McLaren MP4-12C Enters Production, 1,000 Cars to be Built this Year [with Video]

.fullpost { display: inline; } McLaren Automotive's brand new MP4-12C has reached another milestone with the start of production at the McLaren Technology Centre (MTC) in Woking, England. The British sports car maker said it plans to build up to 1,000 examples of the MP4-12Cs this year, with most cars to be manufactured in a bespoke new £40m McLaren Production Centre, which is due for

Man Amasses Ridiculously Awesome Gulf Oil-Liveried Racing Car Collection

.fullpost { display: inline; } The ROFGO Gulf Collection by Duncan Hamilton is one man's dream of assembling the largest assortment of racing cars ever to compete in the legendary colors of Gulf Oil. The collection comprises 14 of the most prominent Gulf Oil-liveried competition cars and has been created by Duncan Hamilton & Co.’s Chairman, Adrian Hamilton, for an unnamed but obviously

McLaren Cars

2011 McLaren MP4-12C – Goodwood Festival of Speed

The Goodwood Festival of Speed which takes place from Thursday 1- Sunday 4 July 2010, many super cars got together and invited his fans to see directly. McLaren MP4-12C provide an opportunity for the fans to see McLaren’s new supercar in action as reigning F1 champion Jenson Button and 2008 F1 champion Lewis Hamilton will drive the MP4-12C up Goodwood Hill on Saturday and Sunday

2010 McLaren F1 20th Anniversary

2010 McLaren F1 is celebrating its twentieth birthday. And to celebrate, McLaren invited owners out to Woking for a dinner at its Technology Center. The highlight of the get-together has to have been the 21-car F1 roundup, featuring the largest collection of F1s ever seen together.The F1 is a technological tour-de-force and a real triumph in terms of packaging and design. McLaren

2011 McLaren MP4-12C – Brake Steer

Car Show quoted bit is happening at the McLaren Technical Center in Surrey last December for a private viewing of the pre-production MP4-12C. The automotive division was officially launched and more tantalizing details of its first product released. McLaren MP4-12C comes with a perfect, innovation and technology. New engine developed of the twin-turbocharged 3.8-litre V8 and the

2010 McLaren MP4-12C

McLaren Automotive today launched the first in a series of short videos of broadcast quality, which provides a rare insight into the performance car testing program from the development team behind the new McLaren MP4-12C.As a new car company, McLaren Automotive has a unique story and interesting to tell before the first model will be sold in spring 2011. Meanwhile, 2009′s intense

2011 McLaren MP4-12C

At its heart, the McLaren MP4-12C features a revolutionary carbon fibre chassis structure, the Carbon MonoCell: the first time a car in this market segment is based around such a strong and lightweight racing car engineering solution and the first time any car has ever featured a one-piece carbon fibre structure. This step change in sports car design means that the 12C introduces new

New McLaren Automotive MP4-12C Supercar

Comparisons with the McLaren F1 are no doubt expected, but the new MP4-12C is said to feature more equipment than the old car including a full complement of air bags. A power packed package, the 12C also boasts of a brake steer system that is similar to the type used in F1 cars. On the inside too this beauty glows with hi-tech embellishments, which McLaren refers to as the IRIS infotainment

McLaren will build only sports cars

On Thursday, the company announced details of the plan, which is obviously a way, among other things, for McLaren to fight with Ferrari off the track. The car, called the MP4-12C, will go on sale in late 2011 for between 125,000, or $191,127, and 150,000 pounds, The Associated Press reported.

‘‘Following any recession, there’s a resurgence,’’ said Dennis, who is the chairman of McLaren Automotive, at the company’s headquarters — and factory site — in Woking, south of London. ‘‘We intend to catch that wave.’’

The company aims to make up to 1,000 of the 12C cars next year, with up to 40 percent being sold in North America, the report said. The care will compete with the Ferrari 458 Italia, priced at around 170,000 pounds, and the Mercedes SLS AMG at around 145,000 pounds.

‘‘Our volumes are very much linked to how we see the recovery,’’ Dennis added. Production forecast to reach around 4,000 by the middle of the decade.

‘‘Although we’re investing hundreds of millions of pounds into these cars, we have no desire at all to be the biggest sports car manufacturer,’’ said Antony Sheriff, McLaren Automotive managing director. ‘‘In fact, we take great pride in being one of the most exclusive, and aim to keep it that way.’’

Dennis also wants to use the production of the cars as a way to ensure the company’s future, since F1 is so precarious as a business alone, and he quoted the fact that 101 Formula One teams have vanished since McLaren started on the circuit in 1966.

‘‘To stay solely and exclusively a Formula One team is almost going to surely lead to extinction,’’ he said, noting the company had already successfully moved into electronics, applied technology and marketing.

McLaren MP4-12C

The super cool McLaren MP4-12C super car features the latest advances in automotive technology taken straight from the Formula 1 circuit. The McLaren MP4-12C is built around an extremely light and rigid carbon fiber tub. But rather than the heavier multi-piece tubs used by its competitors and predecessors, the MP4's is made from a single piece, weighing a spritely 176 pounds).




The body panels are all carbon fiber and composites, making the new McLaren more expensive to build than its competitors and resulting in an expected £160,000 ($265k) price tag – higher than either the new Ferrari 458 Italia or the Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4, but lighter in weight, too.


Behind the tub sits a twin-turbo 3.8-liter V8 engine producing around 600 horsepower and 433 lb-ft of torque, offering what McLaren claims is the highest horsepower to CO2 ratio of any internal combustion engine on the market – gasoline, diesel or even hybrid. Contrary to earlier speculation that suggested Mercedes could continue furnishing its erstwhile partner with at least the engine blocks while producing its own SLS supercar and furnishing Pagani as well, McLaren says the unit was developed entirely in house. The bespoke mill features a flat-plane crank, dry sump and can rev up to 8,500 rpm, though 80% of the torque is said to be available from as low as 2,000 rpm. That ought to be good for a 0-60 time in the low threes and a 200+ mph top end.

While you might have expected carbon ceramic brakes to keep all that power and speed in check, McLaren says its conventional discs actually weigh less. They're aided by a Brake Steer system that brakes the inside rear wheel to combat understeer. But the real trick system is in the seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, where Pre-Cog lets the driver load up the next gear by half-squeezing the paddle and then engaging with gunshot speed.

McLaren MP4-12C Interior Pictures

With the new MP4-12C, McLaren's betting the economy will bounce back soon. It's planning on building 1000 units in 2011, a quarter of which will go each to the domestic UK market and over here to the United States. The C designation also suggests that they're planning a roadster version to join the coupe. But for now, we'll just enjoy this first batch of images in the gallery below and peruse the lengthy press release after the jump.

McLaren MP4-12C

2011 McLaren MP4-12C Sport Pictures

2011 McLaren MP4-12C Sport Front View

2011 McLaren MP4-12C Sport Image

2011 McLaren MP4-12C Sport Side View

2011 McLaren MP4-12C Sport Picture

2011 McLaren MP4-12C Sport Interior

2011 McLaren MP4-12C Sport

2011 McLaren MP4-12C Sport Car Wallpaper

2011 McLaren MP4-12C Sport Rear View

2011 McLaren MP4-12C Sport Car