If you've been listening, you know that McLaren is planning to out-tech Ferrari and Lamborghini with the 2011 MP4-12C -- a good thing, some of you have pointed out, since it certainly doesn't break any new ground on the styling front.
The company has already announced that the MP4-12C will have the Airbrake feature that debuted on the McLaren F1 and was also used on the SLR. Naturally, its function is to increase downforce and improve stability under heavy braking. In this spy photo, you can see a prototype's air brake fully deployed under braking on the Nurburgring.
The wing is initially raised via a small hydraulic piston. However, says McLaren, "once a small amount of wing angle is pushed into the airflow, the center of aerodynamic pressure forces the bottom of the 'wing' back." So instead of using a motor to deploy the wing, McLaren is using the slipstream and the company says this cuts weight by 50 percent.
felonious says:
02:42 PM, 09/21/09
Neat! That's right up there with the aerodynamically-deforming body panels on (I forget the vehicle) for genius tech.
dbostondriver says:
05:46 PM, 09/21/09
I'm sure it will be a great car, but the styling is too much. It looks like a designer started with one idea, and then someone else took over and tried to take the existing design in another direction.
All they had to do was exactly copy the F1, add some new technology, comfortable seats, and lower the price.
mrbacon says:
11:22 PM, 09/21/09
If I was in the market for a supercar I would totally not buy this.
rsuryase says:
05:15 AM, 09/22/09
Yeah Mclaren is good at making 1 million dollar cars but not, $250K or $100K, maybe $500K. I'd rather buy a Ferrari 458 Italia, it's NA and has similar power. Nothing wrong with turbo/supercharged but NA is preferable.
alman08 says:
09:04 AM, 09/22/09
beautiful car, too bad I don't have the money for it.