Lamborghini is making their Urus, and Ferrari soon to be releasing their Purosangue. McLaren too has decided to provide a hint at the SUV that they will be developing and unveiling soon. They’ve called it the GTX, which is much easier to pronounce than their rival at Ferrari and hits more to the point than the Urus; this the British way I say. It seems like in the past we had mainstream manufacturers dive into the world of SUVs, but now a new territory has opened up, the area of super fast, super powerful super SUVs. Credit where credit is due Lamborghini did start the trend when they released the Urus which generated record sales for the automotive legend. There are speculations that even Bugatti is creating an SUV, I don’t know what to think of that, but I digress.
This is going to be a shorter article than the ones I’m used to writing; this is merely a sneak preview of the McLaren GTX. Still, the details that we know so far is that it will be based on the already amazing McLaren GT and will be an off-road version of that. It will be powered by the same 4.0 litre twin-turbocharged V8, producing around 600bhp and 565 lb-ft of torque. Although no 0-62 mph time has been revealed, we can speculate that due to the added weight, reduced aerodynamics and height; 0-62 might take longer than 3.1 seconds as opposed to its slimmed-down brother, and the top speed would probably be significantly lower than 203 mph. What we do know is that it will be four-wheel drive, just like most SUVs it is competing with, and have a seven-speed automatic gearbox.
Exterior wise the GTX will undoubtedly still be recognised as a McLaren given its signature headlights that resemble their logo, the side profile looks like any other SUV with four doors and a sloping roofline. To add that sporty edge the GTX will feature a trunk spoiler, though we don’t know if this will be an optional extra feature or not, to reflect its impressive performance. Adaptive air suspension will also be fitted along with an all-new all-wheel-drive system with offroad capabilities, never thought I’d see the day that a McLaren will go offroading.
Considering that the McLaren GTX is based on the McLaren GT, we can presume that the interior will either be the same or similar; with a luxurious atmosphere featuring a floating centre console and McLaren’s seven-inch touchscreen infotainment display being carried over. The GTX isn’t expected to go on sale until early 2021 and prices for one are expected to be around the £200,000 region along with its other key competitors. A due battle of the sporty SUVs is inevitable.
Sources:
https://carbuzz.com/news/mclaren-teases-all-new-600-hp-super-suv
https://www.somagnews.com/promotional-image-mclaren-600-horsepower-super-suv/
Images:
https://www.topspeed.com/cars/mclaren/2020-mclaren-suv-ar176855/pictures.html#721131
Bleeding Edge Digital 