Automotive: McLaren partners with Lockheed Martin Skunk Works

Lockheed Martin Skunk Works – is entering into a technical collaboration with Supercar and hypercar maker McLaren.

The project will focus on deploying a new Skunk Works’ design system, developed for the world of aviation.  The new project presents McLaren engineers with the opportunity to work alongside scientists at Skunk Works to develop cutting-edge technology.

Darren Goddard, McLaren’s Chief Technical Officer, said: “McLaren is a pioneering company that has always pushed boundaries and sought out new innovative and disruptive solutions to making the ultimate supercars. Working alongside an iconic company such as Lockheed Martin Skunk Works, renowned for their visionary focus on the future, is a natural fit. We hope this is the start of a longer and deeper collaboration that will benefit our customers in the long-term.”

To commemorate the launch of their technology collaboration, both companies showcased some of their latest projects at Skunk Works headquarters in California’s High Desert. Alongside the conceptual Darkstar hypersonic aircraft – star of the blockbuster “Top Gun: Maverick” movie – was a McLaren Artura hybrid supercar(pictured, top).

McLaren’s first series-production High-Performance Hybrid (HPH) supercar, the Artura is the brand’s first model built on the all-new McLaren Carbon Lightweight Architecture (MCLA) which is uniquely optimized for HPH powertrains and features an all-new twin-turbo 3.0-liter V6 gasoline engine with an E-motor.