McLaren is hardly the first carmaker to venture into two-wheeled transport, but the Surrey-based supercar builder is pitching right to the very top-end of modern cycling with its new e-bike range, McLaren Bikes, announced this week.
McLaren Bikes debuts four electric mountain bikes
The company is bringing four models to the market, the Extreme 600W and Extreme 250W, along with the Sport 600W and Sport 250W. The former are billed as ‘hyperbikes’, machines that are meant to have much in common with McLaren’s select range of bespoke hypercars, epitomised by models like the Speedtail.
The Sport duo are meant to have more in common with the ‘everyday’ McLaren range, which includes cars like the GT and 720S (since replaced by the 750S) and the hybrid Artura.
So what do cars and bikes have in common? The most obvious crossover is that McLaren’s design team has had a hand in shaping these carbon fibre-framed mountain bikes. The design goes much further than the simple application of the company’s signature Papaya Orange, however. Carbon-fibre construction is the most obvious parallel, while the massing of the frame emphasises the route taken by the dynamic forces generated by the ride, as well as reduces the visual weight of the battery pack.
Sheer power is another defining quality. The 600W model (available only in the USA) is described as one of the ‘world’s most potent e-bikes’. That should be good for an (electrified) top speed of 20mph. All models feature five different power settings, Off, Eco, Trail, Sport, and Race, mimicking the driver modes found in McLaren’s road cars. Information, including speed, battery life and range, is shown on a handlebar-mounted colour LCD panel.
The bikes are available as both full-suspension Extreme models and as hardtail Sport models, and all options use Pirelli tyres, McLaren Automotive’s long-standing partner. The company expects the availability of the new e-bikes to be strictly limited, just like with its most high-end cars.
McLaren e-bikes, from £7,200 for Extreme 250 model, McLarenBikes.com, @Mclaren_Bikes
-
A technical tour de force, McLaren’s Artura Spider makes an unconventional supercarMcLaren prides itself on technical perfection. Its newest series production supercar ticks all the right buttons but demands you make an emotional commitment
-
The McLaren W1 is the latest in the sports car maker's tech-saturated Ultimate SeriesFirst F1, then P1 and now W1, McLaren Automotive reveals its latest limited-edition supercar to the world, a £2m concoction of hybrid power and active aero that is, unsurprisingly, already sold out
-
McLaren M6GT is the latest in INK’s series of ‘plain bodied’ racing carsINK reimagines the McLaren M6GT, dubbed ‘Bruce’s Unfinished Masterpiece’, as a purist piece of automotive sculpture
-
McLaren’s flagship supercar has still got what it takesFive years after its launch, the McLaren 720S is still the purist’s supercar of choice. Few cars can go faster and yet remain so precise and amenable to drive
-
Hermès hits hyperdrive with a one-off car design for McLarenHermès hits hyperdrive with a one-off car design for McLaren
-
Gordon Murray’s T.50 supercar rewrites the rule bookThe new T.50 is a nod to the past and future of Gordon Murray's storied design processes
-
Sustainability shapes the narrative arc of Geneva Motor Show 2019 -
McLaren's twin convertible launch boasts supercar dramaThe 720S and 600 LT Spiders set high expectations for McLaren's upcoming 18 car strategy
