The McLaren F1 is undoubtedly one of the greatest collaborations in the history of the automotive industry. Even today, it is still considered among the best supercars ever made and you can probably understand our excitement when we heard the rumors that the two companies are currently discussing a potential new joint project. Nothing is official yet but there’s a new report shining more light on the topic.
According to Car Magazine, BMW and McLaren met earlier this year behind closed doors and talked about two brand new products that could receive versions wearing the logos of both firms. One of these two new models is reportedly a halo electric performance car with McLaren expected to be responsible for the carbon fiber chassis and BMW supplying the batteries, electric motors, and software. It will be based on a new architecture, something that became known in April this year.
Gallery: 1995 McLaren F1 Gooding And Company Auction 2020
If you are wondering why would BMW embark on such a costly experiment, the answer probably has something to do with the fact that Audi and Mercedes-AMG, as well as Porsche, are reportedly all working on electric high-performance models for a launch later this decade. Leaving the competition with no direct rival would surely be a huge marketing hit for the Bavarian brand, which has no answer to the Audi R8 and Mercedes-AMG GT today.
“McLaren impressed us by rethinking the way a modern sports car should be engineered and built – their fresh approach to the integration of key components is particularly clever,” a source from Bavaria told the online publication. The second rumored model is a high-performance high-riding electric machine, though the benefits of a potential partnership between BMW and McLaren are less clear regarding this new product.
But what is exactly expected from McLaren in this cooperation – what exactly BMW M cannot engineer by itself? Car Magazine speculates that the British automaker could help its colleagues from Bavaria when it comes to weight and torsional rigidity. Also, it could add unique selling features not even Ferrari is able to match. All this sounds too good to be true so we’ll wait until there’s more information available to comment.
