McLaren confirms SUV amid £500m investment

New facilities will see engines built in-house for the first time, too

By PH Staff / Wednesday, 16 September 2026 / Loading comments

It’s been over a year since McLaren Automotive was absorbed into McLaren Group Holdings, an Abu Dhabi-owned venture that also includes Forseven, an EV start-up. In very short order, the boss of the latter, Nick Collins, became CEO, and for a time the firm appeared to be haemorrhaging senior staff and money at an unsustainable rate. ‘A perilous position’ is how Collins described the state of the manufacturer to the FT earlier this year. Now, having previewed the first model of its new era at Pebble Beach, McLaren is keen to explain what its road to full recovery looks like.

For one thing, the SUV that has been widely anticipated for some time, is now confirmed. Not in detail at this stage, but of the ‘new categories’ that McLaren says it will seek to enter, it is the one endorsed by name. For anyone concerned chiefly with the company’s bottom line, the introduction of something to compete with the Lamborghini Urus, Ferrari Purosangue and Aston Martin DBX is long overdue. For anyone concerned with McLaren’s ethos, previously wedded to weight-conscious supercars, the decision is likely to prove more vexing.

Either way, the result (assuming customers approve), is going to mean more volume, hence the announcement of a £500m investment programme aimed at increasing McLaren’s production capacity. The strategy dictates nothing short of ‘a new vehicle assembly facility’, though it also commits to ‘expand operations’ at MPC in Woking and its carbon fibre manufacturing plant near Sheffield. Additionally, the brand points to the new McLaren Creation Centre in Bicester and a vehicle test facility in the Midlands (both conveniently located for new employees who would know how to develop a ‘performance SUV’) as evidence of its integrated approach.

Any new employee can expect to have company when onboarding; McLaren reckons its programme will involve the creation of ‘at least’ 1,000 direct and indirect new jobs across its portfolio by 2032 (no prizes for guessing when it expects the SUV production line to be in full swing then). There might be as many as 3,000 additional roles in the supply chain - though certainly McLaren expects to double its manufacturing workforce in the UK. Music to the ears of the UK Government in the light of JLR’s planned redundancy scheme.

If there is music specifically written for PH ears, it is the pledge to design and build future powertrains in-house. While its long-standing relationship with Ricardo produced a number of first-rate V8s, McLaren’s inability to develop and market its own engines (of varying sizes) was often deemed a weakness when compared to the likes of Ferrari. Without going into any detail about what configuration they might take, the firm suggests it has two new engines and transmissions lined up, and intends to build on its ‘pioneering use of hybrid technology’.

“This investment gives us the platform to grow, develop and build on what makes us distinctive, while investing in the people, technologies and products that will keep us competitive for decades to come,” said Collins. Given that the £500m is attributed to an even larger cash injection by shareholder L’IMAD, a sovereign investor of the Government of Abu Dhabi (as much as two billion dollars over five years has previously been mentioned), it would seem like the manufacturer is now well positioned to turn a corner. Or as Prime Minister Andy Burnham put it: “McLaren Automotive is doubling down on Britain.” Great headline. Now comes the hard part.