mclaren mp4-12c

TAG Heuer Carrera MP4-12C for McLaren

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches, Luxury Cars & Autos

McLaren and TAG Heuer have a longstanding history. Never mind that the F1 team's drivers Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button are both brand ambassadors for the Swiss watchmaker. Heuer took the TAG name when Mansour Ojjeh's Techniques d'Avant Garde – onetime supplier of McLaren's turbocharged Porsche F1 engines and still a part owner of the racing team turned automaker – took it over in the pre-LVMH days. TAG Heuer crafted special watches to accompany both the legendary McLaren F1 and the subsequent Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren, and has now returned for a new watch to compliment the new MP4-12C supercar.

Based on the Carrera model, the MP4-12C edition features a carbon fiber dial with a large window to see the movement and a big orange zero where the 12 should be (to make it look more like a speedometer), housed in a sandblasted titanium case and affixed to the wrist with a perforated Alcantara strap. The orange detailing reflects McLaren's traditional color, and the 47-jewel Dubois Depraz Calibre 4900 fly-back chronograph movement features a perpetual calendar display. Only 1000 examples of this exclusive timepiece will be made.

Tags: heuer, mclaren, McLaren MP4-12C, tag, tag heuer, tag heuer carrera, tag heuer carrera mp4-12c

McLaren Puts a Price Tag on the MP4-12C

by Noah Joseph (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

If you've been waiting for your opportunity to order the latest supercar from McLaren, you can start setting aside the cash now, as the British racing team turned exotic automaker has announced pricing for the new MP4-12C.

Although the cost with options and add-ons is sure to climb, the 12C will retail for a base $229,000 – pitting it squarely against the $225,000 Ferrari 458 Italia and the $237,000 Lamborghini Gallardo LP570-4.

Gallery: McLaren MP4-12C

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Tags: mclaren, mclaren mp4-12c, mp4-12c

Lord Foster Designs $70 Million Factory for McLaren's New Supercar

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos, Architecture & Design

Famed British architect Lord Norman Foster has designed a stunning new $70 million Production Centre for McLaren where the legendary racing marque is busy assembling their wicked new MP4-12C supercar. The sleek new facility is an adjunct to McLaren's Technology Centre at the UK HQ, which Foster also designed and built for the company. Every aspect of the the Production Centre, a shrine to the ultimate in automotive technology and car design, is "clean, clinical and present for good reason," Wallpaper notes. The Production Centre is a low energy, eco-friendly structure with a roof designed to collect rainwater and a displacement ventilation system. It's connected to the Technology Centre by an underground walkway for ease of communication between McLaren's design and engineering teams. The overall effect is straight out of a James Bond film with its all-white interior, ceramic tiled floors and all-black technician's outfits; the only splashes of color come from the cars themselves.

Gallery: Lord Norman Foster for McLaren

[via JamesList]

Tags: architect, architecture, car design, design, Foster + Partners, Lord Norman Foster, McLaren, McLaren MP4-12C, Norman Foster, supercar, UK

The McLaren MP4-12C Finally Comes to America

by Jonathon Ramsey (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

Almost a year after the last Mercedes McLaren SLR rolled off the production line, McLaren has shown its MP4-12C to our corner of the world during Pebble Beach weekend. It is the first in what will be a range of McLaren sports cars, and the MP4-12C is the baseline – they will only get faster and more expensive from here.

The raw specs: mid-mounted 3.8-liter twin turbo V8, 600 horsepower, 442 pound-feet of torque. The compelling details, however, are underneath and even beyond the metal bits: McLaren's mission with the MP4-12C is to make technologies usually reserved for Formula 1 cars and Pagani Zondas accessible to those on less-than-Zonda budgets.

The carbon fiber tub, the monocell, is molded in one piece, a first for a production car. The body panels are tuned to aero purposes only – none of them need to do duty as structural members. The electrohydraulic suspension can be locked out for track blasting, then switched to four-wheel-independent urban duty for a "3 Series or 5 Series ride." It's lower and shorter than a Ferrari 458, but it has a longer wheelbase and it weighs about 160 pounds less. Oh, and it's got the biggest trunk space in the segment. That isn't terribly difficult when supercar trunks are better at stowing leaflets than luggage, but still, feather, meet McLaren cap...

Said McLaren's head of PR, "If you look at our competition, they are the best cars ever made in that segment." We look forward to finding out if the McLaren is even better, because while we walked around the car at Pebble we kept imagining it saying, "If you see the Ferrari 458, tell it I'm here."

Gallery: McLaren MP4-12C at Pebble Beach

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Tags: mclaren, McLaren MP4-12C, mercedes, mercedes-benz, MP4-12C

McLaren Celebrates 20 years from the Conception of the F1 Supercar

by Sam Abuelsamid (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

McLaren F1s gather for a party – click above for high-res image gallery

Twenty years ago this spring what is considered by many to be the greatest supercar of all time was conceived. The McLaren F1 may not have the shear power and technological prowess of the more recent Bugatti Veyron, but the product of ex-formula one designer Gordon Murray's fertile mind was vastly more elegant from a pure engineering standpoint. While the Veyron throws in everything but the kitchen sink with four turbochargers on its V16 engine, all-wheel-drive and active aerodynamics, the F1 relied on a lightweight carbon fiber chassis and a highly tuned normally aspirated V12.

Engineering and design work began in March of 1990 and the first prototypes rolled out of the McLaren factory two years later. The first production example was delivered to a customer in late 1993. Customers soon decided they wanted to race the F1 and the factory prepared five cars for the 1995 24 Hours of Le Mans. Aside from a front splitter, rear wing, and requisite racing safety gear, the F1 GTR was almost stock and the engine was actually restricted compared to the road version. Those five cars finished 1st, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 13th first time out.

Ultimately, McLaren built 100 F1s including 72 for the street and 28 race cars along with six prototypes. Of those 21 returned to the factory last month for a celebration to mark 20 years as well as the launch of the new MP4-12C.

Gallery: McLaren F1 20th Anniversary

[Source: McLaren]

Tags: mclaren, mclaren automotive, mclaren F1, mclaren f1 20th anniversary, McLaren MP4-12C

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McLaren Focuses on Efficient Sportscars, Hybrids Possible

by Jeremy Korzeniewski (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos, Green

McLaren MP4-12C – Click above for high-res image gallery

McLaren seems to think it's possible to have your cake and eat it too. Judging by the company's past and present performances, we wouldn't doubt them. Managing Director Anthony Sheriff sat down with Inside Line at the company's official launch, and plenty of interesting information was gleaned. For instance, McLaren has committed itself to producing the lowest carbon emissions per horsepower of any car on sale.

In order to promote both efficiency and performance, McLaren has set its target on reduced weight. Says Mark Vinnels, McLaren Automotive's program director, "Weight will always be the fundamental enemy of what we're trying to achieve. Our focus will be on achieving the best lightweight solutions at the given price point." That likely means that future models from the sportscar manufacturer will use exotic materials, possibly including heavy doses of carbon fiber and composites in structural areas.

Powertrains won't be neglected when it comes to efficiency either. Last summer, McLaren posted an ad looking for a hybrid powertrain engineer. Sheriff wouldn't rule out hybrid drivetrains, but was coy about their future applications. "We're about applying high technology to make our cars faster and more efficient. And we may make things in a different way to what you expect," he said.

Gallery: McLaren MP4-12C

Tags: hybrid, hybrid mclaren, hybrid supercar, HybridMclaren, hybrids, HybridSupercar, mclaren, mclaren F1, mclaren hybrid, McLaren MP4-12C, McLaren p11, MclarenF1, MclarenHybrid, MclarenMp4-12c, MclarenP11

McLaren Automotive Officially Launches Itself into the Automotive Stratosphere [w/Video]

by Sam Abuelsamid (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos, 10 Luxuries

McLaren MP4-12C – Click above for high-res image gallery

This morning McLaren Automotive held a press conference at its technology center outside London England to officially unveil itself and its first new product to the world. An off-shoot of the McLaren Formula One team, the new automaker picks up where the previous efforts that produced the F1 of the mid-1990s and the more recent Mercedes-McLaren SLR left off.

Chairman Ron Dennis discussed the philosophy of passion behind the new enterprise while Managing Director Anthony Sherriff went over the MP4-12C in some detail. The over-arching design goal was performance through efficiency. By keeping size and weight down, the car is able to achieve extraordinary levels of performance. McLaren has developed an all-new bespoke powertrain consisting of a twin-turbocharged 3.8-liter V8 with 600 horsepower and a lightning fast dual clutch transmission.

Sherriff promises a compliant ride for everyday driving with handling that will top anything in the world. McLaren is currently in the process of appointing 35 dealers in 19 countries to sell its cars when they start production in 2011. First year production is pegged at 1,000 cars with that number rising to 4,000 annually by 2015 as at least two additional models are added. Pricing and final performance figures will be announced later this year. Check out Autoblog for more technical details on the McLaren MP4-12C. There is a video of McLaren formula one drivers Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton testing the 12C after the jump.

[Source: McLaren]

Tags: mclaren, mclaren automotive, McLaren MP4-12C, mclaren-mercedes

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Video: Watch the Launch of the New McLaren MP4-12C Live

by Sam Abuelsamid (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

McLaren MP4-12C – Click above for high-res image gallery

On Thursday March 18, 2010 McLaren Automotive will officially launch itself into the realm of road going supercar builders at an event in London. The official launch event will be webcast live at 10:30 am GMT (6:30 am EDT, 3:30am PDT) and you can watch it right here after the jump.

McLaren Automotive chairman Ron Dennis and his team will discuss details of the car including its design and technology as well as provide manufacturing details and more information about the company. Check out the video to hear all about the successor to the legendary F1 right here.

Gallery: McLaren MP4-12C

[Source: McLaren Automotive]

Tags: mclaren, mclaren automotive, mclaren automotive webcast, McLaren MP4-12C, webcast

Continue reading “Video: Watch the Launch of the New McLaren MP4-12C Live”

McLaren Unveils All-New, All-Conquering MP4-12C Supercar

by Noah Joseph (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos

Most automakers involved in Formula One racing produce cars first, and race second. Only a handful are racing teams first, and produce road cars second. And they tend to be the most successful, and the most desirable. Only one example comes to mind, and that's Ferrari. But the Italian "scuderia" has now got some company from its toughest on-track competition.

After producing the legendary McLaren F1, the championship-winning racing team partnered up with Mercedes-Benz on the SLR supercar. But now they've back on their own with the newly unveiled MP4-12C. Built entirely in-house, the new McLaren boasts a twin-turbo V8 with approximately 600 horsepower and 433 lb-ft of torque, boasting the highest power-to-emissions ratio of any engine on the market. The custom-crafted powerplant resides in a carbon fiber body designed by former Ferrari stylist Frank Stephenson and encompasses the very latest in race-derived technology. Only 1000 examples will be built in the first year before McLaren ramps up production to meet anticipated growing demand, with a price tag in the neighborhood of $265,000. Have a look in the high-resolution image gallery below.

Gallery: McLaren MP4-12C

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Tags: exotic, mclaren, mclaren automotive, mclaren mp4 12c, mclaren mp4-12c, MclarenAutomotive, MclarenMp4-12c, MclarenMp412c, mp4 12c, mp4-12c, Mp412c, supercar