McLaren 12C born (again)

As the wires are abuzz with the official launch paraphernalia of Maclaren Automotive, we had to make our perhaps predictable take on the new British supercar.

Sure, if McLaren produce a production car it is going to be special. Of course it is going to be loaded with tons of engineering knowledge, and perhaps a little trickle down tech from the all-conquering Formula One team.

But for us, the way the car looked was always going to be at least as important in the tech that made its tick. And also for us, the relatively staid, conventional look of the first press and show issues of the 12C were completely underwhelming.

Compared to the brutal, forward-leaning stance of the snarling uber car that was the F1, it looked rather timid – a rather staid confection that amounted to something akin to the Evora without the quirk. But, looking at these latest pictures, and with the carbon black finish drawing your eye to the whole rather than the parts, you can see how the design cues are at least as reminiscent of Ferrari’s 458 Italia and the R8. And that can only be a good thing.

Call us shallow. But we would only want one in black.