Here’s Why The McLaren Artura Can’t Reverse Without Its Battery

Jun 10, 2023

As McLaren's first series-production hybrid supercar, the Artura features the latest technologies, but it doesn't have a traditional reverse gear.

McLaren certainly isn't new to the hybrid car world. The Artura is McLaren's "first series-production High-Performance Hybrid supercar", and it packs features that make it a really special supercar. McLaren's main motive was to develop a lightweight hybrid supercar that provides muscular power, track-ready driving dynamics, best-in-class luxury, and, of course, that alien-inspired exterior. The result is the Artura plug-in hybrid supercar.

The Artura arrives with many "firsts" and a host of bleeding-edge technologies that are rather difficult to find in a supercar. Features such as a carbon-fiber monocoque chassis, a new twin-turbo V6, axial-influx motors, Ethernet cable electrical architecture, a chip-fitted Pirelli tire as well as a new eight-speed DCT gearbox make the Artura really special.

However, Artura has one distinctive feature that makes it special. The Artura doesn't have a traditional reverse gear, even though it now features a new gearbox with additional gear. So how does the Artura reverse, and why can't you reverse it without a battery?

Related: Why Matt Farah Thinks The Artura Is The Best McLaren Ever

One of the distinctive things about the Artura is that its transmission doesn't have reverse gear like most supercars you’ve come across. McLaren equips the Artura's powertrain with an axial flux motor that, unlike radial flux motors, keeps the stator between the rotor hubs for making more power and keeping it smaller and lighter than the latter.

The smaller axial motor fits perfectly in the gearbox's bell housing and directly transfers the output to the shaft for improving performance. The inclusion of the axial motor enabled engineers to eradicate the use of a physical reverse gear (similar to the reverse gear equipped in the Lamborghini Revuelto) because the E-motor can also spin backward to help the car reverse when needed.

Since the electric motor is powered by a 7.4 kWh battery and is solely responsible for reversing the car, it is impossible to reverse the car if all battery power is depleted. However, this isn't something McLaren hasn't thought of because the highly-advanced motor control unit (MCU) has a power reserve that never allows the battery to completely discharge. The MCU also has a "set charge to 100 percent" feature that uses the combustion engine to recharge the battery.

The McLaren Artura's PHEV system includes a new twin-turbo 3.0-liter V6 and an axial E-Motor with a new DCT gearbox and a 7.4 kWh battery.

The new M630 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 uses a 120-degree "hot vee" layout which makes the engine lighter and provides enough room to fit two turbos, making it 8.6 inches narrower than the larger 4.0-liter V8. The M630 V6 engine is built with aluminum and 3D-printed components to cut weight further. This makes the new V6 weigh 352 pounds, 110 lbs lighter than the staple McLaren 4.0-liter V8.

The two symmetrically-mounted turbochargers use ball-bearing technology to reduce friction inside, and the electronically-actuated waste gates eliminate turbo lags to ensure a rapid response.

With these, the twin-turbo V6 produces 577 hp and 431 lb-ft of torque alone. When combined with the 93.8-hp E-motor, the hybrid system sends 670 horsepower and 531 lb-ft of punch to the rear wheels via the rear e-differential.

McLaren Claims that Artura takes only 3 seconds to flee from 0-60 mph and takes only 21.5 seconds to reach 186 mph. The Artura can deliver a standing quarter-mile in 10.7 seconds and has an electronically-limited top speed of 205 mph.

Related: Track Weapon Battle: Porsche 718 GT4 RS Clubsport Vs McLaren Artura Trophy

For the first time, McLaren has equipped its car with an eight-speed DCT gearbox, and it has several advantages. The use of a nested clutch design instead of a parallel clutch not only delivers faster gear shifts but makes it 1.5 inches smaller than their previous gearboxes, despite its additional gear. Moreover, McLaren claims the extra gear allows the gear ratios to be closely stacked for delivering slicker gear changes, and the eight-gear works as an overdrive to improve the overall fuel economy.

The McLaren Artura's powertrain has four modes. The comfort mode combines the engine and the electric motor to provide the best fuel economy. In sport mode, the motor offers torque to deliver faster acceleration at lower revs. The track modes use the transmission software for faster shifts. In E-mode, the Artura runs solely on electricity and offers an emission-free range of 18 miles. The Artura comes standard with an EVSE cable that charges the battery from 0-80 percent in 2.5 hours.

The McLaren Artura arrives with many firsts and some cutting-edge technologies. However, the goal of making the lightest McLaren was still the number one priority.

To make Artura the most advanced and lightest to date, engineers designed this car with a zonal domain-based Ethernet architecture that uses four separate controllers, each positioned in a key area and has its function.

All four controllers are connected to a central gateway which helps all connections coexist in a single network. The Ethernet-based electrical architecture has reduced the usage of cables by 25 percent and lowered the overall weight by 10%.

Sourav hails from Siliguri, a city very close to the Himalayas in the northern part of West Bengal, India. Anything that has to do with wheels fascinates him. He has a soft spot for Lexus and BMW. He rides a Royal Enfield Thunderbird and is often seen with his group of friends in nearby hill stations. He also loves doing photography and making music.After working with CARHP and CAR INDIGO for more than 15 months, he joined HotCars to continue in automotive writing. He's currently crushing upon the Triumph Tiger 1200.