2013 Mclaren Mp4-12c Spider 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.

The inside story on why McLaren will make an F1 successor

While official details are still few and far between, Flewitt confirmed the BP23 will be the fastest, most powerful car McLaren has ever built. McLaren's car-building division is keeping busy these days. It introduced the brand-new 720S during the Geneva Motor Show and its research and development department is currently working on no less than nine vehicle programs. Company CEO Mike Flewitt reiterated one of them is a long-awaited (and oft-rumored) supercar with three seats. Codenamed BP23 internally, the model will join McLaren's Ultimate Series lineup as an homage to the emblematic F1, the brand's very first road-going model. Flewitt explained the project started out as a one-off model commissioned by a collector and designed by McLaren Special Operations (MSO), a skunkworks team in charge of turning money-no-object customers' wildest dreams into road-going realities. It's difficult to keep a secret in the auto industry, especially when it comes to high-end cars, so news of a modern-day three-seater quickly spread outside of the company's headquarters in Woking, England. McLaren soon received an order for a second, identical car, and MSO agreed to build it. The orders kept pouring in. Production was bumped to 12 examples, up again to 46 to meet considerable demand, and finally capped at 106. The number was chosen because precisely 106 examples of the BMW-powered F1 were built from 1992 to 1998. View 6 Photos While official details are still few and far between, Flewitt confirmed the BP23 will be the fastest, most powerful car McLaren has ever built. It won't feature aggressive-looking spoilers, splitters, and big wings; instead, it will boast a fluid, streamlined design fine-tuned to achieve the lowest possible drag. All 106 examples will be coupes, and a convertible model has been categorically ruled out. The only technical information currently available is that power will come from a V8-electric hybrid drivetrain. However, Flewitt noted the BP23 is not being developed with racing in mind, so McLaren won't offer a track-oriented, GTR-badged version of the car like it did with the F1 and, later, the P1. Expect a luxurious, well-appointed cabin in which the driver sits front and center, and two passengers travel in individual back seats. The extensive use of carbon fiber will keep weight in check. The BP23 – a name that most likely won't be retained on the final model – is scheduled to enter production in 2019.

First McLaren 675LT Spiders hit the road

McLaren sold out of its 500-vehicle run of the 675LT Spider just two weeks after the droptop supercar's debut. With such limited production, the convertibles aren't a common sight, but this clip lets us check out two early examples of them on the road. These two are twins in their matching light yellow paint, and they sound great when idling in unison. The first driver doesn't dip too far into the throttle on the road, but the second one revs the engine a little more, which lets us enjoy the twin-turbo 3.8-liter V8's sound. The 675LT Spider uses the long-tail body and 666-horsepower engine from the 675LT coupe but also adds a folding roof to enjoy open-air motoring. The mechanism adds 88 pounds, but the droptop can still hit 62 miles per hour in 2.9 seconds. The top speed is 203 mph, just 2 mph lower than the hardtop.