McLaren steals show with amazing baby F1

By Luke Madden

04th September 2009

FANCY a McLaren F1 will all the performance at a fraction of the price? The stunning new mid-engined, rear-wheel-drive MP4-12C is here, and it promises to deliver even more impressive results than its legendary sibling.

SEE THE MCLAREN MP4-12C LAUNCHED LIVE HERE

It’s lighter, greener yet more powerful than its two main rivals, the Ferrari 458 Italia and the Mercedes SLS Gullwing. Power comes from a bespoke twin-turbocharged 3.8-litre V8 which will develop around 600bhp and 600Nm in finished production form, slightly less than the McLaren F1’s 627bhp, 649Nm 6.0-litre V12

Bosses are yet to announce full performance figures for the 12C, but the targets for the car are impressive: 0-124mph will take less than ten seconds, while the car will be able to stop from 100mph in just 30 metres. For reference, the Highway Code states that a car should stop from 70mph in 75 metres.

The car’s kerbweight has a lot to do with the impressive performance. Thanks to the use of carbon composites, hence the C in the car’s name, the dry weight is kept below 1,300kilos. Its rivals, the 458 and SLS, weigh in at 1,485kg and 1620kg respectively. The light weight aids economy too, with McLaren claiming CO2 emissions of less than 300g/km, beating the 458’s 307g/km and SLS’s 314g/km.

Efficiency is the name of the game throughout. The MP4 gets an F1-inspired ‘Seamless Shift’ double-clutch gearbox that alters the speed of gearchanges to suit everyday use or performance driving.

What’s more, the 12C becomes the first production model to use the lightweight carbon monocoque found in grand prix cars. This Carbon Monocell tips the scales at less than 80kg, is incredibly rigid and doubles as a safety shell.

Further weight savings have been achieved with the introduction of aluminium and cast-iron composite brakes. Buyers will be able to specify even more powerful carbon ceramic anchors as an optional extra.

In addition, McLaren has fitted a ‘virtual’ limited-slip differential, similar to that on Ford’s Focus RS. The company’s Brake Steer system stops the inside rear wheel spinning to limit cornering understeer. As with all the safety packages included on the 12C, though, the driver will be able to adjust the level of interference to suit their taste.

Another feature is McLaren’s new Proactive Chassis Control suspension. This is based on double wishbones with coil springs, and replaces the traditional anti-roll bars with an adjustable roll control system. This limits body movement in corners – but the suspension is decoupled when travelling in a straight line, so that it can absorb bumps well.

While comparisons between the 12C and the F1 are inevitable, the two cars are very different. The F1 was the ultimate money-no-object, limited-run road car, with examples of the car changing hands for more than £1million today. The MP4-12C promises very similar performance, measures a similar size and exhibits the same obsessive dedication to making it the best it possibly can be, yet should cost £175,000 when it goes on sale in Spring 2011.

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