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THE McLaren P1 prototype made its Middle East debut at a ceremony in the Al Noor Ballroom of the Ritz-Carlton Bahrain Hotel & Spa.
McLaren Automotive described the $1 million (BD375,000) car as its ‘next generation ultimate supercar’ and was delighted when it took the world of motoring by storm at the recent Paris Motor Show.
The British company joined its principal shareholder Mumtalakat, the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund, and its dealer for Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, Al Ghassan Motors, for its first regional unveiling on Thursday evening.
Mark Harrison, McLaren Automotive’s regional director, said: “It takes much of its technological and spiritual inspiration from the company’s Racing Division. The McLaren P1 has one simple goal: to be the best driver’s car in the world on road and track.”
The company aims to put the production version on sale within 12 months. The McLaren P1 leverages five decades of McLaren’s motorsport skills.
It was designed from the outset to prioritise aerodynamic performance and spent many hours in a wind tunnel and using CFD (computational fluid dynamics) aerodynamic modelling – just like a Formula One car.
It has much higher levels of downforce than any current road car – 600kg is achieved well below maximum speed. That is approximately five times as much downforce as a McLaren 12C.
Its margin over most other high performance supercars is even greater. The McLaren P1’s down force is similar to current sports racing cars, including the 12C GT3 racer.
“Our aim is not necessarily to be the fastest in absolute top speed but to be the quickest and most rewarding series production road car on a circuit,” said McLaren Automotive managing director Antony Sheriff. “It is the true test of a supercar’s all round ability and a much more important technical statement. Our goal is to make the McLaren P1 the most exciting, most capable, most technologically advanced and most dynamically accomplished supercar ever made.”
And, despite the huge performance, the McLaren P1 is also a refined and comfortable high speed supercar. “It is designed to be driven to the racing circuit, with great levels of comfort and refinement,” added Mr Sheriff. “And then to be used on the racing circuit, where it will offer an experience matched only by purpose-built race cars.”
The McLaren P1 will feature notable advances in weight reduction, packaging, high-speed performance materials (especially carbon fibre), powertrain and in aerodynamics.
The McLaren P1’s name ties in with Grand Prix racing. P1 means first place – and McLaren has 180 GP victories in its 46-year Formula One history – or position one on the grid (McLaren has scored 153 pole positions). There is also heritage in that name: the McLaren F1 was initially known as Project 1, or P1.
Deliveries are expected to commence in late 2013, the year of McLaren’s 50th anniversary. “The McLaren P1 will be the result of 50 years of racing and road car heritage,” explained McLaren Automotive executive chairman Ron Dennis. “Twenty years ago we raised the supercar performance bar with the McLaren F1 and our goal with the McLaren P1 is to redefine it once again.”
Al Ghassan Motors will be opening a state-of-the-art McLaren showroom at Moda Mall before April’s Gulf Air Bahrain Grand Prix.
Call 17701307 for more details.
