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McLaren P1 GTR looks ready to hit the track [w/video]

McLaren may be first and foremost a racing constructor, but it's been known to make a few road-going supercars now and then. This, though, is something in between. It's the new McLaren P1 GTR, and it's just made its live debut on the floor of the Geneva Motor Show. In case you missed our earlier coverage upon its release, or the subsequent video of it hitting the track, allow us to reiterate: It's based on the P1 – McLaren's million-dollar hybrid hypercar – but it's tuned specifically for the track. Not for racing and not for driving on public roads – like the Ferrari FXX K or the Aston Martin Vulcan we'll be bringing you shortly as well, the P1 GTR was made specifically so that wealthy enthusiasts would have a toy to play with on closed circuits. To prep it for track duty, the engineers in Woking upped the output from the 3.8-liter twin-turbo V8 hybrid powertrain from 903 horsepower (as if that wasn't enough) to 986. They ditched 110 pound of excess weight. They fitted racing slicks, dropped the suspension and tweaked the aero package. The result, as you can see from the live images in the slideshow above and the video below, is pretty badass – even if you don't dig the throwback Harrods yellow and green livery. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. McLAREN P1™ GTR TO SHOW ITS LIMITED PRODUCTION FORM IN GENEVA - Makes the transition from concept to production with track tested modifications - Tuning in development results in 10 percent more downforce than the McLaren P1™ road car - Lightweight components and motorsport technologies trim a further 50kg - McLaren P1™ GTR Driver Programme confirms first locations - Geneva Show car livery inspired by iconic McLaren F1 GTR, chassis #06R - McLaren P1™ GTR will premiere alongside the recently announced McLaren 675LT on Stand 1240, Hall 1 at 12.15 CET (11.15 GMT) on Tuesday, 3 March The track-dedicated 1000PS McLaren P1™ GTR will debut at the 85th International Geneva Motor Show in limited production form with only minor modifications to the Design Concept presented just six months ago. The most noticeable change is the livery that the Geneva show car will be sporting. It is one which will be available to the fortunate few who will be joining the McLaren P1™ GTR Driver Programme that kicks off at the Circuit de Catalunya in Spain later this year.

2016 McLaren 570S Coupe First Drive

The difference between a sports car and a supercar is lost on the Portuguese gentleman standing on the roadside. I've stopped in my attempts to flood the country air with V8 ruckus for the moment, and am parked on the shoulder, taking a breather when he approaches. My Portuguese is limited to bom dia and obrigado, and he's not saying anything in English, but his wide smile, rotating pointer finger, and ready iPhone are symbols that transcend language: "Please gun it." Fresh off some 75 miles of strappy pavement between hot laps at the Portimao circuit and my hotel, behind the wheel of McLaren's bouncing new baby, the 570S Coupe, I'm more than happy to oblige. The British company has hammered home that the 570S, the first of its Sports Series cars and the most accessible driving tool in its new range, is a sports car. That is; not a member of the unearthly Ultimate Series a la the P1, or a meat-and-potatoes supercar like the 650S from the Super Series. The guy with the phone held aloft couldn't care less about those delineations. I pull out into the street, offer my friend a few red-blooded throttle blips, and then give the cobblestones a footful of hell. The 3.8-liter twin-turbo V8 makes a symphony's worth of sucking, blowing, whistling, and exploding noises behind my head, and the world again makes a blurry kind of sense. It's a stunner, even before the trick dihedral doors float up and drive the crowd wild. If you're McLaren, whose best-known current model may be the $1-million-plus, 900-plus-horsepower P1 everythingcar, it makes sense that you might want to sandbag a bit when it comes to your entry-level model. But for all that it may compete with the almost-commonplace Porsche 911 Turbo S and the Audi R8 – in terms of performance and price – the 570S reads as "supercar" to most of the world. Even stripped of the McLaren Orange or Mantis Green the brand's vehicles are so often photographed in, my Vermillion Red test car looks like the proverbial million bucks. The elliptical roofline, wheels at extreme corners, and short sloping front end telegraphs the mid-engine orientation. And anyone that's halfway familiar with the brand won't miss the signature-shape of the headlamps, and charismatic vent work on the sides of the body. It's a stunner, even before the trick dihedral doors float up and drive the crowd wild. Inside things are equally well conceived, and still subtler.

Alonso and Button try out Honda's Uni-Cub mobility scooter

As two of the best racing drivers in the world, Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button have some pretty serious wheels at their disposal. They'll both be driving the latest McLaren-Honda MP4-30 on the track this year, will likely have access to supercars like the new Acura NSX or McLaren 650S for toying around with when they're not working, and probably each have an enviable motor pool of their own at home. This, then, must have been quite a change of pace for them both. As you can see from this video tweeted by McLaren, the two highly accomplished F1 drivers hopped on a very different set of wheels recently: namely, Honda's Uni-Cub "personal mobility device." The experimental electric motorized bar stool is controlled by shifting your weight to and fro (like a Segway), but stands just two feet tall and tops out at less than four miles per hour. At that rate, it would take them almost an hour to take one lap around the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, TX, where the 2015 United States Grand Prix will be held in October. In that same time span, for perspective's sake, they'd be lapped more than 30 times by their rivals... so they'd better stick to the racing machinery once the championship gets under way. What happened when @alo_oficial and @JensonButton got hold of a UNI-CUBAcA?A¦ https://t.co/YP8r9z1OsG - McLaren (@McLarenF1) February 10, 2015