McLaren has confirmed that it will invest £500 million (around P41.2 billion) to expand its manufacturing and engineering operations in the UK, with the cash creating “at least 1,000 direct and indirect jobs across McLaren’s UK operations by 2032.”
The investment—which forms part of a larger commitment by shareholder L’IMAD, a sovereign investor of the Government of Abu Dhabi—will enable McLaren to build its new ‘performance SUV’ in the UK facility.
Sounds like that long-awaited SUV will get a hybrid powertrain, too, because we’re told that “for the first time in its history, McLaren Automotive’s future powertrains will be designed and built in-house, starting with two new engines and transmissions. This will support the company’s hybrid engine strategy.”
PHOTO BY TopGear.com
PHOTO BY TopGear.com
The number of cars that McLaren can build will increase thanks to the investment, with a doubling of the manufacturing workforce and a new assembly facility planned in the UK. Both the McLaren Production Centre in Woking and the McLaren Composites Technology Centre in South Yorkshire will also be expanded. The latter is where the company makes its carbon tubs, and will almost double in size. Oh, and it has recently opened the McLaren Creation Centre in Bicester (for design and innovation) and a testing facility in the Midlands, both of which were formerly Forseven sites before McLaren merged with the EV startup in early 2025.
OTHER STORIES YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED:
The hydrogen-powered Toyota Hilux will debut in 2028
The BYD Atto 2 EV gets upgraded with a 501km driving range
“This investment gives us the platform to grow, develop, and build on what makes us distinctive, while investing in the people, technologies, and products that will keep us competitive for decades to come,” said Nick Collins, big boss of McLaren Group Holdings and McLaren Automotive.
Added UK big boss Andy Burnham: “McLaren Automotive is doubling down on Britain, keeping the design, the engineering, and the building of every future car here, and taking on a thousand more people to do it.
“Their investment will create high-quality apprenticeships [and] jobs, and drive growth far beyond their factory gates. It is how you get skilled work, decent wages, and pride back into a place. It’s this kind of partnership between government and business that will help us reindustrialize communities and make every part of Britain better off. I want young people to see that and know there is a future for them in making things, wherever they grew up.”
PHOTO BY TopGear.com
PHOTO BY McLaren
NOTE: This article first appeared on TopGear.com. Minor edits have been made.