We’ve been waiting for what seems like forever for an entry-level McLaren sports car (codenamed P13), but Woking has now given us not only confirmation that such a car is coming, but also when it will be unveiled (second quarter of 2015), as well as a name – McLaren Sports Series.
According to Autocar UK, the name reportedly refers to a whole range of new sports cars, including coupé, Spider and hardcore track-biased versions. It is expected that each variant will receive a unique moniker, following the example of the 650S and lower-powered Asian-market 625C, both being two different versions of the same car.
The upcoming Porsche 911 fighter (Stuttgart’s finest just can’t seem to catch a break, can it?) will slot under the 650S – and presumably the 625C – in McLaren’s lineup, and will be built on the same bones as its more powerful siblings, with the same carbon fibre chassis and the same mid-mounted V8 engine. The company is saying that the Sports Series will be “a pure McLaren”.
The Sport Series range is rumoured to start at around £125,000 (RM663,000), £70,000 (RM371,000) less than the 650S and, crucially, £17,000 (RM90,000) less than the range-topping 911 Turbo S. The Ricardo-built 3.8 litre twin-turbo V8 is expected to be detuned to around 450 hp on the base model – nearly 200 hp down on the 650S – resulting in an estimated 0-100 km/h sprint time a second slower at 4.0 seconds.
McLaren will be promoting the upcoming launch of the Sports Series by focusing on 13 “game-changing” events (called “Black Swan Moments”, referring to the first sighting of a black swan in 1697) from around the world as well as in McLaren, using the #BlackSwanMoments hashtag.
McLaren 650S in Malaysia
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silly name…as if the other models are mpvs with 7 seater option !
So another 12C variant?
Its one thing to make a more powerful 12C, but to make one that is less powerful?? What happened to the original MP4-12C then?
I would have thought McLaren would come up with something smaller and nimbler like the Alfa 4C and give the Boxster/Caymen a run for the money. But I suppose that would be Lotus’ calling once they get over thier internal quagmire.
Mclaren killed the 12C due to the overwhelming interest in the 650S.
And this model is meant to compete with the carrera s.