On 25 May, McLaren Automotive (www.cars.mclaren.com) celebrated the manufacture of its 15,000th car at the McLaren Production Centre (MPC) in Woking, Surrey, just seven years after production first began.

The car — a 570S Spider in Curacao Blue from the company’s Sports Series — represents a further significant milestone for the manufacturer, coming less than 18 months after the 10,000th car was completed (in December 2016).

The introduction of a second shift in 2016 to meet rising global demand has seen the production of McLaren vehicles double from around 10 cars a day to 20, with over 90% of them exported — to more than 30 markets world-wide.

The company achieved record sales in 2017, selling a total of 3,340 cars, with demand stimulated by the launch of two new products — the 570S Spider in the Sports Series and the 720S in the Super Series.

About two thirds of sales in 2017 came from the Sports Series and one third from the Super Series. A new Ultimate Series model, the McLaren Senna, has recently entered production; this will be a limited edition of just 500.

Mike Flewitt, McLaren Automotive CEO, said: “Reaching 15,000 cars built is a significant milestone for the company and comes under 18 months after we hit 10,000 vehicles, showing how demand and production have increased.

“The Sports Series has been pivotal to driving this growth, with the 570S Spider now the most popular. The fact that we can now produce 20 cars a day is a great testament to the hard work and dedication of our workforce.”