Yahoo Finance McLaren’s losses more than double to £873m as sales fall
Losses at British supercar maker McLaren more than doubled to a record £873m in 2023 amid production delays and a drop in sales.
The GT maker’s losses increased by 160pc in 2023, while its revenues fell from £627.8m to £465.9m.
This came after global car shipments fell 2pc to 2,137, fuelled by McLaren’s decision to stop selling two popular models in China.
The F1-team backer’s losses were compounded by a £375m impairment charge resulting from delays to the production of its £185,000 Artura hybrid-electric sports car.
The latest results reveal the financial hurdles facing the luxury carmaker before it was taken over by Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat in March.
The deal, which saw the group’s biggest shareholder take full ownership, also accompanied an injection of £85m in the first months of 2024.
In recent years, investors in McLaren have been forced to invest hundreds of millions of pounds to help shore up its balance sheet post-Covid.
Its recent struggles prompted the sale-and-leaseback of its historic headquarters in Woking three years ago, as well as the disposal of part of its classic sports cars collection.
It also spun off its technology arm, McLaren Applied, into a separate business in 2021.
In a presentation to investors for its latest results, McLaren insisted it had entered 2024 with a “positive outlook” despite a “challenging” year, as executives attempt to turn around the business.
For the first three months of 2024, McLaren car sales increased to 796 compared to 620 in the same period a year earlier, representing a jump of 28pc.
As a result, its turnover in the first quarter climbed to £205.3m, up from £135.2m.
In the update, the company said it was continuing to look for “potential strategic partners” and was exploring “technical partnerships with industry partners”.
Founded in 1963, McLaren’s name has been synonymous with British motorsport, including the McLaren Formula 1 team whose drivers have included Lewis Hamilton and current star Lando Norris.
