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McLaren teases new Sports Series in development

Hot on the heels of confirming its upcoming "entry-level" model, McLaren has released a solitary teaser image of that new vehicle undergoing testing. Known until now as the P13, the McLaren Sports Series is set to take on the likes of the Audi R8 and Porsche 911 GT3. Like the rest of the F1-team-turned-supercar-manufacturer's lineup, it'll be built around a carbon monocoque with a V8 engine mounted amidships – widely expected to be a detuned version of the 3.8-liter twin-turbo unit that has already found its home in the 12C, 650S and P1, mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. Although the teaser image above only shows part of the car, and is wearing all manner of camouflage, it definitely looks like a modern McLaren. You can see the telltale swoosh-shaped LED headlights peering from behind the mesh cladding and ten-spoke alloys spinning away, with wing mirrors mounted to the doors (like on the P1) instead of the window frame (like the 650S). Beyond that there's not much to tell at this point, but you can see that the cockpit will (at least initially) feature a two-seat layout and not the 2+2 arrangement that could still follow – or, for that matter, the 1+2 central driving position of the legendary McLaren F1, an arrangement Woking ruled out for its modern fleet of supercars due to practical considerations like toll booths and parking gates. News Source: McLaren via Facebook McLaren Coupe Supercars mclaren sports series mclaren p13

How McLaren will double its output this year

McLaren Automotive is aiming to almost double its output this year, to 3,000 cars, and hit 4,000 cars per year by 2017. That's over 50 percent of Ferrari's annual production, yet the current McLaren Automotive is only six years old, based about 40 miles southwest of London in Woking. In pursuance of its lofty plans, McLaren recently announced a massive expansion its operations and is hiring another 250 assembly staff for a second shift, which will bring its total headcount to 1,750. Is it chutzpah, or rank stupidity? McLaren made just 1,654 cars last year, including the last of the 570-strong run of P1 supercars, which had an average transaction price of $1.35 million each, and all 40 or so track-only P1 GTRs, which sold for over $288 million. January saw the last P1 GTRs running down the track at Woking. Is it chutzpah, or rank stupidity? And while these cars cannot have been cheap to design and build, it's not hard to see how profitable they will have been. Given that much of the research and development (R&D) will have been amortized in the years up to the 2013 launch of the P1, the profit level has soared in subsequent years. In 2014, its second year of profit and under the leadership of chief executive Mike Flewitt, McLaren Automotive generated a profit before tax of $21.7 million, compared to $6.53 million in 2013. Turnover grew from $413.6 million in 2013 to $688.9 million in 2014. To be fair, the company is investing almost 20 percent of that turnover in R&D ($132.9 million in 2014, $97 million in 2013) and it says that level of spend as a proportion of turnover will continue, with last year's R&D cost estimated at $173.7 million. View 22 Photos In its defense, McLaren says that as a late comer it is still growing in China, which Flewitt has said could well be McLaren's second largest market in 2016 after the US and ahead of the UK and Germany. He also says that the company's growth plans are based on actual orders rather than theoretical expectations, and that since it is (and has been) profitable at 1,500 cars per year, there is some protection against a downturn. But the cars it has to sell this year are a far cry from the exotic and phantasmagorical P1 or the P1 GTR, which were only sold to existing P1 owners. The Sports Series, while being based on shared carbon-fiber tub and the same Ricardo-built 3.8-liter twin-turbo V8 engine and seven-speed twin-clutch transmission, is a much cheaper car.

Race recap: 2016 Belgian Grand Prix is a dozen angry laps

The calm of the Formula One summer break ended with the tumult of the Belgian Grand Prix. The first two days included unusual tire pressures and grid penalties; Mercedes-AMG Petronas' Lewis Hamilton started 21st because of a 55-place grid penalty for engine and gearbox changes, McLaren's Fernando Alonso started 22nd due to a 60-place penalty for the same offenses. The bedlam rolled right into what was effectively an 11-or 12-lap race. Mercedes driver Nico Rosberg took off from pole and the cameras barely bothered with him until he took the checkered flag 44 laps later. Red Bull's Max Verstappen bogged from second on the grid, got swallowed by Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen on the way to Turn 1, then attempted to recover by sticking his Red Bull's nose between Raikkonen's sidepod and the apex at the first corner. Vettel, who didn't see Verstappen, turned into La Source leaving only enough room for Raikkonen. Three cars don't fit in a space for two cars. Vettel spun, Raikkonen and Verstappen clobbered one another and all three drivers had to pit for repairs. Force India's Nico Hulkenberg zig-zagged his way into second ahead of Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo, Williams' Valtteri Bottas, and Sergio Perez in the second Force India. On Lap 6 Kevin Magnussen lost his Renault at Raidillon at the top of Eau Rouge and flew backward into an enormous crash. Magnussen escaped with just a cut ankle. The Safety Car paraded the field for four laps before officials red flagged the race to repair the barriers. When racing resumed on Lap 10, Rosberg led Ricciardo, Hulkenberg, Alonso, and Hamilton. Ricciardo stayed ahead of Hamilton to keep second place at the end of the race, Hamilton easily got around Alonso and Hulkenberg to lock up third. Hulkenberg – who'd given up second to Ricciardo by pitting during the Safety Car period – earned another career-best fourth position ahead of teammate Perez in fifth, followed by Vettel and Alonso on recovery drives, Bottas, Raikkonen, and Felipe Massa taking 10th in the second Williams. Rosberg reignited his Driver's Championship charge with the victory, closing to nine points of leader Hamilton. We could argue that Hamilton had an equally good day by driving from 21st to third, limiting his loss to only 10 points. About that Verstappen, though... We've seen far more experienced drivers attempt the same move Verstappen made into Turn 1 – Raikkonen on Bottas in Russia in 2015, for instance.