2017 Mclaren 570 Coupe on 2040-cars

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McLaren applies to trademark 'Sabre' with USPTO

In October 2018, The Supercar Blog dished on how exotic car collector and Instagram user dan_am_i had arranged with McLaren's MSO division to procure a special supercar. The working name of the new coupe was "Bespoke Commission BC-03," and it was rumored to be a road-going take on McLaren's Ultimate Vision Gran Turismo concept from October 2017. The Woking automaker's Vision GT was a track-only single-seater with 1,134 horsepower and 940 pound-feet of torque erupting from a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 powering the rear wheels and two high-output electric motors powering the fronts. Last October, someone put renders of the BC-03 on Instagram (pictured), the car's lines spread over a design spectrum stretching from the Senna to the Vision GT. Grand Tour Nation recently came across a trademark application McLaren submitted to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to reserve the name "McLaren Sabre." A saber, as our brand of English spells it, is defined in its noun form as "a heavy cavalry sword with a curved blade and a single cutting edge," in its verb form as to "cut down or wound with a saber." Based on a few bits of circumstantial evidence that we found at the McLaren Life forum, we believe the name will be applied to the production version of the BC-03.   Compare the BC-03 renders to this Instagram post of a camouflaged, fire-spewing McLaren caught testing after dark last September on what appears to be a track. It features the same shark fin and wing, same exhaust placement, same diffuser, very similar graphic over the engine bay. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. In January of this year, Instagram user cococulture_ had business at the McLaren customer design studio. While there, they logged video of a scale version of the BC-03 under a cover. The caption is the gotcha:  This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. After checking our notes, we feel confident affirming that "Sabre" starts with an "S." Of course, nothing is certain until McLaren puts the coupe on the display stand, but the evidence lines up so far for the BC-03 to become the Sabre. The original coverage from two years ago claimed there'd be five examples made, with three of them spoken for. New numbers from McLaren Life posters say there will be 15 units built, all for the U.S. market, all reserved for McLaren Automotive's best VIP customers.

McLaren Senna GTR Concept gets racy in Geneva

The McLaren Senna GTR Concept storms its way into the Geneva Motor Show with one very bold claim attached to it: Outside of the British company's Formula One cars, this $1.4-million-dollar supercar is the fastest way around a racetrack in a car with the McLaren badge on it. This is especially big news from a manufacturer that targets the likes of Ferrari, Lamborghini, Bentley, and Bugatti; not to mention that McLaren already has legendary exotic cars like the F1 and P1 on its automotive resume. Based on the recently introduced Senna road car, the Senna GTR delivers more horsepower, more aerodynamic grip, and even more exclusivity. McLaren has promised that the 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 will produce a minimum of 813 horsepower in the Senna GTR, versus the 789 hp found in the road-going variant. The enormous rear diffuser, towering spoiler, and snow-plow-like front splitter aren't just there for show, either. The highly sculpted carbon fiber bodywork delivers upward of 2,200 pounds of downforce at speed. Much of the body is fitted with quick-release catches, making it easier to replace fenders and other exterior pieces during the heat of competition. The Senna GTR also rides on a special set of lightweight, 11-spoke alloy wheels. Combined with a revised double wishbone suspension, Pirelli racing slick tires, and a race-style transmission, the Senna GTR will "post the quickest McLaren circuit lap times outside Formula 1," according to McLaren's press release. That headline-grabbing claim probably won't stand for much longer, however. It's an open secret that McLaren is hard at work on road and race versions of the cryptically-named BP23, the firm's "hyper-GT" that pays homage to the original F1 supercar, produced from 1992-1998. "The track-only McLaren Senna GTR will have more power, more grip and more downforce – up to 1,000 kilograms – than the McLaren Senna and post even faster lap times," said Mike Flewitt, McLaren Automotive CEO. "The very limited number of customers who secure this car will be buying the closest experience you can get to a race car without actually lining up on a circuit grid." Interestingly, about the only thing this race-focused McLaren doesn't offer is the means to drive it on public roads – this is a track-only speed machine. Then again, if you can afford the roughly $1.4-million price and manage to snag one of the 75 scheduled to be built, commissioning the build of your own private racetrack probably isn't out of the question.

2015 Brazilian Grand Prix is the same as it ever was

At this point, we hope Nico Rosberg is planning to carry his current qualifying form into the 2016 season and back it up with the same kind of race-day cojones he showed winning the race in Mexico City two weeks ago. The Mercedes-AMG Petronas driver got it right enough again on Saturday afternoon to take his fifth consecutive pole position ahead of teammate Lewis Hamilton by almost a tenth of a second. It's the same one-two from Brazil last year. The bad news for the rest of the field is that the winner in Brazil the last seven years has been one of the two drivers on the front row. Last year it was the Williams duo that lined up behind Mercedes, this year it's Ferrari. Sebastian Vettel plays the stalking horse, securing third in his Ferrari ahead of teammate Kimi Raikkonen in fourth. Williams driver Valtteri Bottas actually qualified in fourth, but he had to serve a three-spot grid penalty for passing under red flags in Free Practice 2, so he started sixth. That promoted Sahara Force India driver Nico Hulkenberg up to fifth. Daniil Kvyat was the quickest representative from Infiniti Red Bull Racing, getting into seventh even with a Renault power unit that's weak on some of the key stretches at the Interlagos track. Felipe Massa had the second Williams in eighth, in front of the second Red Bull driven by Daniel Ricciardo in ninth. Toro Rosso hasn't confirmed its drivers for next year but Max Verstappen keeps making it hard to look elsewhere, taking 10th. Rosberg is working nearly the same trick he pulled last year: drive like a second driver for most of the year, drive like a world champion for the last quarter of a season. He pulled away at the start and covered Hamilton just enough on the run to the first corner to keep Hamilton on the outside. By the end of Turn 1 the German had the lead and didn't give it up for the rest of the race outside of pit stops. Without overwhelming pace to pass and unable to follow closely, Hamilton could do nothing except ask his team for a different strategy to go for the win. When Mercedes told him "No," trying to protect Rosberg's second place in the championship ahead of Vettel, that was the race. Just like last year, Rosberg and Hamilton finished one-two. Vettel, Raikkonen, Bottas, Hulkenberg, and Kvyat drove lonely races to finish in positions three through seven.