McLaren P11 gets closer

McLaren really are something of a phenomenon. The F1 is generally regarded as the greatest supercar of all time. Even now, more than 15 years since the first prototypes, it is up there with the big guns. It even gives the Veyron a run for its money. McLaren, founded in 1963 by Bruce McLaren, has held a dominant position in Formula 1 for much of the last 20 years. It has partnered with Ford, Porsche and Honda (amongst others), but it’s been the partnership with Mercedes that has arguably brought the greatest success, including, in road car terms, the magnificent Mercedes McLaren SLR (although the F1 used a BMW engine).

McLaren toyed with a number of road cars, and abandoned previous projects (P8, P9 and P10), but the P11 now seems to be on target for a launch in 2010/2011, with the Ferrari F430 and Lamborghini Gallardo firmly in its firing line.

The P11 is designed to be a much more affordable supercar. The F1 cost £640,000, and you now won’t see change from £1.5 million of you want one, but the P11 is expected to be firmly sub £200k when it launches. And, even more surprisingly, there is talk of production runs of up to 5,000 cars a year, which is an incredible undertaking for a company the size of McLaren. Especially when you think that the F1 only produced 65 road going cars in its model run (plus the 5 LMs and a handful of GTRs converted to road use).

Car Magazine published the rendering you see here, and it’s clear this is an F430 competitor. It’s small and light (unlike the SLR – P7) and appears to be much in the mould of the F1. But don’t expect gold lined engine bays and all the mad bespoke elements of the F1 – this is designed to be much more manstream. With a carbon composite body and probably a blown version of Mercedes 6.2 litre V8 (mid-engine layout), this should have a stonking power to weight ratio. Easily sub 4 seconds to 60 and 200+ mph are the benchmark here, and there is no doubt McLaren will achieve that.

The world is in financial turmoil at the moment, and car makers are rushing to deliver ever more economical cars. But there will always be a place for auto extravagence, and those who can afford it will always seek out the best. And, as McLaren proved with the F1, they are more than capable of producing the best.

Can’t wait!

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