McLaren developing all-new V8

McLaren has confirmed that V8 power remains alive and well and will continue to feature alongside its fresh new V6 turbo powertrain into the foreseeable future.

However, while McLaren’s existing V8 has life in it yet, a sophisticated replacement is in the works.

According to McLaren Automotive chief engineer Andy Beale, the current 4.0-litre twin-turbo has both the emissions compliance and performance requirements to continue on as part of the British brand’s portfolio.

But while the company is talking about V8 cars into the future, they won’t necessarily be powered by McLaren’s perennial M840T.

Speaking to carsales, Beale said the long-standing flat-plane crank V8 wouldn’t take much fettling to pass tightening emissions standards, but hinted it makes more sense to develop a successor now rather than wait until the existing engine becomes defunct.

“It [the M840T] is still capable of taking modern emission systems and becoming latest emissions-compliant in the markets that we want to sell it in, so we don’t have that restriction,” he said.

“It is another engine that we're proud of and it’s performed well in our cars. That’s to say when we say V8, doesn’t mean it’s always going to be that engine.”

It’s still too early for McLaren to reveal any specific details – including capacity, target power output or fundamental layout – but Beale did not rule out a continuation of the iconic flat-plane crank configuration that has powered all McLaren models since the MP4-12C of 2011.

“I don't think there’s anything from an emissions point of view or anything else that stops us from continuing to use flat planes,” he said.

“You get the better response, you get the character of the vibration of the flat plane and the noise of it.”

While some manufacturers of the inherently high-revving V8s have experienced destructive vibration, Beale revealed that not only had McLaren solved the harmonic resonance problems many years ago, its vehicles are deliberately engineered to feed some of the finer vibration through to the cabin.

“In our V8 products, we proactively go after using that [vibration] and coupling that through the body of the car.

“So you feel it through the seat, the steering – it’s part of why you get the energy and excitement of the flat plane right into the car.”

Albeit in a very different state of tune and development, the V8 featured in models such as the GT and 750S shares the same basis as the original M838T of the 12C and, like the existing unit, its successor will also be engineered in-house by McLaren and manufactured by partner Ricardo.

However, Beale revealed that the more recent 120-degree V6 that powers the Artura was not designed to be a modularly expandable engine and that the new V8 would have virtually nothing in common.

“It won’t be the same engine and I would be surprised if there’s component carryover in any significant way between the two,” he said.

With a new V8 imminently joining the only two-year-old V6, it’s clear that petrol power will remain part of the McLaren landscape for many years to come.

Beale explained that hybridisation was an essential part of that longevity, but the McLaren range would not be exclusively electrified for now.

“We’ve got petrol consumption in our cars for a while to come in both hybrid and non-hybrid forms,” he said.

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