McLaren has so far resisted the urge of launching an SUV, but that might change in the near future. After all, its main competitors all have high-riders in their portfolios, and these models have significantly boosted their sales.
With Michael Leiters holding the reins of the brand as of last month, McLaren might finally expand its portfolio with an SUV. And Leiters does have a lot of experience with such vehicles, having overseen the development of two of them, the Porsche Cayenne, and upcoming Ferrari Purosangue.
“I developed an SUV at Ferrari. I developed an SUV at Porsche, so I love SUVs,” Leiters told Autocar. “But we won’t do it for me. Yet I think it’s a really important market. It still is, and it continues to grow. It’s very attractive as a market segment.”
While an SUV could be exactly what the doctor ordered for the Woking auto marque, they have yet to take a final decision. As a matter of fact, other models are on the table, though a high-rider would solidify McLaren’s range, and would also allow them to dip their fingers into an all-new segment for the first time ever, without cannibalizing the company’s supercars.
From a financial standpoint, it should be a win-win situation. The Urus has more than doubled Lamborghini’s sales, the Macan and Cayenne have done the same for Porsche, and the DBX accounted for roughly half of Aston Martin’s sales in the first year. Let’s not forget about the Purosangue, Ferrari’s first attempt at making a high-rider, which should bring in more customers when it launches.
On a final note, Leiters went on to speak about a possible partnership with a major automaker, without saying anything about the rumored talks with Audi and BMW. “We have to maintain our DNA; I'm not interested in any partner which gives me only 'me too' technology. So the question is to find the right partner; the question is not to find a partner.”
“I developed an SUV at Ferrari. I developed an SUV at Porsche, so I love SUVs,” Leiters told Autocar. “But we won’t do it for me. Yet I think it’s a really important market. It still is, and it continues to grow. It’s very attractive as a market segment.”
While an SUV could be exactly what the doctor ordered for the Woking auto marque, they have yet to take a final decision. As a matter of fact, other models are on the table, though a high-rider would solidify McLaren’s range, and would also allow them to dip their fingers into an all-new segment for the first time ever, without cannibalizing the company’s supercars.
From a financial standpoint, it should be a win-win situation. The Urus has more than doubled Lamborghini’s sales, the Macan and Cayenne have done the same for Porsche, and the DBX accounted for roughly half of Aston Martin’s sales in the first year. Let’s not forget about the Purosangue, Ferrari’s first attempt at making a high-rider, which should bring in more customers when it launches.
On a final note, Leiters went on to speak about a possible partnership with a major automaker, without saying anything about the rumored talks with Audi and BMW. “We have to maintain our DNA; I'm not interested in any partner which gives me only 'me too' technology. So the question is to find the right partner; the question is not to find a partner.”