
McLaren’s New $2.47 Million Elva Is Ferociously Fast
The 600kW roadster will be limited to 399 examples.
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McLaren Automotive is unleashing its most extreme, most ferocious, most intense Ultimate Series hypercar ever.
The sensational, all-new McLaren Elva is a full open-cockpit projectile, powered by a thundering 804hp (600kW), twin-turbo V8 that will catapult it from standstill to 100km/h in less than three seconds.
The McLaren Elva. Photo: Courtesy of McLaren Automotive.
And the really good news is that, despite its race-car-like no-screen cockpit, the Elva is homologated as a road car, not just a track missile. Total global production will be limited to just 399 examples, with the price starting at US$1.69 million ($A2.47 million). The first cars will meet their new owners towards the end of 2020.
McLaren history buffs will remember the Bruce McLaren-designed, superlight McLaren-Elva M1A from the 1960s. Back then, Elva Cars was a tiny British marque that McLaren commissioned to build customer versions of its super-successful M1A racer. For trivia lovers, it was a gold McLaren-Elva M1A that Elvis “drove” in the cheesy 1966 movie Spinout.
The 1960s-era McLaren-Elva M1A alongside the new McLaren Elva. Photo: Courtesy of McLaren Automotive.
With the Elva, McLaren takes its obsession with weight-savings to new levels. Here is the lightest McLaren road car ever, featuring a new, bespoke carbon-fibre body and chassis, and lightweight materials throughout.
To deliver an open race-car experience, there’s no roof, windshield, or side windows (although a windshield is optional – and more than likely required by Australian law). But to avoid the need for a helmet, McLaren engineers have come up with what they claim is a world-first—its Active Air Management System (AAMS) that’s designed to redirect airflow over the cockpit.
The system sucks in air through a central opening in the grille and directs it, at high velocity, out through a hood-mounted vent, creating what McLaren describes as a “bubble of calm.”
Elva’s Active Air Management System redirects airflow over the cockpit. Photo: Courtesy of McLaren Automotive.
When the AAMS is active at higher speed, a carbon-fibre deflector (just in front of the outlet) automatically rises 5.9-inches to create a low-pressure zone at the vent. This helps redirect the air in a 130-degree arc over, and alongside, the cockpit.
Not entirely convinced of this fighter-jet lesson in air-flow management? McLaren will happily equip your Elva with an optional fixed windshield. Wipers, however, are not included.
Small, single-hinge dihedral doors scissor upwards for easy entry and exit, or you can simply step-in over the doors.
The Elva with optional windshield. Photo: Courtesy of McLaren Automotive.
McLaren has designed new, superlight, all-carbon bucket seats for the Elva, trimmed with a choice of either full Aniline leather—with a special protective coating to fend off the elements—or a new material called Ultrafabric, a breathable synthetic that’s more durable and moisture-resistant, and grips you tighter in the seat.
While there’s no roof being offered, it seems there’s not even a tonneau cover to protect that fancy cabin and pricy electronics in a sudden downpour. Hopefully, McLaren’s Special Ops division—or a local boat canvas shop—should be able to come up with a solution.
Powering this featherweight projectile is a howling 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 from the same family of engines used in the Senna and Senna GTR.
The car’s 600kW, twin-turbo V8 generates 800Nm of torque. Photo: Courtesy of McLaren Automotive.
Dial-up launch control and McLaren claims the Elva will lunge from zero to 200km/h in just 6.7 seconds, making it quicker to that speed than the iconic Senna.
What McLaren isn’t revealing is the car’s top speed, which will likely be restricted only by the driver and passenger’s tolerance to buffeting.
Fully active suspension with Adaptive Dynamics Controls offers the choice of Comfort, Sport and Track modes, though the driver can also control the amount of wheel spin and oversteer through three Electronic Stability Control modes. And then there’s Variable Drift Control when you’re in the mood to play sideways hooligan.
The roadster rockets from zero to 200km/h in 6.7 seconds. Photo: Courtesy of McLaren Automotive.
When you need to stop in a hurry, the Elva gets what is claimed to be the most advanced braking system ever fitted to a McLaren road car. Developed from the Senna’s set-up, it features unique, sintered 15.4-inch carbon-ceramic rotors—lighter and stronger than conventional carbon-ceramic discs—along with lightweight titanium caliper pistons.
At the time of publishing, McLaren Australia has given no word on official pricing and arrival dates of the Elva on Australian shores. This story will be updated as it develops.
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