There is nothing that expresses the pure McLaren brand than the new McLaren sports car, the MP4-12C. Although this is a supercar, it is not an inaccessible one and although its £168,500 might seem expensive to many of us, it is the fastest road car that money can buy.
The car is stunningly beautiful. Its 600 bhp of raw power comes from a 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8 and it will take you to 124 mph from rest in just ten seconds. Much of it is constructed from carbon fibre and it has a revolutionary suspension system that uses hydraulically inter-connected dampers.
The car is unmistakably McLaren. It shape is designed to provide the ultimate in aerodynamic performance and by employing the same technology and wind tunnel that is used to design formula One race cars everything has been designed to provide optimum downforce as well a minimising drag.
McLaren Formula One race cars represent the highest quality of automotive engineering, and precisely the same technology has been used to optimise the MP4-12C. The project was also driven by the desire to create the best drivers car ever, which meant that the car was designed round the driver. There was little point in creating a car that would be difficult to drive, especially with a projected to speed of 240 mph, and which would be driven by people who had no race experience or training. They would have to drive it in town and on motorways. If you ever order one of these, then the cockpit will be made to measure just as the F1 cars are made to measure for the McLaren racing drivers Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton.
The McLaren brand is one of quality where no amount of effort is ever spared in the drive to absolute perfection. It is unique and pervasive. Everything that is McLaren is obviously McLaren and can not be mistaken for anything else. Even looking at McLaren clothing you can tell straight away what brand it is.