McLaren SUV coming soon? Another supercar brand eyeing off crossover model as new 'SUV-loving' CEO hints at joining "important market" now led by Ferrari Purosangue, Lamborghini Urus and Lotus Eletre

McLaren's new CEO loves SUVs. He helped Porsche build its first one, and he built one while he was the CTO at Ferrari. But does that mean there's a McLaren SUV around the corner?

In his own words, McLaren Automotive CEO Michael Leiters says the SUV is an important player for capitalising on market segments, but he wouldn't build one unless it makes sense.

"I developed an SUV at Ferrari," Leiters said in an interview with Autocar. "I developed an SUV at Porsche, so I love SUVs. But we won't do it for me. Yet I think it's a really important market. It still is, and it continues to grow.

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"What we have to understand as McLaren is 'how can we find a product that is in line with our DNA?'. We shouldn't do a classic SUV."

Enter this digital render from Russian designer Nikita Chuiko of kolesa.ru, who has used plenty of design cues from models like the McLaren 765LT and Artura to create a potential preview of the hypothetical (for now) SUV.

If the SUV does go ahead, it's unclear what will power it, but Leiters is reportedly unconvinced by the performance potential of electric cars when considering their weight.

"I'm not convinced EV technology is mature enough to make a supercar," he told UK outlet Evo.

If the SUV does go ahead, it’s unclear what will power it. (Image credit: kolesa.ru)

"If you have a supercar, it has to be light. Yes, it has to be fast and it has to have a certain range autonomy, even if you're pushing it to the limit, but if you take today's technology and even the technology that is coming, it will still be difficult to make an electric supercar that you can use as you do today's ICE supercars."

The SUV is only now on the cards thanks to Leiters, and the conclusion of McLaren's former 'Track 22' plan, which led the company to 2022 and excluded an SUV from any consideration, according to the brand's global head of product Alex Long when he spoke with CarsGuide in 2017.

"Our business plan doesn't include an SUV. Track 22... takes us to 2022 with 15 new models all in the supercar segment and very much traditionally what we came into the market to do. What other manufacturers do doesn't really impact that strategy at all. Our plans won't change."