2016 Mclaren 570 on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Game on as Formula One fields teams for virtual eSports competition

HORLEY, England — Grand prix teams could be racing each other in the virtual world as well as the real one next season, and fighting to sign up the hottest gamer talent, as Formula One wakes to the power of eSports. Darren Cox, the man behind McLaren's "World's Fastest Gamer" competition who also saw one of his drivers win Formula One's first eSports series in Abu Dhabi last month, feels a tipping point has been reached this year. The former Nissan motorsport boss, who runs the eSPORTS+CARS virtual team, can also see the day dawning — in maybe three to five years' time — when top gamers are earning more than the lowest paid drivers on the real F1 starting grid. In a wide-ranging interview at a simulator center where his drivers train near London's Gatwick airport, Cox told Reuters that he expected Formula One teams to become involved in next year's eSports series. "If you look at what the NBA (basketball) has done ... they engaged the teams right at the beginning. So 17 of the NBA teams have got franchises for the virtual side of the sport, and there's a draft like in the real world. "So expect something like that to come out of (Formula One owners) Liberty," added Cox. "It's happening now. Those conversations are being had. "This absolutely will be a big priority for them (Liberty), and I believe they have made it clear to the teams that they will be involved, in some way. "And then I guess it's down to the teams about how involved they want to be." Kitchen porter turns champion Formula One's first eSports series was won by Brendon Leigh, an 18-year-old kitchen porter who had never previously been out of Britain. Leigh, who drives for Cox's team and emerged triumphant from 63,000 initial hopefuls, is likely to go professional. Some gamers in other arenas are already earning more than $1 million a year, and Cox said the rewards in motorsport were growing all the time. "If you go back 18 months, these guys were winning an X-box and a free subscription, not any cash. The cash has suddenly come, and I think that will ramp up," said the man who has been dubbed the "Godfather of virtual racing." Cox dismissed as irrelevant the debate about whether eSport is a sport. "It's here, it's got millions of viewers, it's got a commercial backbone that is strong. It doesn't matter if someone in sport thinks it's a sport or not. eSports don't care." He expected all the big F1 teams to end up partnering with outfits like his.

McLaren 650S to start at about $318,000 in Europe

Immediately following the reveal of a mid-engined piece of exotica like the McLaren 650S, one of the many, many questions that will be asked relates to the six-figure sum the 641-horsepower car will demand. Now, we have a rough answer - 232,500 euros, according to an alleged pricing guide leaked on on 650Sforum.com. That works out to $318,000, but in reality, the base US of the 650S is likely to be lower, what with things like Europe's Value Added Tax messing with the figures. Exterior carbon fiber items range from a 10,020-euro ($13,739 as of this writing) package that features CF versions of the rear bumper, door blades and front splitter to a 2,690-euro ($3,688) side intake. Like many exotics, there's a wide range of options to customize the cabin, with prices ranging from free (owners have their choice of a full leather cabin, a leather sport cabin, or an Alcantara-and-leather cabin at no cost) to 6,080 euros ($8,336) for carbon-fiber racing seats. Other intriguing items include a 5,670-euro ($7,774) sports exhaust and the option to go with steel brakes instead of the standard carbon-ceramic stoppers at no charge (but why?). You can hop over to the 650Sforum.com page and take a look at the entire list, including the leaked documents that revealed the pricing info. Have a look, and then let us know what you think a reasonable price is for this middling McLaren, by posting in Comments. Expect to hear more on the 650S ahead of its debut at the upcoming Geneva Motor Show. Featured Gallery McLaren 650S View 10 Photos News Source: 650Sforum.com Rumormill Geneva Motor Show McLaren Coupe Performance pricing 2014 Geneva Motor Show mclaren 650s

McLaren Automotive posts first yearly profit

The automotive division of McLaren has just returned its first yearly profit, netting 4.5 million pounds ($7.5 million at today's rates) in pre-tax profit and 12.4 million pounds ($20.7 million) in operating profits on revenue of 285.4 million pounds ($478.1 million). McLaren is only expecting things to get better, too, with the announcement of the sub-650S P13 set to increase sales to 4,000 units per year. As for the brand's latest model, the 650S, there are already over 1,000 orders for the new coupe and convertible. The British brand will also offer a limited run of track-based P1 hypercars, although they'll only be available to the 375 fabulously wealthy customers who ordered the road-going version of the high-performance hybrid. Part of making money is reinvesting, which is why McLaren saw its research spending jump by 2.5 million pounds ($4.1 million) in 2013, to 70.6 million pounds ($118.2 million). Take a look below for the official press release from McLaren. McLAREN AUTOMOTIVE ON TARGET FOR LONG-TERM SUCCESS Jun 4, 2014 Key information: Profit before tax - GBP4.5m Operating profit - GBP12.4m Turnover - GBP285.4m (up from GBP266.6m) Investment in future models - GBP70.6m (up from GBP68.1m) Turnover and profit both expected to grow in 2014 McLaren Automotive's next model, codenamed P13, to go on sale during 2015 Limited run of track only McLaren P1™ hypercar confirmed for introduction in 2015 McLaren 650S international sales already strong – more than 1000 orders received McLaren Automotive made both an operating and pre-tax profit for the first time in 2013, during only its third year of car production. This is a significant achievement for an independent British car company operating in such a highly competitive global market. McLaren Automotive's improved profitability proves the company's longer term business model, which is able to invest continuously in R&D in order to develop and sell the world's most exciting and technologically advanced high performance cars. McLaren Automotive has also confirmed that its next all-new sportscar, codenamed P13, will be available before the end of 2015 and will take its range into a lower price-point - making McLaren more accessible, while retaining its commitment to excellence, performance and innovation. P13 will be a comfortable, usable, and beautiful mid-engined two seater sportscar, built around a carbon fibre chassis.