2012 Mclaren Mp4-12c Coupe on 2040-cars

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Seat shows Leon SC three-door ahead of Geneva

Seat has just unwrapped the Leon SC three-door hatchback ahead of its official debut at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show. Unlike some transformations from five- to three-door hatches, the Seat Leon underwent some meaningful surgery in the changeover, losing nearly an inch and a half of its wheelbase while still retaining the same amount of cargo capacity behind the rear seats.
The SC, which stands for Sports Coupé, is said to be more nimble than its larger counterpart, and therefore more fun to drive. A range of turbocharged and direct injected gasoline and diesel engines will be available in Europe ranging from 1.2 to 2.0 liters and with up to 184 horsepower. Manual transmissions with five or six gears will be offered, depending on the engine chosen, as will a six-speed DSG automatic.
Seat also says that the new Leon boasts more expressive styling than the five-door, and we can see where they are coming from. Of particular note, says the automaker, are the size and shapes of the glass areas and the sweep of the tailgate toward the ground. Take a good look at the new three-door Leon in the image gallery above, and feel free to read all the details in the full press blast below.

This unique McLaren 12C is valued at nearly $1.6 million

Want a new McLaren? Be prepared to shell out six figures. You can save a bundle if you're willing to go with a second-hand 12C, which you can pick up now for around $200k – about what you'd spend on a new 570S. Yet this particular MP4-12C is estimated to be worth upwards of a million. So what gives? As you may have guessed, this is no ordinary McLaren 12C. It's one of just ten examples of the special edition High Sport introduced back in 2012. McLaren Special Operations equipped the HS with aerodynamic enhancements derived from the GT3 racer, and an engine upgraded by around 80 horsepower to roughly match that of the ultimate 675LT that came much later. This particular example was ordered up by Ron Dennis himself with a special livery that mirrors (quite literally) the Vodafone livery which the F1 team was running at the time, with silver fading to black and neon red accents inside, out, and even on the wheels. Throw in the Stealth package, sport exhaust, carbon-ceramic brakes, and other goodies, and this example stands out from the other 3,500 or so 12Cs McLaren made over three years of production before the 650S replaced it. Outlandish as the livery may seem, this car won top awards at shows across Florida where it's current registered. Now consigned to Mecum Auctions to sell at its upcoming event next month, in Kissimmee, FL, it's expected to sell for between $1.3 and $1.6 million. That's more than you would have had to pay for a P1 if you had gotten your order in on time, but could prove the sounder investment as a collector's item. Related Video: Featured Gallery 2012 McLaren MP4-12C High Sport: Mecum Kissimmee 2016 View 32 Photos News Source: Mecum McLaren Auctions Coupe Supercars mclaren mp4-12c livery mclaren special operations mso mclaren 12c vodafone

2015 Malaysian F1 GP springs hot, humid surprises [spoilers]

In the two weeks since Australia both Mercedes and Ferrari spoke of the improved performance from their respective cars. In Malaysia, Ferrari showed it. Lewis Hamilton still put his Mercedes-AMG Petronas on pole position, but Sebastian Vettel got within two whiskers of the Brit, lining up second just 0.074 behind. Afterward, Vettel said Ferrari could win the race if everything went well. But in qualifying we didn't know how much of Ferrari's performance was truly down to the car and how much was down to the wet weather that struck near the beginning of Q2. The rain didn't hamper Nico Rosberg's run – the German said "I just didn't drive good enough" – and he took third spot in the second Mercedes-AMG Petronas. Showing what the Infiniti Red Bull Racing chassis can do when the power unit is working properly, teammates Daniel Ricciardo and Daniil Kvyat grabbed fourth and fifth. Whippersnapper Max Verstappen, in his second race, qualified in sixth with an excellent drive through the rain; just 0.030 behind Kvyat, he said he could have got fifth if he hadn't had a running problem with his brakes. Williams head of vehicle performance Rob Smedley said he wouldn't complain about Mercedes' advantage, but Felipe Massa has spent the whole season so far banging the alarm about Ferrari's pace. He says Williams has lost its straight-line advantage, part of the reason the first Grove car is back in seventh, while Valtteri Bottas is in eighth. Between them was Romain Grosjean in the Lotus, but he got dropped two positions for a pit-lane infraction in Q2, so he'll be tenth. Ahead of him is Marcus Ericsson in the Sauber, who would lead the charge to turn in another surprise for the Swiss team. But the real surprise came from the Scuderia Ferrari, who, on a bright, sunny day proved that they don't need to add water for race-winning pace. While Hamilton got made usual awesome start at the lights, Vettel channeled that other famous German Ferrari driver and immediately cut across the track to intimidate Rosberg, maintaining his second place position into the first turn. Arguably the race-winning move came three laps later at that same turn, when Ericsson plunged in too fast and swapped ends, beaching the rear of his Sauber in the gravel trap. The safety car came out when the recovery truck emerged to retrieve the Sauber, and nearly all of the front-runners took to the pits to swap out of the medium tires. Vettel, however, didn't.