McLaren Is Recalling 2763 Cars For Possible Fire Risk, Senna Included

Thousands of McLaren supercars have just been recalled for potential fire risk. A recall notice from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will be going out to owners of “certain” examples of the 2016-2020 720S, 2017-2019 570GT, 2020 GT and even the 2019 Senna hypercar. 2763 cars are potentially affected.

It’s down to an NVH (noise, vibration and harshness) foam pad that sits under the fuel tank. The part has been found to hold moisture, which over time could corrode the fuel tank and cause a leak via “micro-porations,” the NHTSA’s recall document report says. Although any escaping fuel vapours would go into a cooler area of the car, over time there’s a chance fuel could leak under the car and to something more toasty, sparking a dangerous and very expensive blaze.

The leaking fuel tank issue was first reported on a 570GT January last year in Latvia. Since it was a high-mileage former press car, McLaren decided to monitor future fuel tank-related warranty claims to see if it was an isolated incident. A 570GT in the UK had a similar issue in February 2020, prompting the Woking-based company to reopen its investigation and trigger the recall in April. These are currently the only two confirmed cases, McLaren says.

For the 570GT, 720S and Senna, the recall work involves simply removing the foam NVH pad, with fuel tanks replaced where necessary. Meanwhile, the pad will be taken off any cars currently in production or completed cars yet to be sold. The solution for the GT (below) hasn’t yet been determined.

The 720S makes up the majority of the potentially affected cars, with 2008 examples recalled. Next up is the 570GT at 373, while 225 GTs are covered.

157 Sennas are part of the notice. This isn’t the first time the track-focused hypercar has been recalled for possible fire risk - last year cars built between June 2018 and June 2019 were found to have a wiring harness that ran close to a link pipe heat shield, with damage to the former causing over fuelling and an increase in catalyst temperatures.

Customers elsewhere in the world can expect to here from McLaren soon. A representative from the company’s UK press team told Car Throttle:

“McLaren Automotive has chosen to undertake a voluntary safety recall of its 570GT, 720S Coupe and Spider, Senna and GT models due to a risk of possible corrosion of the fuel tank. Customers will be notified and advised to bring their vehicle in for inspection with any necessary reparatory work to be carried out free of charge. The appropriate regulatory authorities have been consulted on and are aware of this action.”