While McLaren Automotive may be located in the British borough of Woking; one of the company’s more groundbreaking supercars of the 21st century has its roots in São Paulo, Brazil. Named after the late, great racing superstar Ayrton Senna, the mid-engined McLaren Senna was unveiled in late 2017 as the third entry in its Ultimate series behind the P1 and F1. While not an immediate descendant of either the P1 or F1, the design and execution of the Senna are pure McLaren with a fanatical adherence to the company’s “form follows function” mantra. Adherence means a twin-turbocharged V-8 engine giving the street-legal Senna a whopping 789 horsepower and an absurd attention-to-aerodynamic-detail design allotting this supercar 800 kilograms of downforce.
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10 The Dihedral Doors Were Inspired By The McLaren F1
A front shot of a powder blue 2018 McLaren Senna with its doors open.
The Senna’s dihedral doors are reminiscent of the McLaren F1. With their unique panels constructed of lightweight, toughened Gorilla Glass, they help create a driving cockpit that immerses the driver in its environment. The inspiration for this awe-inspiring panoramic view from the cockpit was the 360-degree field of vision a helicopter pilot enjoys mid-flight. The absurd stability of the Senna’s MonoCage III means that the roof pillars do not need to be overly thick which translates to incredible visibility for the driver. This is the visibility needed when cornering the Senna at its top speeds.
9 The Senna’s Acceleration Is Extreme, To Say The Least
Driver side profile of a red McLaren Senna.
McLaren dropped a twin-turbocharged V-8 engine into the Senna with a seven-speed transmission that ratchets up 800 horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque to the Senna’s rear wheels. The Formula 1-inspired Ignition cut technology utilized in the transmission creates a transitory pause of the fuel spark mid-gearshift which allows for the almost instantaneous gearshift. This transmission tech, in addition to a software-based launch-control function, helps boost the Senna to 0-60 mph in 2.6 seconds of acceleration time. As for the Senna’s Quarter mile time, this hypercar can go from a complete stop to finish in 10.1 seconds and top off at about 153 miles per hour.
8th This Supercar Is A Testimony To McLaren And Senna’s Partnership
A close-up of the Senna logo on a McLaren Senna in its “carbon theme” presentational style.
After joining the McLaren Formula 1 team in 1988, McLaren won the Formula One World Constructor’s Championship titles four years in a row with Ayrton Senna winning thirty-five Formula One Grand Prix races as well as three Formula One World Driver’s Championship titles in 1988, 1990 , and 1991. This partnership between McLaren and Senna survived the tragic death of the Brazilian superstar at Imola in 1994. The unveiling of the McLaren Senna in 2017 served to not only introduce the road and motorsport world to McLaren’s world-class hypercar but also to bring well-deserved attention to Senna’s Instituto Ayrton Senna, which helps to provide comprehensive education and opportunities for the development of underprivileged children in Brazil.
7 Lightweight Carbon Fiber Construction On The Senna
Rear 3/4 view of the 2018 McLaren Senna
As the structural basis for the Senna, McLaren has installed the MonoCage III carbon fiber chassis. The MonoCage III is the next evolutionary step after the MonoCage II found in the McLaren 720s. According to McLaren, the MonoCage III is the most durable monocoque McLaren has ever constructed for a road-legal vehicle. This intensely durable, lightweight structure system works in conjunction with the Senna’s powertrain and complex aerodynamic system to bolster the Senna’s performance. It’s also incredibly lightweight, and with every body panel fastened to the chassis also being constructed of carbon fiber, the Senna is the lightest McLaren since the F1.
6 The Senna’s aerodynamic design is world class
A close-up of the aerodynamic design of the McLaren Senna
The McLaren Senna can generate an astounding 800 kilograms of downforce, for reference that is 200 kilograms more than the P1. What creates this level of aerodynamic performance is the one-two punch of the Senna’s front aero blades and the active rear wing channeling airflow in the most efficient fashion and allowing the driver to confidently corner and brake later than usual for a hypercar of this caliber. Aerodynamic and cooling instruments adorn the rear clamshell of the Senna. A gurney flap situated just before stepped louvers acts as a repellant to air redirecting it around the side of the Senna ultimately pushing it towards the rear wing helping to generate 590 pound-feet of torque on the rear wheels.
5 The McLaren Senna Doesn’t Come Up For Sale Often
Rear 3/4 of a blue McLaren Senna in a McLaren show room.
It’s definitely not easy. But pre-owned Sennas are popping up at rare and exotic car dealerships and auctions here and there. In late 2020, Post Malone listed one of his three incredibly rare 2019 McLaren Senna XP for sale. So there’s hope you might see one if you keep your eyes peeled to Mecum. Just be ready to shell out some serious coin if you want to find yourself behind one of these hypercars that takes about 300 hours to construct. The going price right now for a pre-owned McLaren Senna is anywhere from $1.2 to $1.5 million dollars.
4 McLaren Unveiled A “Track-only” Senna GTR In 2018
Aerial shot of a MCU of the front bumper and hood and a McLaren Senna GTR concept.
McLaren revealed the Senna GTR at the 2018 Geneva Motor Show. A “track-only” version of the hypercar, the GTR features pared-down aerodynamics and a dual-clutch race transmission system for quicker gear changes and Pirelli fastest racing tires which make it the non-F1 vehicle to come from the McLaren firm. As a division of McLaren’s Ultimate Series, the production run of the GTR only yielded 75 units, all of which were built to custom order. The GTR generates 1000 kilograms of downforce, 814 horsepower, and tops out at a speed of 211 mph. The FIA has tapped the GTR of one of several potential models that could serve as a replacement for the Le Mans Prototype class.
3 The Initial Production Run Limited To Only 500 McLaren Sennas
Rear 3/4 shot of a 2018 Emerald Green McLaren Senna in a garage
After its online unveiling in December 2017, McLaren went to work on the initial production of the McLaren Sennas producing only 500 units all of which were sold in advance. The asking price of the Senna was a whopping 750,000 GBP or roughly $1 million USD. Once word got out that Senna would represent McLaren’s most powerful street-legal vehicle to date the demand went supersonic with the final build slot being auctioned off for an insane $2.67 million dollars. While this absurd amount of money is more than double the original asking price, the proceeds from the auction were donated to charity.
2 McLaren Also Constructed An Incredibly Rare Le Mans tribute Senna
Rear 3/4 of the McLaren Senna Tribute GTR
Much like the Senna GTR, the McLaren Senna LM is a track-inspired rendition of the Senna. Unlike the GTR the Senna LM is street legal. The LM features a unique orange livery that serves as a tribute to the McLaren F1 LM – to honor McLaren’s 1995 win at Le Mans. The Senna LM features titanium panels, LM branding, and OZ center-lock wheels featuring a throwback design. McLaren produced only 35 units of the Senna LM with only 5 units for the US Market. All 5 units produced for the United States were produced for the same person! A VIP client in Florida still owns 3 of the 5 LMs. 2 of the 5 were sold to car collectors with one of these models being wrecked after an accident in 2020 by F1 driver Adrian Sutil.
1 For Us Mere Mortals, There’s The Lego Version Of The McLaren Senna
An orange and gray McLaren Senna constructed entirely from legos.
If you are truly determined to get behind the wheel of a McLaren Senna then for $49.99 you can (sort of) do just that! The Lego Technic series has created an 830-piece McLaren Senna GTR replica for kids ages 10 and up. The set features all the necessary pieces for you to create an astonishingly accurate yet smaller version of the GTR. You can even see the detailed moving pistons of the GTR’s powerful V8 engine as well as the dihedral doors! The Lego set includes 46 decals, and takes about 2 hours to build resulting in your very own Senna GTR that’s three inches high, 12 inches long, and four inches wide when finished!
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https://formulaone.news/mclaren/10-supercars-you-wont-believe-are-slower-than-a-dodge-challenger-srt-demon
