Crown

@TWS : No, the HK location is a long story . I would like to find out if they offer a EURO delivery so I can drive it around London for a week or two. 

Iain: Agreed, we all different tastes and there is nothing wrong with that!  As stated, I'm not planning to keep this as part of the collection. Just drive it around for a while and then sell it on. I want to see how the GTR version will look like and perhaps that will tick all the boxes for me. I love Ferrari as a marque, but the local presentation here is really hopeless. I despise going to the dealer. The building looks horrendous and the staff still have that certain arrogance. Hence why there is only the F430 under the roof. Aventador, C9?  We will have to wait and see what the future brings.

Lars, I appreciate the mechanical side of things as much as th aesthetics. It really fascinates me knowing what was involved and the complexities to make it work. The aesthetics of the car are really not for everybody.

Trade the 430 for a 458 Mike. I know what you mean about dealers putting you off  though as I went through a couple of B grade outfits before striking up a fantastic relationship with my current F dealer. It's worth putting yourself through a bit of hassle in dealing with them as the new car is fantastic

Hi Iain, I will consider doing just that when the Scud/Stradale version is released. For now, I'm quite contempt and still enjoy the 430 thoroughly! 

ISUK:

I'm sure it's going to get rave reviews about how great a drive it is etc but for me cars at this end of the market need to tug a little more on your heart strings and get the adrenaline flowing before you've even opened their door and climbed in. That's where this car falls short IMVHO.

Well said Iain, Exactly my point of view. 

ONUR

11 M3 Coupe AW

09 Audi TTS Coupe - 07 997 Carrera S - 05 M3 Coupe - 03 M3 Coupe - 96 M3 Coupe EVO (PASS TIME HISTORY)

ISUK:

Trade the 430 for a 458 Mike. I know what you mean about dealers putting you off  though as I went through a couple of B grade outfits before striking up a fantastic relationship with my current F dealer. It's worth putting yourself through a bit of hassle in dealing with them as the new car is fantastic

Yes Mike, you should put a 458 in your garage. I would go for this switch in a heartbeat, if I were you You can then switch to scuderia/stradale variant when it is released.

--

ONUR

11 M3 Coupe AW

09 Audi TTS Coupe - 07 997 Carrera S - 05 M3 Coupe - 03 M3 Coupe - 96 M3 Coupe EVO (PASS TIME HISTORY)

was certainly one of the cars i considererd. however, in the sum of its parts and considering local support and service the sls got the nod.

great car nevertheless and the gentlemans alternative to the 458

pride355:

ISUK:

Trade the 430 for a 458 Mike. I know what you mean about dealers putting you off  though as I went through a couple of B grade outfits before striking up a fantastic relationship with my current F dealer. It's worth putting yourself through a bit of hassle in dealing with them as the new car is fantastic

Yes Mike, you should put a 458 in your garage. I would go for this switch in a heartbeat, if I were you You can then switch to scuderia/stradale variant when it is released.

--

ONUR

11 M3 Coupe AW

09 Audi TTS Coupe - 07 997 Carrera S - 05 M3 Coupe - 03 M3 Coupe - 96 M3 Coupe EVO (PASS TIME HISTORY)

 

I would consider that if the starting price wasn't so expensive over here. New 458 is $528,000 USD no options. With a large price, comes bigger depreciation. I've got enough to entertain me, hence why I am waiting for the Scud version.
 

The Scud will also still depreciate, but those I am not selling so that's ok.

Mike S:

pride355:

ISUK:

Trade the 430 for a 458 Mike. I know what you mean about dealers putting you off  though as I went through a couple of B grade outfits before striking up a fantastic relationship with my current F dealer. It's worth putting yourself through a bit of hassle in dealing with them as the new car is fantastic

Yes Mike, you should put a 458 in your garage. I would go for this switch in a heartbeat, if I were you You can then switch to scuderia/stradale variant when it is released.

--

ONUR

11 M3 Coupe AW

09 Audi TTS Coupe - 07 997 Carrera S - 05 M3 Coupe - 03 M3 Coupe - 96 M3 Coupe EVO (PASS TIME HISTORY)

 

I would consider that if the starting price wasn't so expensive over here. New 458 is $528,000 USD no options. With a large price, comes bigger depreciation. I've got enough to entertain me, hence why I am waiting for the Scud version.
 

The Scud will also still depreciate, but those I am not selling so that's ok.

Mike,

Price of $528,000 USD is Turkish price terratory. I didn't know that you have so much tax in S.Africa as we do here. The starting price of 458 is 380.000 EUR and with a few options you just pass 400.000 EUR mark here in Turkey. 

--

ONUR

11 M3 Coupe AW

09 Audi TTS Coupe - 07 997 Carrera S - 05 M3 Coupe - 03 M3 Coupe - 96 M3 Coupe EVO (PASS TIME HISTORY)

Mike S:

@TWS : No, the HK location is a long story . I would like to find out if they offer a EURO delivery so I can drive it around London for a week or two. 

Iain: Agreed, we all different tastes and there is nothing wrong with that!  As stated, I'm not planning to keep this as part of the collection. Just drive it around for a while and then sell it on. I want to see how the GTR version will look like and perhaps that will tick all the boxes for me. I love Ferrari as a marque, but the local presentation here is really hopeless. I despise going to the dealer. The building looks horrendous and the staff still have that certain arrogance. Hence why there is only the F430 under the roof. Aventador, C9?  We will have to wait and see what the future brings.

Lars, I appreciate the mechanical side of things as much as th aesthetics. It really fascinates me knowing what was involved and the complexities to make it work. The aesthetics of the car are really not for everybody.

 

 

HI MIke S,
can u tell me what happened to  the Mclaren dealership in HK ?  thanks

***** Official Press Release: McLAREN CONFIRMS GT3 RACING PROGRAMME FOR MP4-12C *****

MTC, Woking, England

- McLaren and  CRS Racing in partnership to develop GT3 racing car based on new McLaren MP4-12C road car

- First customer cars planned for 2012 season

- 12C’s innovative  carbon chassis, light weight and aerodynamics promise winning performance from race-bred road car

WOKING, UK (17 December 2010) – McLaren today confirms its plans to bring back the McLaren name to GT sports cars racing. From 2012, McLaren and CRS Racing will supply and support a limited number of GT3 racing cars based on the McLaren MP4-12C high-performance sports car for European-based privateers.

15 years since the McLaren F1 GTR famously won the world-famous 24 Heures du Mans (Le Mans) on its debut, and 12 years since six ‘Longtails’ last raced at Le Mans, McLaren and CRS Racing, a successful and experienced UK-based racing team, have begun development work aimed at turning the 12C road car into a race-winning GT3 sports car. As part of the development programme, McLaren and CRS Racing will compete at a limited number of European GT races in 2011.

With the 12C’s revolutionary lightweight one-piece moulded carbon chassis (the ‘MonoCell’), its high levels of downforce and aerodynamic performance, and its focus on form and function, the 12C should prove to be a great platform on which to develop a racing car, as well as visually setting pulses racing at European race tracks.

Martin Whitmarsh, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes Team Principal said: “Racing is in our blood – it was natural to develop a GT3 car alongside the 12C road car. We have a legendary history in global motorsport, including GT racing, and we aim to maintain that reputation with this GT3 programme, and any future sports car projects that may evolve.

“The 12C’s architecture and design was always aimed at high-performance and ease of maintenance - two key criteria for potential customers. Combine that with the vast amount of racing experience in our automotive team, and CRS Racing’s specialist development experience, and the 12C GT3 should be an exciting proposition for the top teams planning to race in GT3 from 2012.”

Andrew Kirkaldy, Team Principal, CRS Racing said: “It is a rare opportunity to work with a company like McLaren and we are proud to be involved. Together, we aim to produce the highest quality GT car on the grid. The level of engineering experience at McLaren is unparalleled and this will be reflected in the 12C GT3. One of the most important aspects of this programme will be customer service and for that reason we will be building a limited number of cars at a competitive price. The result will be an incredible GT car with manageable running costs and good residual value that will provide its owner with an unrivalled experience.”

Further details about the McLaren 12C GT3 racing car programme will be announced in 2011 and interest from prospective customers can be registered on www.mclarengt.com.

Initial plans are for a limited run of 12Cs developed for the 2012 European FIA GT3 Series, but, as with McLaren Automotive’s road car business, conservative growth and expansion will be considered. 

CRS Racing will build, sell and support the 12C GT3 cars in close collaboration with McLaren. The Leicestershire-based racing team has a strong pedigree in GT racing in the Le Mans Series, the FIA GT Championship, the International GT Open and the British GT Championship.  CRS also runs two successful single-seater teams: in the Formula Renault UK Championship and as Atech CRS in the GP3 Series.

-- Notes to editors --

McLaren’s racing pedigree

Defined by race wins in a broad series of global racing championships, McLaren is the most successful motor racing team in history. No other racing team has won the ‘triple crown’ of Le Mans (on debut), Indy 500 (three wins) and Formula 1 World Championships. In the North American Can-Am race series McLaren won 43 of 71 races, taking five titles between 1966 and 1972.

In Formula 1, McLaren has won 169 races: better than one in four of the races in which it has competed since 1966, and more races won per season competed than any rival (3.75). These wins have resulted in eight Constructors’ Championships and 12 Drivers’ Championships. McLaren, and Ron Dennis’ influence on Formula 1 has been manifest. In 1981, Dennis’ first season as Team Principal, the McLaren MP4/1 became the first-ever race-winning car featuring a carbon fibre-based monocoque chassis.

This revolutionary design, inspired by aerospace technologies, has since become the standard chassis structure for racing teams: lightweight, safe, strong, and dimensionally predictable.

McLaren’s road car heritage

1993-1997: McLaren F1: The McLaren F1 was, and in many eyes remains, the definitive sports car: the first road car with a carbon fibre construction. 

Just 106 examples of this iconic supercar were made (72 road cars, 28 racing cars, six prototypes), but recent auction prices for F1s value the standard F1 road car at between £2 - £2.5 million, almost five times its original retail price: appreciation unheard of in a modern car.  It was also the last true road car to win Le Mans and the first to achieve this feat since the ‘60s. 

2003-2009: Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren: The SLR was conceived and styled by Mercedes-Benz as a powerful, touring sports car before being presented to McLaren Automotive to engineer, develop and manufacture. The SLR was prodigiously fast, exclusive and a technological tour de force.  With over 2,200 examples produced by McLaren, the SLR became the most successful ultimate supercar ever built, selling more than twice as many as the next best-selling carbon based car (Porsche Carrera GT).

McLaren F1 at Le Mans

1995: with an F1 GTR piloted by J.J.Lehto, Yannick Dalmas and Masanori Sekiya, McLaren won on debut; four other F1s finished 3rd, 4th, 5th and 13th.

1996: six F1 GTR ‘LM’s finished 4th, 5th, 6th, 8th, 9th and 11th.

1997: two ‘Longtail’s finished 2nd and 3rd.

1998: one ‘Longtail’ finished 4th, with a second withdrawn after an accident.

McLaren-MP4-12C-GT3_Official-Link

-- Ends --

Italian journalist Roberto Gurian shared this via Twitter on the 23rd:

Testing the wonderful McLaren MP4/12C in Portimao.

Hopefully this means we'll start seeing some reviews of the 12C very soon!

>8^)
ER

This was the circuit I told the MP4 was 3sec faster than 458

www.rennteam.com/forum/thread/20195720/Mclaren_3sec_faster_than_458/page1.html

J.Seven

 Apparently costumer production has started. Here are some pict off an article on the Top Gear site.

There is going to be a deluge of information once the press embargo is lifted on Feb 14th. London launch appears to have slipped from March into April

That's what I love about seeing McLaren production photos - these cars look like they are built in a laboratory not a factory ...

RT Moderator - 997.1 C2S GT Silver/Cocoa, -20mm sports suspension/LSD, PSE, short shifter, SportDesign rims, Zuffenhausen collection

 Great, now when is that facelift coming up ? 

 Most of MP4-12C will be built in the new factory waiting completion sometime in May.  Only these early examples are built the same way as the F1s and SLRs.

0-200 (with optional UHP tires): slightly below 9s 

Dry weight approx. 1280kg

Factory production will start end of April, first customer cars to be delivered in June  

MKSGR:
Factory production will start end of April, first customer cars to be delivered in June  

And you'll get one of them.
 

The secret of life is to admire without desiring.

Stefan, I become a little sceptic about MP4-12C. Why? We already discussed it in another thread.

I will say this-wise costumer will wait at least 6 months or so and then eventually decide to order or not. We simply need to see first real tests(SA, AMS. Mostly non UK car press).

You can buy 997.2 Turbo S that is a bargin in its class. MP4-12C simply MUST better 458 Italia in all segments. Otherwise it will be an epic failure(I am takling about fact that McLaren marketing did an amazing job to convince costumers that their product is actually the best offer in its class. Without single drive impression from press or independant source)...

KresoF1:

Stefan, I become a little sceptic about MP4-12C. Why? We already discussed it in another thread.

I will say this-wise costumer will wait at least 6 months or so and then eventually decide to order or not. We simply need to see first real tests(SA, AMS. Mostly non UK car press).

You can buy 997.2 Turbo S that is a bargin in its class. MP4-12C simply MUST better 458 Italia in all segments. Otherwise it will be an epic failure(I am takling about fact that McLaren marketing did an amazing job to convince costumers that their product is actually the best offer in its class. Without single drive impression from press or independant source)...

Absolutely agree, Kreso.

I would NEVER order the MP4-12C right now and not even in 2012. I guess we just have to wait and see.
 

The secret of life is to admire without desiring.

Rossi:

MKSGR:
Factory production will start end of April, first customer cars to be delivered in June  

And you'll get one of them.
 

 A test drive is due in May, as I would like to get a sense of how this car feels/handles. Might be a great choice - based on the numbers I know to date 

KresoF1:

I will say this-wise costumer will wait at least 6 months or so and then eventually decide to order or not. We simply need to see first real tests(SA, AMS. Mostly non UK car press).

 That + it might be wise to give them some time to organize the production properly  2012 cars should be better than 2011 cars.

KresoF1:

. MP4-12C simply MUST better 458 Italia in all segments. Otherwise it will be an epic failure 

Kreso, I would even go as far as to say that the MP4-12C has to match the GT2RS benchmark to be fully convincing. Based on what I know today there is a certain chance that this will be the case.

First press reviews are due within the next few weeks, BTW 

MKSGR:

0-200 (with optional UHP tires): slightly below 9s 

Dry weight approx. 1280kg

Factory production will start end of April, first customer cars to be delivered in June  

 If this is true then this car is miles ahead of any 911 or ferrari in pace. Where did you hear this? In my experience to get 0-200 under 9 secs you need around 750hp.. That would be an incredible performance statistic for a stock car.

GT:

MKSGR:

0-200 (with optional UHP tires): slightly below 9s 

Dry weight approx. 1280kg

Factory production will start end of April, first customer cars to be delivered in June  

 If this is true then this car is miles ahead of any 911 or ferrari in pace. Where did you hear this? In my experience to get 0-200 under 9 secs you need around 750hp.. That would be an incredible performance statistic for a stock car.

 I agree, the precise figures I heard where 9.1s for the version with normal tires and 8.9s for the Corsa equipped car  The source is part of official McLaren sales organization 

McLaren MP4-12C: "This will blow your mind..."

(by Steve Sutcliffe)

There’s a statistic I’ve just discovered about the new McLaren MP4-12C that, if you know your onions or, more to the point, you know your acceleration figures, may well blow your mind. Because it has mine.

The number is 6.1.

Due to the embargo of February 14 that McLaren has placed on details surrounding its new car I’m not actually allowed to say what the number means. But were you to put the letters s, e and c after the number then take a guess as to what the end speed is, you may get more of an idea.

And to give you some extra reference, what I can also tell you is that the McLaren F1’s equivalent time to the same speed was 6.3 when we road tested it in 1994.

Which means the 12C is faster than the F1 to ‘ahem’ miles per hour when, to date, the F1 remains the fastest car we’ve ever recorded to ‘ahem’ miles per hour.

And that, my friends, is quite extraordinary...

McLaren-MP4-12C_Autocar-comment

McLaren Automotive and the MP4-12C best of 2010...

"This short film features appearances from Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button, the 2008 and 2009 FIA Formula 1 Drivers' World Champions. Both have enjoyed testing prototype 12Cs and continue to feed back their thoughts on the car's development. The video also captures visitors' reactions to the 12C at its debut events. Brand new footage reveals McLaren Automotive's Chief Test Driver Chris Goodwin taking the car winter testing at Dunsfold Aerodrome -- also known as the BBC Top Gear test track -- as he assesses ESP calibration on Winter settings as part of the 12C's variable Proactive Chassis Control system..."

Im really looking forward to this car surprising its rivals. Just wish Mclaren would hurry the hell up, else it will look sterile like the Rapide.

MKSGR:

GT:

MKSGR:

0-200 (with optional UHP tires): slightly below 9s 

Dry weight approx. 1280kg

Factory production will start end of April, first customer cars to be delivered in June  

 If this is true then this car is miles ahead of any 911 or ferrari in pace. Where did you hear this? In my experience to get 0-200 under 9 secs you need around 750hp.. That would be an incredible performance statistic for a stock car.

 I agree, the precise figures I heard where 9.1s for the version with normal tires and 8.9s for the Corsa equipped car  The source is part of official McLaren sales organization 

Dry weight of 1280 kg will result in a true weight of 1400 kg. This would be really great. Given that the MP4-12C is rather small and has a carbon fiber tube, this weight figure could actually be true.
 

The secret of life is to admire without desiring.