Rumour Mill: Hybrid Supercar Coming From McLaren?

[GRtak]

http://www.wired.com/autopia/2009/07...mclaren-maybe/

McLaren, a company synonymous with Formula 1 and famous for the F1 supercar, is looking for a hybrid drivetrain engineer, fueling speculation that it is working on a gas-electric road car.

The British firm has posted a job listing on its website seeking a ’senior engineer - powertrain hybrid technology.” More tantalizing is the fact the ad makes it clear whoever fills the position will “lead the technical assessment, integration and application of appropriate hybrid powertrain technology” and “manage the definition and execution of development & validation activities.” That — coupled with the fact that Formula 1 has essentially abandoned its experiment with kinetic energy recovery systems — strongly suggests McLaren is looking to incorporate hybrid technology in a street car, not a race car.

McLaren isn’t saying what it’s up to, but a company spokesman told Autocar UK hybrid technology “is something we want as a forward-thinking, technology driven company. We have been considering it for future projects. All the advert means is we are looking for a senior engineer in powertrain hybrid technology. Read into it what you will.”

Hmmmmm, I wonder what they are up to.

[Labcoatguy]

I wish them good luck. From both a performance and maintenance perspective, the electric motor is pretty close to perfect: one moving part, maximum torque right off idle, and way high redline. As everyone's noticed, it's the electricity generation and storage part that's tough.