Elite Traveler Fall 2024

INSPIRE TOPCARS

McLaren Artura Spider

As an ‘entry-level’ McLaren, the plug-in hybrid Artura certainly took the supercar world by storm after its delayed debut last year. Now, for model year 2025, the Artura receives a convertible Spider variant, which in typical McLaren fashion somehow only adds 136 lbs to the coupe’s overall weight. Optioning the retracting hardtop results in a curb weight of just 3,439 lbs — which is still less than many other hardtop, non-hybrid supercars — because McLaren originally designed the chassis intending to o ff er the open top as an option. All of the Artura’s best characteristics carry over to the Spider, too. The 120-degree twin-turbocharged Whether in full EV mode, cruising in top-down comfort, or at full attack on the track, the Artura Spider is somehow three cars in one, all of them somehow representing a solid bet against any possible competition

V6 mounts low in the chassis for ideal weight distribution, and contributes additional power resulting in a bump up to a combined hybrid rating of 691 hp. An electric motor snuggled into the transmission bell housing can put out 166 lb-ft of torque to fi ll in the lower end of the power band, whenever the gas engine isn’t singing up to its 8,500-RPM fuel cuto ff . The Artura Spider never sacri fi ces style or sound, either, with a modernized interior that continues design language established by the 600LT and 750S before it, plus a symposer that routes true exhaust noise into the cockpit for a resonating deep bass

e ff ect. And, as a bonus, McLaren has also brought the 19 hp update to the Artura Coupe, along with revised transmission programming that creates 25% quicker shifts, additional processing power for the hydraulic suspension system that improves response times by 90%, and augmented cooling ducts for the brakes. Whether in full EV mode, cruising in top-down comfort or at full attack on the track, the Artura Spider is somehow three cars in one, all of them representing a solid bet against any possible competition. From $250,000, mclaren.com

Photos Stan Papior