McLaren Plans to Broaden Its Lineup Beyond Sports Cars

Automotive News reports that McLaren is planning to expand its lineup with an SUV, hybrid coupe, and GT:

McLaren Automotive is evolving beyond its traditional two-door sports cars with a major expansion that will broaden its appeal while staying true to its performance roots.

“This brand can be so many more things than it’s been historically,“ CEO Nick Collins told Automotive News in August.

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The expanded product portfolio will be accompanied by a global dealership redesign and new corporate identity as McLaren strives to expand its customer base and build brand engagement.

Reuters, which reported the company will invest £500 million ($675 million) in its UK manufacturing and engineering operations:

McLaren Chief Operating Officer Michael Straughan said the automaker needed growth to lower its material costs and lift its profits, and the way to get there was through expanding its product portfolio starting with the SUV.

McLaren has been loss-making for years, but Straughan said the company's margins could match the top performers in a segment that includes Ferrari, which has the highest profit margins in the auto industry.

Porsche’s and, more recently, Ferrari’s lineup expansions reflected the same reality McLaren is facing: there’s an economic (and sometimes a survival) ceiling as a sports-car company. The challenge—not insignificant—is to expand without losing brand and product identity.