Geneva gallery: new McLaren Senna GTR

The new McLaren Senna GTR concept has been unveiled at the Geneva motor show.

McLaren’s racing engineers have been let loose on the new car – a 1000kg of downforce-producing track-monster that’s more focused than even the P1 GTR.Described as the fastest machine to roll out of Woking this side of a Formula 1 car, this concept is a preview for what's to come when an extreme take on the formidable Senna Super Series model is launched.

Power

In the GTR, the Senna’s twin-turbocharged 4.0-litre V8 has been reworked so it now produces “at least” 814bhp – up from the standard car’s 789bhp. It sends drive through what the brand calls a “race-style transmission”.

A spokesman told Autocar that it was too early to confirm exactly what this meant, but it suggests the car will use something of higher specification than McLaren’s regular seven-speed dual clutch gearbox, which is featured in the standard Senna.

Tech

Also unconfirmed but likely is an advanced adjustable traction control system. This technology would enable drivers of varying abilities to progressively alter an electronic safety net that controls torque to the driven wheels; such a system was used on the P1 GTR.

Acceleration

McLaren says the Senna GTR will out-accelerate a standard Senna but it is yet to confirm straight-line performance figures at this stage. The regular car can charge from zero to 62mph in 2.8sec and takes a total of 6.8sec to reach 124mph.

Downforce

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 used by Le Mans GTE racers. Add the Senna’s active rear wing and downforce now peaks at 1000kg, 400kg more than the P1 GTR.

Weight

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, so the GTR’s weight is said to be about the same as the regular 1198kg Senna when dry.

Timing

This means the GTR will produce about 596bhp per tonne, which would be 108bhp fewer than the hybrid P1 GTR. But the Senna GTR is an overall more track-focused package that can lap McLaren’s test circuit quicker than anything else it has built with a roof. Only its F1 cars can clock a quicker time on the asphalt.

Extreme

McLaren Automotive design engineering boss Dan Parry-Williams said this level of pace was possible because the Senna was designed “with the full spectrum of road and track requirements in mind” from the outset.

“The McLaren Senna GTR concept unveiled in Geneva is not the finished article but it does give a clear indication of our thinking for the car, which promises to be the most extreme and exciting McLaren to drive for many years, if not ever,” he said.

Pricing

Following the concept will be a run of 75 Senna GTRs. The car, which is the latest in a lineage that started with the 1995 24 Hours of Le Mans winning F1 GTR, will be priced in the UK from £1 million before taxes (so that’s £1.2 million including VAT in Britain) and hand built at McLaren’s Production Centre. The GTR is the only remaining version of the Senna currently on sale because all 500 examples of the regular car have been allocated; that model started at £750,000.