“The McLaren Senna is a car like no other: the personification of McLaren’s motorsport DNA, legalised for road use but designed and developed from the outset to excel on a circuit,” says Mike Flewitt, Chief Executive Officer, McLaren Automotive. “Every element of this new Ultimate Series McLaren has an uncompromised performance focus, honed to ensure the purest possible connection between driver and machine and deliver the ultimate track driving experience in the way that only a McLaren can.”
The carbon fiber body panels that make up the Senna are not only light in weight, but they also give the supercar one heck of a wild visual. In the front is a massive front splitter that feed air directly to the massive vent and keep the front end down at all times. In the rear is a massive wing that can be spotted from a mile away and a double diffuser made from a single piece of carbon fiber. Each vent, blade, splitter, wing or what have you on the Senna was created with aerodynamics in mind and the results is ground-breaking active aero performance across the board.
“Our family is extremely proud of the naming of the new Ultimate Series McLaren Senna. This is the first project that really connects with Ayrton’s racing spirit and performance,” says Bruno Senna, racing driver and McLaren Ambassador. “The McLaren Senna honours my uncle because it is so utterly dedicated to delivering a circuit experience that allows a driver to be the best they can possibly be. There is an absolute, seamless connection between car and driver and this pure engagement, these sensory cues that a driver responds to and relies upon, ensure an experience so focused and immersive that you are left in awe of the depths of excellence the McLaren Senna possesses.”
The McLaren Senna price is set at £750,000 (~$1,003,000 USD). Only 500 examples will be created, with all already being allocated.
