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McLaren GT reveals new track-bound 650S Sprint

McLaren has been keeping itself busy over the summer preparing for Pebble Beach – especially at the Special Operations and GT divisions. The former will roll in to the Concours d'Elegance this month with a pair of specially prepared supercars, but it's McLaren GT that's sure to steal the spotlight. Because it will not only unveil the P1 GTR in Monterey this year, but also the 650S Sprint you see here. As we anticipated back in April, the 650S Sprint will replace the outgoing 12C Sprint as McLaren's new track toy. Slotting in between the road-going 650S and the new 650S GT3 racer, the 650S Sprint is optimized for the race track, but not homologated for any particular racing series. In other words, it's designed as a play thing for wealthy enthusiasts. Presented in an inverse color scheme to the 650S GT3, with black and orange over white bodywork, the new Sprint car features a number of upgrades over the road-going model. For starters, it's got more downforce and better cooling for the 3.8-liter twin-turbo V8. Though McLaren hasn't specified increased output, it has confirmed that both the engine and gearbox have been recalibrated for track duty. It's also got a competition-spec fuel tank with quick-fill cap, enlarged radiator, retuned suspension, Pirelli racing slicks on 19-inch center-lock wheels, upgraded brakes, on-board air jack system, fire suppression system and a stripped-out cabin with FIA-approved roll cage, HANS-ready racing buckets and six-point harnesses. Given that a large share of these are sure to find homes on tracks along the Persian Gulf, keeping the air conditioning system in place, despite the focus on saving weight, was probably a good idea. McLaren GT is pricing the 650S Sprint in the UK at GBP198,000 (including local taxes). That's negligibly few grand more than the road-going 650S (or, for that matter, the previous 12C Sprint), but since the 650S Sprint is confined to the track, it's a an even more indulgent purchase. TRACK-FOCUSED 650S SPRINT TO MAKE GLOBAL PREMIERE AT 2014 PEBBLE BEACH CONCOURS D'ELEGANCE McLaren GT has today confirmed that it will premiere its latest model at this year's Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, with the wraps set to come off the track-only 650S Sprint. The stripped-out racer will make its global debut alongside a number of other models from McLaren Automotive, and completes the brand's display with four global debuts planned for the Californian event, including the McLaren P1™ GTR.

Honda says it's 'not lost' in F1, but McLaren is losing patience

MONTREAL (Reuters) - Honda has responded to criticism from Formula One partners McLaren by saying it was going in the right direction despite the team having failed to score a point so far this season. "It is unfortunate I can't convince them we are going in the right direction. But I am confident we are not lost," Honda's Formula One chief Yusuke Hasegawa told motorsport.com at the Canadian Grand Prix. "We still need some more time but we are doing the right thing. We are doing many things to speed up our development but I don't disclose what." Former champions McLaren, the second most successful team in the sport in terms of race wins, are last in the championship and the only outfit yet to score after six races. The British-based team's executive director Zak Brown told Reuters on Wednesday that the Japanese manufacturer seemed "a bit lost" and indicated the partnership was reaching break point. The American's comments were widely reported and provided a major talking-point in the Montreal paddock. "I was not surprised," said Hasegawa of Brown's comments. "It's no wonder he has complained and he is frustrated. I'm frustrated, I'm disappointed, the team is disappointed. This is a very difficult, tough situation." (Reporting by Alan Baldwin in London, editing by Ed Osmond) Image Credit: Mark Thompson/Getty Motorsports Honda McLaren Racing Vehicles F1

McLaren 675LT gets paint scheme from its dad

The McLaren 675LT was designed as a lighter, faster version of the 650S, and it gained a lengthened tail section, hence the LT designation. This longer design was partly inspired by the McLaren F1 GTR "longtail." That race car also featured a longer body. One 675LT customer decided bodywork wasn't enough of a connection to the famous '90s racer, so he commissioned the race-inspired paint scheme you see above. The paint job is a rendition of the 1997 Le Mans GT1 class-winning F1 GTR, which sported a livery based on main sponsor Gulf Oil. It's not a simple design, and it's one that McLaren completely painted. There are no stickers here. And it took a lot of work to complete. McLaren says the whole car took 1,000 hours to finish, and 800 of them were spent on the paint. The company even had to ask Gulf Oil permission to use the color scheme again. But the end result is a convincing facsimile of the old race car, particularly with those almost glowing orange wheels. Aside from the striking paint, the car has a few exterior changes. It has vented front fenders, a more prominent roof scoop, and a visible carbon-fiber rear air brake. Inside, the car features black upholstery with contrasting orange and blue stitching, orange vent surrounds and seat belts, and blue handling and powertrain switchgear. The only things left unchanged are the performance numbers. It doesn't weigh any less than a normal model. It also makes the same 666 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque as the regular 675LTs. But that should still be plenty of fun to play with, and surely the paint job makes it feel a lot faster. Related Video: Featured Gallery McLaren 675LT Gulf Livery View 10 Photos Image Credit: McLaren McLaren Coupe Supercars gulf mclaren 675lt mclaren f1 gtr