2017 Mclaren 570s on 2040-cars

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McLaren's new supercar hits 124 mph in 7.8 seconds with an all-new 4.0-liter V8

McLaren is set to debut its follow-up to the 650S next month in Geneva, and the yet-to-be named second-gen Super Series model gets an all new heart to match it's new skin and bones. The 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged flat-plane crank V8 promises to be more powerful and more efficient than the 3.8-liter mill it replaces. Expect more superlatives once we get a chance to get behind the wheel. Like the carbon-fiber "Monocage II," the new engine will provide the basis for every McLaren model over the next few years. All cars will share the engine, with tuning varying for each variant. It's a cost-effective way to provide some variety to the automaker's lineup. For McLaren's second round of cars (or third if you count the F1), expect more models to adopt a V8-based hybrid system. Currently, only the million-dollar P1 makes use of hybrid components. Along with some brief info on the new engine, McLaren revealed some performance metrics on what we assume is the new car. Frankly, the numbers are astounding. Zero to 200 km/h (124 mph) takes 7.8 seconds, a shorter time than it takes many cars to reach 60 mph. The new car will blast through the standing quarter mile 10.3 seconds. While 0-60 times aren't the best measure of performance, it does provide a good basis for comparison. McLaren also promises improved throttle response with better power and torque delivery. No word on who will be manufacturing the engine and engine components for the new V8, dubbed the M840T. The current engine, the M838T, is manufactured by Ricardo and uses Mitsubishi turbochargers, though not the one from the Lancer Evolution. McLaren recently announced some new technical partnerships, including one with BMW. It's not clear if the German automaker has had any input on this new engine. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Lewis Hamilton needs to step up in his 200th F1 race

LONDON — Lewis Hamilton will start the 200th grand prix of his Formula One career in Belgium this weekend, but the triple world champion has smaller but more significant numbers on his mind. Refreshed from an August break in the Caribbean, including a trip to Cuba in his role as UNICEF ambassador, the Mercedes driver is 14 points behind championship leader Sebastian Vettel as he revs up for the second half of the season. A fifth victory of 2017 for the Briton would put the pressure back on Ferrari's Vettel, and Hamilton can celebrate another milestone by bagging pole position on Saturday at the long and fast Spa-Francorchamps circuit. That would see Hamilton, who sportingly relinquished third place to team mate Valtteri Bottas in Hungary before the summer shutdown, match the record of 68 poles set by Michael Schumacher with Ferrari in 2006. Mercedes has won the last two Belgian Grands Prix, with now-retired 2016 world champion Nico Rosberg triumphant from pole last year after Hamilton won in 2015. Nobody will be taking anything for granted, however, after Ferrari's one-two win in Budapest at the end of July. "On paper, people will assume that Spa should suit our car because it is a circuit where aerodynamic efficiency is extremely important," Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said. "But assumptions are dangerous — we have seen too many times already this season that the form book can be rewritten from one weekend to the next. So we will be making no assumptions." Hamilton has won twice before at Spa, as has Vettel, but the track — a classic blast from the past — has not been particularly kind to him. In 2008, when he won his first title, the Briton was demoted from first to third after the race for cutting a chicane, with then Ferrari rival Felipe Massa savoring victory instead. Spa can often be a lottery, with its capricious weather, and rain could be a boon for Red Bull's Belgian-born Dutch teenager Max Verstappen, who can count on plenty of local support in what amounts to a home race. "I just love the track and it'll be nice seeing so many orange (Dutch) fans in the grandstands," he said. "Spa is my favorite track of the year. You have to get everything right but when you get a good lap it's very rewarding." Belgium could also be good for Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen, who arrives with a new contract for 2018 in his pocket.

2016 Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix recap: another wild show on and off track

Normally we use this space to provide a lengthy recap of the weekend's Formula 1 race, but we're going to try something different since most folks reading this know what happened at the Shanghai International Circuit on Sunday. Instead, we'll alight on what we saw as the big issues in and around the race. Let us know what you think in Comments. Proper qualifying is back. Thank goodness. It only took a month of embarrassment to fix it. And so is passing! For the third race in a row, big performance improvements at the ten teams behind Mercedes-AMG Petronas and a wider tire selection at this race graced us with opening stints filled with dicing cars. Seeing the McLarens on screen doesn't make us cringe. Manor doesn't only make the global feed when it's being lapped. We've been complaining about parade races for so long that we forgot excitement was possible without rain or wholesale regulation changes. Yes, Mercedes is still the king of the jungle, but there are some other proper midfield beasts on the hunt, too. Malfunctions up and down the grid did help the show in Shanghai, like Lewis Hamilton suffering perpetual troubles, Nico Hulkenberg's runaway front wheel which red-flagged Q2, and Sebastian Vettel's and Kimi Raikkonen's flubbed hot laps in Q3 that let Daniel Ricciardo slip by into second on the grid. Come race day things went all Grand Theft Auto at Turn 1 on the opening lap, sending some of the best cars to the pits. Then came Ricciardo's puncture while leading, then came the Safety Car – all by Lap 5. Nico Rosberg got 38 seconds of airtime on the way to victory – at the start and the finish, and that happened to be his margin of victory, too – otherwise he was a ghost. Everyone else was struggling and juggling. Rosberg's win at the Bahrain Grand Prix put the German at five consecutive victories going back to last year's Mexican Grand Prix. The history books show that any driver who's won five straight contests has gone on to win the championship. With his triumph in China, the German has won the season's first three races, the history books again show that the other nine drivers who've pulled that off have gone on to win the championship. Rosberg, 36 points ahead of his teammate in the standings, is having none of it. He said of the other victors, "But they didn't have Lewis Hamilton as their team-mate." Perhaps Mercedes was right not to make an engine deal with Red Bull last season.