Currently reading: New McLaren Senna GTR shown in production form
Track-only version of hypercar gets 814bhp and makes 1000kg of downforce; all 75 examples have already been sold

McLaren has revealed its track-only Senna GTR hypercar in production form, a year after showing a concept version at the 2018 Geneva motor show.

The Senna GTR is described as the fastest machine to roll out of Woking this side of a Formula 1 car. It's priced at £1.1 million plus local taxes and production is capped at 75 examples, all in left-hand-drive form. All have already been sold, with customer deliveries due to commence in September.

Mclaren senna gtr 01

The standard Senna's 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8 petrol engine is uprated in the GTR to produce 814bhp, up from 789bhp, while torque is unchanged at 590lb ft.

The final bodywork is based around a chassis with a wider front track. Made almost exclusively from carbonfibre, it features wider front wings, a larger front splitter, a bespoke rear diffuser and repositioned active rear wing. The result is a full 1000kg of downforce, up 200kg over the existing Senna. Under braking, the car is also capable of 3g of decelerative force – 20% more than the Senna.

McLaren says the Senna GTR concept will out-accelerate the standard Senna, but it has yet to confirm straight-line performance figures. The regular Senna can charge from 0-62mph in 2.8sec and 0-124mph in 6.8sec.

Mclaren senna gtr 08

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With no road regulations or pedestrian safety tests to worry about, McLaren’s aerodynamicists have extracted a further 200kg of potential downforce from the Senna’s body. They’ve gently resculpted its panels, added an enormous front splitter and bolted on a rear diffuser that shames those of Le Mans GTE racers. Add the Senna’s active rear wing and downforce peaks at 1000kg – 400kg more than the P1 GTR's.

To handle these enormous high-speed loads, the Senna GTR uses revised double-wishbone suspension and Pirelli slick tyres. A carbonfibre Monocage III skeleton remains at the car’s core, but the GTR is 10kg lighter than the 1198kg Senna when dry, because it can do away with road-specific kit such as airbags, a handbrake and an exhaust muffler and make use of lightweight materials such as plexiglass.

Mclaren senna gtr 03

The Senna GTR is a more track-focused package than the P1 GTR, and its makers say it can lap McLaren’s test circuit quicker than anything else it has built with a roof. The firm says only its F1 cars can clock a quicker time.

McLaren boss Mike Flewitt says the Senna GTR "was designed from the outset to be an extreme track car, but the 2018 McLaren Senna GTR concept suggested how much further we could go and now, free from the constraints of road car legislation and motorsport competition rules, we have pushed the limits of what is technically possible". 

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The GTR is the latest in a lineage that started with the 1995 24 Hours of Le Mans-winning F1 GTR, and promises the performance of the Aston Martin Valkyrie and Mercedes Project One for around half the price.

All 500 examples of the regular Senna were also allocated before it was revealed. That model started at £750,000.

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275not599 10 March 2019

Too many knee-jerk reactions

Does anyone know who actually buys this type of car?  I admit I don't have a list of names.  I strongly suspect it is not people you love to hate, and who tarnish the cars by association, like Russian oligarchs on Youtube who can't exit a T-junction in a powerful car without spinning it.  It's more likely people like the Red Bull guy or wealthy retired racers whom you would respect.  Do you really think manufacturers don't take steps regarding who buys their halo cars?  As for ugly, well it's a racing car!  Have you seen some of the recent Le Mans winners? 

EdBalls 9 March 2019

Hilarious negativity

So funny seeing all the negativity here. Of course we hate who we know will own these cars but that should not be the point. McLaren produce spectacular vehicles which most of us will never own, this side of a Lottery win, but well done to them.
russ13b 8 March 2019

@marc

when you say "soul and character", do you mean questionable design/engineering and unreliabilty?

Marc 9 March 2019

russ13b wrote:

russ13b wrote:

when you say "soul and character", do you mean questionable design/engineering and unreliabilty?

No, cars, or any other object that has something other than an outright ownership proposition.  Take two cars I've previously owned, which were at the time were of almost equal value, a Boxster and an F360.  The Boxster, quick, enjoyable to drive but other than that, ownership gave no sense of emotion, you open the garage doors on a Sunday morning and you may as well be looking at a fridge.  The 360, not that much quicker, probably less enjoyable to drive as it was a harder car to drive quickly, yet you open the garage door and you take a deep breath before it's even been driven.  And no, the 360 was no less reliable as a second hand car to the Boxster when it was new - just more expensive to run.  To me, and it's my personal opinion, Mclarens just don't have that character.

si73 9 March 2019

Marc wrote:

Marc wrote:

russ13b wrote:

when you say "soul and character", do you mean questionable design/engineering and unreliabilty?

No, cars, or any other object that has something other than an outright ownership proposition.  Take two cars I've previously owned, which were at the time were of almost equal value, a Boxster and an F360.  The Boxster, quick, enjoyable to drive but other than that, ownership gave no sense of emotion, you open the garage doors on a Sunday morning and you may as well be looking at a fridge.  The 360, not that much quicker, probably less enjoyable to drive as it was a harder car to drive quickly, yet you open the garage door and you take a deep breath before it's even been driven.  And no, the 360 was no less reliable as a second hand car to the Boxster when it was new - just more expensive to run.  To me, and it's my personal opinion, Mclarens just don't have that character.

You were in an enviable postion to own and compare these cars but I am not sure I or many others would agree with you, whilst I havent owned or even driven a boxter I have owned a 924, and looking at it just sat on my drive when I walked past to get my 125 scooter for my work commute out of the garage, the 924  had the complete opposite effect of the boxter in your case, and I feel certain a boxter or McLaren would stir my soul the same way, I have had many ordinary cars that did so and none that I would liken to a fridge. Although some were closer to white goods than others, I still enjoyed owning them.

Still, each to their own.