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Novitec McLaren Senna can hit 124 mph in 6.5 seconds

The McLaren Senna is quick. Really quick. Zero-to-124-mph-in-6.8-seconds quick. But rather than focusing on the achievement of that absurd number, the Novitec Group looks at the time between 0.0 and 6.8 seconds as a window of opportunity. That's the place where never-satisfied dreamers live, and Novitec has managed to whittle that opening down to 6.5 seconds with its just-announced tuning pack. The standard McLaren Senna comes equipped with a twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V8 that officially registered as the most powerful McLaren road car engine ever made. Paired with a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, M840TR, as it's internally known, produced a claimed 789 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque. With Novitec's maximum tune, it makes 889 horsepower and 655 lb-ft of torque.  Put to use, the Novitec Senna can catapult from a standstill to 62 mph in 2.7 seconds, down from 2.8 seconds. Sprinting from zero to 124 mph takes 6.5 seconds, and it boasts a top speed of 208 mph, the same as the regular Senna. Like with its tuned McLaren 720S, Novitec offers three levels of tuning but does not specify the numbers for the two lower tiers. All three are accomplished by adding Novitec's plug-and-play Novitec N-Tronic module. This piece of technology adapts to the Senna's electronic engine control unit (ECU), re-maps the car's injection and ignition, and modifies the electronic boost pressure control. The car's experience has also been altered by a Novitec Race GTR high-performance exhaust system made of Iconel. The exhaust has two 3.7-inch pipes that can be finished in polished stainless or matte black. In collaboration with Vossen Wheels, the Novitec Senna has some new centerlock shoes, too. The forged MC3 wheels feature seven twin-spokes and can be ordered in 72 different colors. The specialty wheels are wrapped in Pirelli P-Zero rubber.  Check out Novitec's new beast in action below. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Watch 280,000 Lego bricks become a McLaren 720S in just a minute

At this year's Goodwood Festival of Speed, McLaren brought a bright orange 720S constructed almost entirely of Lego bricks. The only parts not obviously made of the little plastic pieces were the wheels and tires. As cool as the finished product is, one of the most fun things about building with Lego bricks is building it, and seeing everything come together. Fortunately, McLaren let us get a peak at the process by releasing this time-lapse video of the process. According to the video, the final model used 280,000 bricks, and it took a whopping 2,000 man hours to finish it. It's all condensed into a one-minute video. One of the impressive things to note during the build is that the vast majority of the car really is made of the plastic pieces. Only a metal base and two structures on which to mount the wheels and tires weren't made of Legos. The Lego 720S also is clearly quite sturdy, as there are a number of times when builders are sitting on the hood section without any issue. It's a fun way to spend a minute of your day, so check it out above. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Image Credit: McLaren / YouTube Toys/Games Weird Car News McLaren Coupe Supercars Videos Lego mclaren 720s

Volkswagen Group names Paefgen head of classics program

You may remember the name Franz-Josef Paefgen. Until recently, the German engineer and executive was head of both Bentley and Bugatti. Before that he was chief executive of Audi, after working for several years at Ford. He technically "retired" earlier this year, but like the cars he helped create, an executive like Paefgen could never really retire. So it should come as little surprise that the Volkswagen Group has named Dr. Paefgen head of its Classic program.
In his new capacity, Paefgen will oversee the historic automobile activities of the entire VW Group, including those of Volkswagen, Seat, Skoda, Audi, Lamborghini, and of course Bentley and Bugatti. It strikes us as a suitable semi-retirement for the man responsible in no small part for the Bugatti Veyron and Bentley Mulsanne, to name just two, and who was decorated in 2006 by the ACO as the "Spirit of Le Mans" for his contribution to endurance racing. Read the official announcement after the break.