McLaren Automotive forecasts continued growth after posting first profit in 2013

The British supercar maker reported a £12.4 million ($22.3m) operating profit and a £4.5m ($8.1m) before tax profit in 2013 – just its third year of vehicle production.

McLaren Automotive’s revenue rose £18.8m ($33.9m) to £285.4m ($514.3m) last year after delivering 1359 MP4-12Cs and 36 P1s.

The company has already taken more than 1000 orders for the successor to the 12C, the McLaren 650S, which launched in coupe and Spider convertible body styles earlier this year.

McLaren has also confirmed its new entry-level P13 will go on sale before the end of 2015.

It says the P13 will be a “comfortable, usable and beautiful mid-engined two-seater sports car” that will make McLaren “more accessible while retaining its commitment to excellence, performance and innovation”.

The new model, tipped to rival the Audi R8 and Porsche 911 Turbo, will be offered in at least two body styles, each featuring a carbonfibre chassis.

Once the P13 is in full flight, McLaren expects annual production to increase to about 4000 units, almost triple last year’s record total.

At the other end of the range, McLaren will also build a limited run of track-only P1 hypercars in 2015, which will only be offered to clients who have already ordered one of the 375 road-legal versions.

McLaren invested £70.6m ($124.1m) in research and development of new models last year, up four per cent over the previous year.

It opened 13 new showrooms in 2013, growing its global network to 50 dealerships in 28 international markets. It plans to open another 20 during 2014 on the way to a network of more than 100 by 2018.

McLaren Automotive chairman and CEO Ron Dennis praised the company’s workforce for its financial and sales success.

“McLaren Automotive has already developed a deserved reputation for producing the world’s most exciting and technologically advanced high-performance sports cars,” Dennis said.

“These results demonstrate that we have also established a profitable long-term business, which is able to invest heavily in R&D, recruit the best people and ultimately create world-class products. In a highly competitive market, we have laid solid foundations for future success.”