McLaren Files ‘Bruce McLaren’ Trademark Amid SUV Push

WOKING, England — McLaren Automotive has filed a trademark application for the name of its founder, Bruce McLaren, according to records uncovered by Car Moses. The move arrives as the British automaker restructures its product lineup under new ownership and attempts to compete in vehicle segments it previously avoided.

The filing covers automotive applications, opening the possibility that the company intends to use the nameplate on a future production vehicle rather than solely to protect historical intellectual property. McLaren recently introduced a revised corporate logo and wordmark, signaling a broader brand reset following its acquisition by Bahrain’s Mumtalakat Holding Company, which took full control of the automaker in 2024 after years of financial restructuring.

Automakers routinely secure trademarks for heritage names well before a specific product is greenlit. Ferrari applied similar logic when it named its 2002 halo car the Enzo. If McLaren follows that precedent, the Bruce McLaren name would likely be reserved for a successor to the W1 hypercar, replacing the alphanumeric designations the company has relied on since launching the MP4-12C in 2011.

The trademark filing is one component of a wider strategic pivot. McLaren confirmed plans to build a 2+2 grand tourer, a body configuration it has never produced. More significantly, the company announced it will develop an SUV.

That decision reflects economic reality more than engineering ambition. Ferrari’s Purosangue and Lamborghini’s Urus have demonstrated that ultra-luxury utility vehicles generate the profit margins necessary to fund low-volume supercar development. Aston Martin entered the segment earlier with the DBX. For McLaren, which operated at a loss for several consecutive fiscal years prior to the Mumtalakat takeover, high-margin volume models are a prerequisite for long-term solvency.

New Zealand racing driver Bruce McLaren founded the team in 1963. He died testing a Can-Am car at Goodwood Circuit in 1970 at age 32. The road car division bearing his name did not launch until 2010, operating initially as a joint venture before becoming a standalone entity within the broader McLaren Group.

Whether the trademark results in a halo hypercar or remains a defensive legal filing, the paperwork underscores a company attempting to monetize its history while fundamentally altering what it builds. The SUV and grand tourer programs will require substantial capital expenditure at the Woking facility, where production capacity has historically been limited to roughly 5,000 vehicles annually.