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McLaren offers glimpse inside P1 GTR program [w/video]

Among the many things we were looking forward to seeing at Pebble Beach this year, the McLaren P1 GTR was near the top of our list. Invoking the spirit of the legendary McLaren F1 GTR that dominated sports car racing in the mid-1990s, the P1 GTR was unveiled in Monterey this past August in concept form, giving us an idea of what to expect. But now McLaren has given us a little more. Envisioned as a track toy for the wealthy who want to play racing driver, the P1 GTR is a further evolution – and a more extreme one – of the road-going P1. The GTR is being developed exclusively for use on track. To that end, Woking has stripped out the cockpit and installed a multifunction steering wheel said to be derived from the championship-winning MP4-23 grand prix car, allowing the driver to "fully adjust the setup and characteristics of the car without having to take their hands off the wheel." The racing buckets are modeled after a DTM touring car, equipped with six-point harnesses and affixed directly to the chassis. Outside you'll notice Pirelli slicks and a fixed rear wing with F1-style Drag Reduction System. The P1 GTR is about more than the vehicle itself, though, as McLaren – similar to what Ferrari offers with the XX client test-driver program – is launching a full driver support program to go along with it. Customers will have access to the advanced simulator at the McLaren Technology Centre (typically reserved for the team's contracted racing drivers) as well as the factory's coaches. The program will also include 10 to 12 track sessions each year, to be held at F1-certified tracks around the world, at which each customer will have his or her own garage and crew, all for the benefit of their enjoyment. The program is laid out in the video below, along with which McLaren has released a fresh batch of images showing the uncamouflaged prototype inside and out undergoing hot-weather testing at the grand prix circuit in Bahrain. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Ferrari, BMW lend expertise to Olympic bobsled, skeleton, luge

LONDON — There are plenty of reasons why the sport of bobsleigh is sometimes referred to as Formula One on ice, but few as obvious as Italy's World Cup sleds. Resplendent in Ferrari red, and with a set of team sponsor Pirelli's P-Zero tyres painted on the sides, they are even liveried to look like racing cars. Ferrari, Formula One's most glamorous and successful team, have worked with the Italian federation, whose sleds run without sponsor branding at the Olympics, since 2010 and in the run-up to next month's Pyeongchang Winter Games. Former rival BMW, title sponsor of the World Cup, has long partnered the U.S. bobsleigh team, while McLaren teamed up with Britain's bob and skeleton athletes for the 2014 Sochi Games in Russia. "There's always the link between the Formula One companies, or any motor company, and skeleton and bobsleigh," says Rachel Blackburn, the engineer who has been involved in Britain's skeleton program since 2006 and who used to work for McLaren. "There's the Ferrari sleds and the BMW sleds ... when we were at McLaren it kind of made a good story," she told Reuters by telephone from her home in Dubai. That somewhat manufactured rivalry has died down in the years since Sochi, with McLaren no longer involved and Ferrari's presence low key. But the worlds of grand prix motor racing and sliding sports still have plenty in common. Bobsled, luge and skeleton are among the fastest of Olympic sports, with bobsleds reaching speeds over 90 mph. Drivers are subjected to gut-wrenching G-forces, and crashes can be fatal. And then there is the ongoing debate about cost controls, the direction of future rules, preserving a level playing field and obsessive secrecy — all endlessly recurring themes in Formula One. 80 mph on a tea tray Blackburn said skeleton, where riders hit 80 mph on what has glibly been compared to an oversized tea-tray, sits somewhere between Americas Cup yachts and Formula One cars in terms of speed and aerodynamics. "Applied engineering is far more interesting than the pure stuff, so when its applied to something that's fun and exciting it does make it a lot easier to solve problems," she said. "There is the Americas Cup, sailing, Formula One and the high speed ice sports as well. It's the same concept.

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.