McLaren's MP4-12C GT3 Racer gets 100HP less than the Street Version [Gallery and Video]

McLaren has announced full technical specifications of its MP4-12C GT3 racing model, which much surprisingly, has 100 horses less than the road car it's based upon. The racer uses the same 3.8-liter twin turbo V8 engine (codenamed M838T), but in a de-tuned state deliver 500 horsepower (down from 600HP) in order to “provide optimum power for a performance-balanced race car,” according to McLaren.

The British carmaker says the GT3’s tweaked aerodynamics and lightweight construction more than compensate for the loss in output. The eight-cylinder engine is linked to a six-speed sequential gearbox, which is 80 kg lighter than the road car's 7-speed box. In addition, the GT3 gets a race-spec suspension setup and improved aerodynamics. The MP4-12C GT3 was first tested in the F1 team's McLaren Simulator, with the car also benefiting from the brand’s Formula 1 expertise in many other aspects.

“The 12C GT3 will be supplied with the 12C’s carbon MonoCell and the same steering wheel design employed by Lewis Hamilton in his MP4-24 Formula 1 car,” said Martin Whitmarsh, CEO McLaren Group.

“Plus, we are working closely with Formula 1 suppliers past and present: Akebono, Mobil 1, McLaren Electronic Systems, Ricardo and Michelin for example. This blend of road car and Formula 1 technology and experience will be a great advantage to anyone racing a 12C GT3 in 2012,” he added.

This year will be a development season for the MP4-12C GT3 with McLaren planning to debut the new car at the Blancpain Endurance Series race at the Circuito de Navarra in Spain, followed by Magny-Cours and Silverstone. The company also intends to enter the 24 Hours of Spa endurance race and to make an appearance at Goodwood Festival of Speed.

McLaren's development team drivers are Andrew Kirkaldy, Oliver Turvey and Alvaro Parente. This year McLaren GT will produce 20 cars, which will be raced by customer teams in 2012. Scroll down to learn more about the car and to see it in action alongside its road-going brethren.

By Dan Mihalascu

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Oops…He Did it Again: "Mr. Bean" Crashes His McLaren F1

Actor Rowan Atkinson, best known for his roles in UK TV series Mr. Bean and the Black Adder, may drive an original Mini on the screen, but in real life, he is a car enthusiast. So much that he once described in CAR magazine the process of ordering a Ferrari 456 GT and let's not forget that he owns one of the most exclusive and extreme supercars ever built: a McLaren F1.
Unfortunately, the 56-year old actor made headlines today for losing control of his precious F1, and crashing into a sign. No other cars were involved in the accident, which seems to have occurred when the McLaren met a wet patch on the road.
Thankfully, Atkinson suffered only minor shoulder injuries and was taken to the hospital, but the F1 seems in need of some serious repair work.
This isn’t the first time he has crashed his McLaren, either, since in 1999 he rear-ended a Rover Metro damaging the front end of his supercar.

Story sources: Pistonheads & AP

VIDEO

F1: Hungarian Grand Prix Qualifying Report

It's probably getting kind of old, but a Red Bull has once again claimed pole position this year. This time Sebastian Vettel is the one who managed to break teammate Mark Webber's two previous pole positions, while also beating the two McLarens piloted by Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button to start from the first row of the Hungaroring circuit on Sunday.

The two main contenders for the pole position seemed to be Vettel and Hamilton, and that’s the way the fight ended, with Button and the two Ferraris behind them. However, it’s Felipe Massa who will start from the second row relegating Fernando Alonso, who celebrated both his 30th birthday and 30th race with the Scuderia team, to fifth place.

Mark Webber in the second Red Bull couldn’t match the pace of the front runners, ending up more than half a second slower than Vettel in sixth place.

Mercedes GP put in a solid performance with Nico Rosberg in seventh and Michael Schumacher in ninth place on the grid. It’s just that the 7-times World Champion and the man who has broken almost every record in Formula 1 was beaten (by 0.8 seconds) by his team-mate, but also by a Force India, that of Adrian Sutil.

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Just Before Launch, McLaren Decides to Make MP4-12C “More Emotional”

McLaren’s MP4-12C has received a lot of praise from automotive journalists. It has even set the second fastest time ever in the Top Gear power lap. But this doesn’t mean that it’s perfect.

Most who have driven it have placed it below its chief rival, the Ferrari 458 Italia, not because its’ slower (it isn’t) or less capable, but because it lacked the aural charisma and emotional character of the Italian supercar. In other words, it was good, but also a bit clinical.

Therefore, McLaren decided to do something about it just before first deliveries start this week. A McLaren spokesman told Autocar magazine that changes to the MP4-12C to be delivered to customers include “a fruiter exhaust note” as well as “improved throttle response”.

The spokesperson noted that these improvements were made "because of McLaren's F1 mentality to up the pace of development".

McLaren’s engineers tweaked the car’s Intake Sound Generator by altering the butterfly valve found in the tube that connects the engine’s plenum to the cabin. However, this change is noticeable in Track mode only.

“It was a bit too sensible before” admitted the spokesman. “You won’t notice the changes in normal mode, just when you’re really having fun and pushing it. They don’t lead to any performance increase, but they do lead to an emotional increase when you drive the car.”

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