The 2012 Paris Motor Show later this month is shaping up to be the most important event all year. Already the host of high profile unveilings including the all-new Jaguar F-type, Porsche 911 Carrera 4 and Carrera 4S, the all-new MQB platform Volkswagen Golf, McLaren will join the party with their most highly anticipated reveal -- the P12 supercar concept, spiritual successor of the legendary McLaren F1.
Details on McLaren's new halo are limited, but we do know that the P12 will apply the same twin-turbocharged 3.8 liter V8 engine as the MP4-12C with extensive tuning to make the P12 produce a significant amount more power than its little brother. Opting out of engineering a new bespoke powerplant, McLaren has chosen not to emphasize horsepower but in finesse instead. McLaren boasts that the P12 will offer far superior handling and McLaren Asia Pacific regional director Ian Gorsuch claims the P12 possesses the "world's best aerodynamics."
Gorsuch continued, "We are not revealing the power yet, but we don't get into the game of competing on numbers. This is going to be extreme in technology: how it delivers power, how it handles. Technology is delivering performance with finesse."
While we can confirm the McLaren P12 Concept's Paris debut, the British automaker has yet to announce a time frame of its P12 market launch. Its volume will be in severely limited numbers and McLaren says it alter its numbers based on demand. No more than 500 examples will be made.
Finally, rumors have surfaced that the McLaren concept will be given the 'P1' moniker once in production form as an homage to the McLaren F1 nameplate. If true, we believe it is a brilliant marketing move and also a dramatic improvement over the clumsily named 'MP4-12C.'
