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We still have some time before the new McLaren MP4-12C super car goes on sale in the Spring of 2011. Until then the race car fabricators are keeping quite busy with preparation for the Italian exotic competitor, and just to let the world know that they haven’t forgotten about us with all their diligent labor, the automaker has released a video that shows all the work that is going into producing the MP4-12C super car.
The vehicle’s challenging and comprehensive development program has taken the new McLaren to some of the world’s most famous race circuits as well as the most inhospitable of driving environments. McLaren has utilized every method in their arsenal to produce the best budget super car possible; combining simulation programs, Formula 1 techniques, personnel processes and thousands of miles of real world on road exercises showing that the McLaren Automotive testing team has taken giant strides through 2009 and will continue on into the future until they have perfected the MP4-12C.
Earlier reports that said the McLaren MP4-12C’s US launch would be delayed has been refuted by McLaren.
According to the said reports, the UK-based supercar maker was having a difficult time establishing a dealership network in the US out of concerns that the six-digit MP4-12C would not go over well across the Atlantic because American customers are holding off on splurging for a car with such an exorbitant price tag.
But according to McLaren, there has been significant progress made from the
company’s search for a dealership network and that the car’s pending release in the US is still on schedule.
“All is on-track,” a McLaren spokesman said. “Retailers are very keen and the customer list is strong.”
McLaren also dismissed reports that the company pulled out of the LA Auto Show out of fears that it would’ve been a fruitless endeavour. “We never even signed up to the show in the first place,’ said the spokesperson.
The US launch of the new McLaren MP4-12C may have hit a pretty serious stumble block after Inside Line reported that concerns over the car’s viability in the US has turned off a number of US dealership networks into giving the MP4-12C the green light in the US.
Taking the stance of these dealers and given the penny-pinching a lot of Americans are doing these days when it comes to their next auto purchase, the feasibility of selling a supercar – and a six-figure McLaren at that – in the US just doesn’t make a whole lot of sense.
McLaren was supposed to bring the MP4-12C to Los Angeles for the L.A. Auto Show in December, but with the recent turn of events putting a cloud on the car’s future in the US, the UK-based company has decided to cancel its appearance in the event, giving further credence to the growing uncertainty of the MP4-12C’s future across the Atlantic.
All things considered, the car is still scheduled to make its arrival in the US sometime in the middle of 2010, although expectations should be tempered. For now, at least.
When McLaren unveiled their latest super car creation, the MP4-12C supercar they announced that the new speed machine will be available in full range of exterior colors. However while the company did not reveal exactly what shades would be made available in their pallet, the digital imaging software Photoshop can give us a few ideas.
So no matter which wavelength of the electromagnetic spectrum you wish to cover your future McLaren in, hopefully this will give you some ideas and the high performance automaker will be able to deliver on this promise with their twin turbocharged 3.8 Liter V8 powered super car that is supposed to make somewhere around 600 HP and 433 lb-ft of torque. The MP4-12C’s engine is coupled to a McLaren seven speed Seamless Shift dual clutch gearbox and can accelerate from 0 to 60 MPH in less than 3.5 seconds and can hit a top speed of over 200 MPH in a rainbow of colors.
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A few months ago, McLaren revealed that they were in the process of producing three vehicles in the coming future, one of which would be the likely successor of the McLaren F1. We all know that one of the three cars on tap to go on sale is the soon-to-be-released MP4-12C, leaving us with two more vehicles to speculate on. So, with speculation comes imagination, and for those with the skills to render a visual interpretation of a car, their imaginations are naturally shot to overdrive.
Coventry University graduate Matt Williams put is to good use when he created his interpretation of what the F1’s successor would look like. Calling it the McLaren LM5, Williams took elements from the original supercar including the unique three-seat layout with the driver seat on the center and the two other seats on both sides. To add more space to the interior, as well as reduce the overall weight of the car, Williams designed all three seats to be slim-as-can-be and in an apparent homage to McLaren’s rich F1 history, Williams also did away with standard seat belts and opted to use racing-style four-point harnesses for all three seats.
As far as the car’s engine is concerned, Williams decided to import an engine from BMW for his creation. Instead of a McLaren-developed powerplant, the young designer opted to use a BMW M5/M6 V10 engine that produces as much as 700 horsepower, giving justice to a car of McLaren’s stature.
Photos by Matt Williams
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The former Formula One racecar builder and makers of the famed McLaren F1 super car recently revealed the MP4-12C, a two passenger super car that will provide the performance of a Ferrari, the style of a Lamborghini and the desirability of an Aston Martin while maintaining a much more reasonable cost. Aside from the fixed roof version, McLaren automotive has also announced that they will also be coming out with an open air spider version as well. This image you see above is the first rendering of the drop top McLaren MP4-12C that is to be unveiled as a production vehicle sometime in the next two to three years. When it finally does come to fruition, the MP4 spider will compete head to head with other high end exotics like the Ferrari 458 Italia Spider, Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder and the forthcoming Mercedes SLS AMG Cabriolet.
The McLaren MP4-12C will be powered by the same twin turbocharged 3.8 Liter V8 and seven speed Seamless Shift dual clutch gearbox (SSG). An interesting fact about the super car power train is that the boosted eight cylinder engine offers the highest horsepower to CO2 ratio of any internal combustion car on the road today, including hybrids. The piston pumping V8 produces around 600 HP and 433 lb-ft of torque and will allow the future McLaren spider to sprint from 0 to 60 MPH in less than 3.5 seconds and reach a top speed in excess of 200 MPH.
Don’t look now but it sounds like the new McLaren MP4-12C is going to have a Sipider offspring pretty soon.
This bit of news was reported by Autocar after finding out that McLaren’s new MP4-12X assembly plant includes a huge space specifically reserved to cater to a ‘Webasto RHT Sub Assembly’.
Now, if you got confused with the name, we’ll be more than happy to give you a hint. The ‘RHT’ on the name stands for ‘retractable hard-top’, which, in plain English would mean a convertible.
For their part, McLaren has neither confirmed nor denied the rumor, only saying that Webasto is but “one of several potential suppliers.”
We’ve always considered McLaren to be a little more closed to giving away company secrets that easily but we’re thinking that this is one occasion where they cat got out of the bag far sooner than they expected and no matter what kind of spin they put in it, it won’t change the growing sentiment that the MP4-12C is about to go topless pretty soon.
McLaren hot shot Ron Dennis has already promised us that the upcoming MP4-12C super car will be a world class automobile that combines the performance of a Ferrari, the style of a Lamborghini and the desirability of an Aston Martin; at a much more reasonable cost. Well now you can get a closer look at the future McLaren for yourself with their new website dedicated to the former Formula One builder’s latest creation, and while the MP4-12C is slated to go on sale in 2011 with its twin turbocharged 3.8 Liter V8 engine producing around 600 HP and 433 lb-ft of torque and seven speed Seamless Shift dual clutch gearbox that allows it to sprint from 0 to 60 MPH in less than 3.5 seconds and reach a top speed in excess of 200 MPH.
The web page gives inquirers a closer look at the McLaren MP4-12C’s no compromise mid engine design and ensures you that every line on the new carbon fiber car was penned with a purpose. The site even goes into explaining the car’s high mounted exhaust and breathtaking braking performance. The Internet page gives you a brighter glimpse of the new McLaren’s HID headlamps and LED taillights and even shows the super car’s signature dihedral doors even open up to expose the car’s interior that was designed around the driver with its flat bottomed steering wheel’s F1 inspired rocker shifter and a very ingenious compact airbag.
The most interesting set of facts about the new McLaren built super car revolve around the new car’s power plant. The M838T is an all new twin turbocharged V8 that is able to make as much as 80% of its maximum torque output from as low as 2,000 RPM. Another interesting aspect of boosted eight cylinder is that along with its lightweight compact design, the M838T is offers the highest horsepower to CO2 ratio of any internal combustion car on the road today, including hybrids. With all these reasons backing the McLaren MP4-12C as a true 21st century super car, it will be almost impossible for them fail.
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We’re pretty sure that there aren’t a lot of people in the world that has not been, in some way shape or form, been totally mesmerized by the McLaren MP4-12C. But while a lot of us have been gushing over this car since it was first unveiled a few months back, we still believe that everyone isn’t sold on what the MP4-12C offers.
So to answer all those sceptics who think the super car is not all it’s cracked up to be, McLaren recently released a number of photos of the car, a new website intro, and an animation detailing of what the MP4-12C looks like when its stripped bare.
It’s pretty awesome to take a look at, especially for those who of you who have yet to be made believers out of the car.
We guarantee that after you do, you’ll be just like the rest of us who can’t seem to go past a day without talking about McLaren’s new supercar.
When it comes to rampaging exotic cars, Europeans have always been way ahead of its Atlantic neighbors. Take away the obvious reason that most of the world’s producer of super cars call Europe home; it seems that despite the vast automotive market America has to offer, not a lot of niche car brands have brought their rockets on wheels to the land of milk and honey. All of that, however, is about to change.
With the upcoming release of its latest supercar, the MP4-12C, McLaren is rolling out its new strategy on global distribution, and to the surprise of a lot of folks, one of the top destinations for the new super car is North America. The Woking-based super car outfit has decided to appoint regional managers in four key sectors where they figure to ship most of their MP4-12Cs: North America, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.
As far as the North American region is considered, it’s widely expected that McLaren will set up its regional office in New York with Anthony Joseph – a man who’s no stranger to being a regional manager for a number of other car brands in the past, including Ferrari and Porsche – being tapped as its RM. We can’t tell you how many times we’ve dreamt of spotting a super duper car on local soil. And while there have been such occasions in the past, they still happen far too rarely for our own liking.
But now that McLaren is headed Stateside – and in Canada, too – we’re already salivating at the thought of seeing one in the flesh.
Press release after the jump.
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