Right after taking the McLaren MP4-12C out for the first of several spins, I was reminded of the Honda NSX, a car I drove 22 years ago.
Not because both are lightweight, mid-engined, rear-drive sports cars. Not because of the common McLaren-Formula One link. And not because both are symbolic flag-bearers for their respective companies – the NSX as Honda’s first and only supercar endeavour, and the MP4-12C as McLaren’s first all-independent road-going project (previous attempts were thinly veiled collaborations).
It actually was because of how utterly user-friendly the MP4-12C is – just like the NSX. Don’t let the swan-wing doors and deep carbon-fibre tub of a passenger cell fool you. Or the car’s 592bhp, 600Nm twin-turbo V8, sourced from UK technology group Ricardo. Or its 3.3-second century sprint, which puts it on the same pitch as cars such as Ferrari’s 458 Italia and Porsche’s 911 Turbo.
Less imaginative than inspired F1 three-seater, but the ergonomics are good and the layout is logical.
Unlike old-school supercars, the McLaren isn’t intimidating at all. You slip in, adjust the seat and steering, and voila – it’s almost as if the car was tailor-made for you.
Visibility is superb. It’s easy to judge distances because you have an unblocked view of the raised front wheel arches. Rear visibility is commendable, too, despite the skinny rear windscreen. And the wing mirrors offer an excellent account of what goes on at either side of the car, while not impeding what’s coming up ahead – no matter what angle the car occupies.
The seats are snug and supportive, the cockpit intuitively laid out, and the cabin not the least bit claustrophobic.
It also helps that the car is an automatic. With only two pedals in the footwell, and no stick shift to deal with, driving becomes a lot more enjoyable. The gearbox isn’t one of those lurching robotised manuals, but a satiny 7-speed dual-clutch job from Italian cog specialist Graziano. Flick the steering-mounted shift paddles anytime the mood strikes you, and the car “becomes” a manual.
Left knob alters the handling, right knob tweaks the powertrain; “NST” represents Normal, Sport and Track.
Its gearchanges, even in DIY mode, can be as slick or lightning quick as you wish them to be. Just dial in the preferred drive settings via two selectors on the centre console: one controlling the car’s dynamics and the other, its drivetrain.
Choosing the most extreme Track mode absolutely brings out the animal in this untested athlete. The exhaust growl becomes a hard-edged bark every time you squeeze the throttle. The steering becomes that much more acute and immediate. The ride firms up so you almost feel the tarmac on your bottom. And gearchanges become seemingly synaptic.
To achieve dynamic superiority, the MP4-12C has an active electro-hydraulic system that links all its dampers. The setup, controlled by McLaren’s very own electronic control unit that also maps the transmission, is claimed to be able to adjust to road and driving conditions twice as fast as a similar system used by a certain Italian marque.
Seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox is progressive when needed and aggressive when desired.
The system is connected to a gas accumulator and linked to the steering, so it gives the driver the best steering feel and response in relation to what the chassis is subjected to. It also does away with the need for anti-roll bars, saving weight.
Weight is, of course, a healthy obsession for a Formula One outfit. It has, after all, helped McLaren become one of only two F1 teams with trophies and titles dating back to the early years of the sport.
The standard MP4-12C has a dry weight of 1336kg, making it a shade lighter than the Lambo Gallardo LP570-4 Superleggera and a lot lighter than the Ferrari 458. Its carbon fibre, plastic and aluminium construction sees to that, as does every other bit the engineers could think of.
Smaller numbers than a McLaren F1 racecar, but the power is proper.
Instead of a lead-acid battery, for instance, the car carries a lighter lithium-ion power pack. The company was supposed to utilise an off-the-shelf air-conditioning system, but it turned out too large and would have required the MP4-12C to be wider (and subsequently heavier). The development team then decided to make its own.
McLaren offers two other sets of wheels as factory options to customers equally obsessed with weight. The forged lightweight set is 6kg lighter, while the super-lightweight set weighs only 42.5kg – 10kg off the standard set. Together with other “skinny” options such as ceramic brakes (versus cast iron discs), the car’s overall dry weight can be brought down to 1301kg, the same as a Mercedes B200.
Shod with Pirelli Corsa tyres, the lightened car will shave another 0.2 second off the sprint timings. Zero to 100km/h will be a class-leading 3.1 seconds, while 0-200kmh will be demolished in an astounding 8.9 seconds.
Cool conditioned air, not hot turbojet thrust, blows from this nozzle.
As impressive as its credentials are, the MP4-12C is not a top-speed record setter. McLaren says it does not want to make a rocket like the iconic F1 (from 1992), which is, even today, the fastest naturally aspirated car in the world. Instead, it wants to have a sports car that is useable, dynamically capable and accessible (you merely have to be wealthy to own one, not filthy rich). In the words of McLaren chairman Ron Dennis, “the MP4-12C is an efficient sports car”.
But is it desirable? Mechanically, very. But the appeal of a supercar also has much to do with how you feel when you first see it. In the case of the MP4-12C, the “wow” effect is not nearly as strong as what you might get from a modern Ferrari or the latest Lamborghini.
It has a soft, organic silhouette – attractive and completely inoffensive in every way, but lacking immediate oomph. Then again, instantly stunning cars with flashy designs might get dated quickly. The MP4-12C’s innovative styling cues include high-mounted tailpipes and daytime running LEDs in the shape of the McLaren logo. All in all, the MP4-12C is quietly seductive, not brash and loud.
It is also a familiar shape, partly because the car obeys the laws of aerodynamics and engineering that govern all mid-engined two-seaters, and partly because photos of it have appeared in print since 2007. (It was called the P11 back then).
If its form can be described as a tad conservative, the same cannot be said of its substance. Its dry-sump twin-turbo engine, managed by a bespoke Bosch ECU, is tuned for extreme flexibility, with 600Nm of torque available from 3000rpm right up to 7000rpm.
What McLaren is particularly proud of, though, is the car’s electronic dynamic control – an in-house product that allows the driver to dial in degrees of suspension stiffness and gearchange characteristics. It has a couple of special features hardly ever seen in regular road cars: Brake Steer and Airbrake. The first is a torque-vectoring differential (albeit a lot lighter) said to eliminate wheelspin and understeer. The second is a rear spoiler that redeploys vertically to increase drag and rear downforce, thereby enhancing stability during hard braking.
Ceramic discs and ultra-light forged rims are worthy options to specify, especially for the circuit junkie.
Does the entire formula work? We drive the near-production version on three types of road: the narrow, twisty country lanes of the Algarve, fast open highways, and the new and challenging Portimao Circuit. All in the cold, grey and drizzling conditions that prevailed in late January.
The first route takes us past some poorly paved tarmac. Unthinkable for a supercar test, but the McLaren acquits itself surprisingly well. Indeed, its Normal “soft” setting allows it to make steady progress without giving the driver a slipped disc. At all times, you’re able to accurately judge your distances from kerbs and ditches.
It is this trait that makes the car less of a handful than expected on the glassy, maze-like track. It remains uncannily stable and controllable, even under absurd duress.
Yes, it’s often impossible to keep it from fishtailing (there are laws of physics that high-powered rear-drive cars with fat tyres must yield to, especially in the wet), but the car’s electronic stability control kicks in to mitigate the slip. Wheelspin is also fairly common. McLaren says it has just developed an ESP that will deal better with wet conditions. ESP, incidentally, is always “on” in all modes, as a safety feature. Another standard safety feature: The car returns to its default Normal mode every time it is restarted.
While the Portimao Autodromo’s solitary long straight gives a brief account of what the car is like at full bore, its exhaust in full song, it is on the open highway that the MP4-12C’s aural range and dynamic repertoire are discovered.
The car is phenomenally fast and well balanced. Its brakes are a breeze to modulate, yet extremely powerful. Being lightweight helps. And being lightweight also allows the MP4-12C to get by with a suspension that is not stoutly sprung all the time. This makes the McLaren the most comfortable supercar today.
On the expressway, its Sport suspension configuration offers the best ride and handling compromise. It is not hard to imagine driving the car for hours on end.
Acceleration is stealthy. Before you know it, the speedo is showing 200km/h. At around 220km/h, the car starts to feel a wee bit drifty. Unfortunately, there is not enough tarmac to see if this slight twitch disappears at higher velocities or becomes a full-blown case of nerves.
At cruising speeds, the car is not the best-sounding V8 on earth, emanating a flat metallic drone that does not drown out conversation, but nevertheless should have been kept further in the background since it doesn’t sound very special.
McLaren MP4-12C’s twin-turbocharged 3.8-litre V8 develops 600Nm and almost 600bhp.
Getting into and out of the vehicle is comparatively easy. Its swan doors are hinged in such a way that they are never in the way of your feet. And you can reach out and close them while seated – not always possible with similar doors employed by some rival models.
Incidentally, there aren’t any external door handles. A sensor unlatches them, retaining the vehicle’s aerodynamic purity. The sensor does not always work at the first pass, but this issue should be sorted out at production stage.
Another innovative feature will be an on-board, three-camera video system for folks who want to record their track work for review, posterity, or just for fun.
Singapore is likely to get its first MP4-12Cs towards year-end. There is still no word on an authorised agent, but Sime Darby and Wearnes Automotive were the two contenders at press time.
Even before the first customer cars get on the road, McLaren is already talking about two future models: one positioned above the MP4-12C, and the other below. Both are mid-engined two-seaters. It won’t be too difficult to fathom a convertible or an even lighter, speedier, stripped-down racer derivative.
Before its fourth year, the factory hopes to roll out 4000 cars a year – up from around 1,000 in year one. With the cachet of the McLaren brand name, the group’s F1-bred technical competence, and the exquisiteness of its maiden road car, those sales targets should be achievable.
The McLaren MP4-12C’s rear spoiler is also the Airbrake that works like the one on the Bugatti Veyron, but is a little less spectacular.
McLaren MP4-12C 3.8 (A)
ENGINE 3799cc, 32-valves, V8, turbocharged
MAX POWER 592bhp at 7000rpm
MAX TORQUE 600Nm at 3000-7000rpm
GEARBOX 7-speed dual-clutch with manual select
0-100KM/H 3.3 seconds
TOP SPEED 330km/h
CONSUMPTION 8.5km/L
PRICE INCL. COE To be advised (as of March 2011)
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