McLaren Elva fast facts: TG Speed Week 2022

What is it?

A naked McLaren Senna. McLaren fancied a slice of the super-speedster action, so it dropped the Senna’s 804bhp V8 into a carbon bathtub, and said it would build 399. Then 249. Then 149. And to sell them all, it’s now got an optional windscreen...

What’s the McLaren Elva's killer feature?

The Elva’s big headline gimmick – the Active Air Management System (AAMS) – is missing from this Elva, because it’s got AGOW (A Good Old-fashioned Windscreen). McLaren added it to the options list to apparently help sales in the safety-conscious US, but it’s also perhaps an admission that even the cleverest wind tunnel aero can’t stop billionaire owners taking a botoxed faceful of grit and insects.

Is the McLaren Elva a good car?

Here's what we said in our original review: "It’s a car full of feeling and feedback, just with utterly uncalled for and outrageous performance. It’s driving in 4D with everything cranked up to 11; you feel the environment around you, sense the chill in the air as the temperature drops, smell the impending rainstorm and hear the loss of traction from the tyres when the droplets start to fall."

Why does it deserve to be at Speed Week?

McLaren is in trouble. Its core model, the hybrid Artura, has been badly delayed. The company’s had to seek a cash injection since Covid, and there’s been a CEO change at the top. The Elva seems to summarise Woking’s recent troubles, but so long as the sun stays out, this could be the most exhilarating – and unsung – supercar of recent times.

What are the McLaren Elva's specs?

Engine: 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8, 804bhp, 590lb ft
Transmission: 7spd DCT, RWD
Performance: 0-62mph in 2.8 sec, 203mph
Weight: 1289kg (with windscreen)
Price (as tested) £1,425,000 (n/a)