McLaren Automotive says it has developed a world-first application of an aerospace industry composites manufacturing method “scaled appropriately” for volume supercar manufacturing. Deployed at the McLaren Composites Technology Centre (MCTC) in Sheffield, UK, the new ART (Automated Rapid Tap) method produces carbon-fiber structures that can be optimized for lighter, stiffer, and stronger parts via advanced structural optimization produced with less waste-material generation.

“Carbon fiber is integral to the McLaren story and a core part of our DNA,” said Michael Leiters, Chief Executive Officer for McLaren Automotive. “It enables us to deliver super-lightweight supercars with the very best dynamic attributes and it remains an area of technical exploration with much to discover, and many more gains to be realized.”

The new specialized manufacturing process will enable enhancements to future models that augments the best attributes of the material. As McLaren explains it, the aerospace industry uses ultra-precise manufacturing methods to build highly tailored carbon-fiber structures for the latest generation of jetliners and fighter aircraft, particularly for large, crucial parts such as aircraft fuselage and wings. This involves the robotic depositing of composite tapes to layer structures over traditional hand layup using pre-impregnated materials.

The new ART production process is a “high-rate” version of this method that McLaren developed and has now integrated into its manufacturing capabilities at the MCTC. The resulting carbon-fiber forms are visually distinct from conventional hand-cut pre-impregnated carbon-fiber components.

Ditching the aerospace industry’s method of using robotic arms to layer composite tapes, McLaren’s method instead employs a specially designed machine using a fixed deposition head and a rapidly moving bed capable of rotation, which unlocks a faster manufacturing process suitable for automotive purposes and high-rate composites manufacturing.

The ART process enables tailored fiber placement, creating new possibilities relating to load bearing or stiffness requirements that are not possible with conventional methods. It frees engineers from uniform material constraints, with adjustment of fiber orientation within the composite material allowing for anisotropic stiffness so rigidity can be enhanced in specific directions while flexibility can be maintained elsewhere.

This unlocks new ways to design highly loaded, complex aerodynamic components and allows for optimized strength-to-weight characteristics. Fibers can be concentrated in areas subject to high stress or load, such as joints, edges, or connection points, and allows for the removal of unnecessary material in low-stress regions.

Because measured lengths of dry composite tape are laid down when building out an ART part, there is a significant reduction in the generation of irregular-shaped off-cuts that cannot be reused. Up to 95% of the raw dry tape material used to layer a component goes into the final part.

The automated process reduces positioning inaccuracies and material loss caused by human error, ensuring that the final layup is within design tolerances and minimizes rejected parts. The automated element of the ART machine provides real-time monitoring and control, ensuring consistent process parameters and optimized part quality.

The advantages that the technology can deliver in terms of manufacturing time and reduced costs create the possibility of greater use of carbon fiber in more areas of a vehicle. Beyond the carbon tub, the wider use of ultra-lightweight body panels constructed of ART carbon fiber become more feasible and cost effective.

ART technology has already been integrated into McLaren’s manufacturing processes. A prototype high-rate deposition machine has been installed at the MCTC, and this first installation of ART technology will be upscaled to an industrial-spec machine later in 2025, with increased manufacturing capacity.

The first vehicle to feature ART carbon fiber is McLaren’s new Ultimate supercar and the next car in the iconic “1” car lineage—the W1. The fixed plane within the active front wing assembly, an integral part of the car’s aerodynamic package that can generate up to 1000 kg (2200 lb) of downforce, is manufactured from ART carbon. The part is up to 10% stiffer than a comparable pre-impregnated part, reflecting a significant enhancement, considering its aerodynamic load-bearing function. Further components made from the material are under consideration for production examples of the W1.

The ART production method and carbon structures are said to unlock immense possibilities for the next generation of carbon-fiber architectures. For instance, integrating the technology into the structure of an ultra-lightweight, ultra-strong carbon fiber tub—manufactured with minimal waste material generation—that can underpin the next-generation of McLaren supercars is already under consideration.

 

Building on a carbon-fiber history

Founded in 1963 by racer, engineer, and entrepreneur Bruce McLaren, the McLaren Group is globally headquartered at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. It encompasses McLaren Automotive, which hand-builds lightweight supercars, and a majority stake in McLaren Racing, which competes in six racing series.

With more than four decades of carbon-fiber experience, McLaren has driven key developments in racing and automotive uses for the material. Every production McLaren has been based on a carbon-fiber monocoque, and the company has maximized the benefits of the material in other body structures and aerodynamic systems to maximize performance and driving dynamics.

In 1981, McLaren revolutionized F1 when it introduced the MP4/1 as the first race car to use a full carbon-fiber monocoque chassis. Its lightweight, rigid structure significantly improved both safety and performance. Designed by John Barnard, the pioneering chassis led to widespread carbon-fiber adoption in motorsport and changed F1 car design.

The superiority of carbon fiber from a safety perspective was demonstrated spectacularly at the 1981 Italian Grand Prix. McLaren driver John Watson sustained and walked away from a 140-mph accident unharmed. It was a major moment in convincing series competitors that carbon-fiber chassis technology was the future of safety in F1.

In 1993, the first road McLaren-branded road car, the legendary F1, was built on a carbon-fiber monocoque chassis and a full carbon-fiber body, emphasizing minimal weight and maximum structural rigidity. Pioneering the use of carbon fiber in road cars, the monocoque—engineered using at the time cutting-edge computer-aided design and analysis—allowed the F1 to achieve a power-to-weight ratio previously unheard of in road cars. The car boasted unmatched performance because of its light weight of only 1140 kg (2510 lb) and its power of 627 PS from a BMW-sourced 6.1-L V12 engine.

A carbon-fiber chassis helped cement McLaren’s supercar DNA with the 2011 introduction of the 12C, McLaren Automotive’s first production car. Produced at the state-of-the-art McLaren Production Centre, it introduced the MonoCell—a single-piece carbon-fiber tub that provided unprecedented stiffness and lightness in a road car at the time. The MonoCell’s advantages over the aluminum designs at the time ranged not only from incredible light weight of only 75 kg (165 lb) for the tub but torsional rigidity so great that the Spider variant of the 12C required no additional chassis strengthening.

The McLaren P1 of 2013 took another step forward from its McLaren F1 forebearer with the use of a carbon-fiber body structure incorporating not only the roof and lower structures, roof snorkel, and engine air intake cavity but also the battery and power electronics housing that were integral to the car’s high-performance hybrid powertrain. The entire structure, known as the MonoCage, weighed only 90 kg (198 lb).

The 2017 McLaren 720S introduced the Monocage II carbon-fiber structure that is still employed by the 750S. The lightweight structure comprises the entire passenger cell, combining a carbon-fiber tub with an upper structure in carbon fiber to further enhance lightweight attributes and vastly improve ergonomics, visibility, and design. It featured slimmer roof pillars combined with B-pillars positioned rearwards for better visibility and lower sills for easier ingress and egress.

The opening of the MCTC in 2018 marked the first standalone McLaren production facility outside Woking, formed through a partnership of McLaren Automotive, the University of Sheffield’s AMRC, and Sheffield City Council. The goal for the facility is to not only be a center-of-excellence in both composites engineering and research but also in the production of new-generation carbon fiber tubs that can directly integrate with future powertrain technologies.

In 2021, the Artura hybrid supercar was the first car to benefit from the McLaren Carbon Lightweight Architecture (MCLA) designed, developed, and manufactured at the MCTC using world-first processes. Enhancing the lightweight and rigidity benefits previously developed into the MonoCell and MonoCage II structures, it incorporated a safety cell for the battery of Artura’s hybrid V6 powertrain and integrated further crash and load-bearing functionality into the tub.

Coming back to the W1, McLaren continued its lightweight carbon-fiber DNA evolution with the Aerocell tub. As used on the track-only Solus GT, its composite material is pre-impregnated with a resin that simplifies the curing process. Pressure treatment is then applied in the mold, which gives the Aerocell higher structural strength than comparable tubs. It results in a lighter tub and eliminates the need for some additional bodywork.

The Aerocell is a key element of the W1’s extreme aerodynamic package. It makes use of true ground effects, achieved by raising the monocoque’s front floor. To reduce the length of the Aerocell and the overall vehicle, engineers fixed the seating position and incorporated the seats into the monocoque. This enabled a wheelbase reduction of almost 70 mm (2.8 in), saving further weight.