Wednesday 6th March 2013

Geneva Motor Show 2013: McLaren

Is the McLaren P1 enough to steal the limelight from the LaFerrari?

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So they're in different halls and not literally face to face. But the showdown between the McLaren P1 and LaFerrari has now left the screen and page and hit the showfloor. And who's winning?

Well, we looked at the very different approaches to the PR hype before the show started. And if over at Ferrari it's very much business as usual and, extraordinary car or not, another step along a very well trodden path there's a giddy sense of adventure and excitement at McLaren. Ron Dennis and Gordon Murray might be around on the stand but this is a very different company from the one that built the F1 and in that sense you get the feeling the P1 is a bigger emotional step for McLaren than LaFerrari is for the boys from Maranello.

Restrained, in comparison to LaFerrari at least

And if LaFerrari goes all-out for the heartstrings in direct comparison the P1 is - relatively - a more restrained affair. It's neater, more understated in its lines and is fluid and sculptural where the Ferrari is angry and angular. There are some lovely details too, the carbon weave visible inside the wheelarches and the beautifully finished but overtly mechanical wing lifting mechanism that erupts from the rear bodywork both neat visual reminders of the engineering that's gone into it.

You can read more about that here with the full press pack on the tech that's gone into the car. There's a lot to take in, suffice to say. But setting that aside it's good to see the finished car in the open. And if Ferrari and McLaren have taken ostensibly similar ingredients and targets that they've reached their goals in distinctively different ways is hugely exciting for everyone. Truly, this is THE great supercar rivalry of the modern age and it starts in earnest here at Geneva. This one's going to run and run and it's way too early to declare a winner yet. Happy days!

[toppstuff]

THIS is the most exciting car of the moment.

Lets us just pause and think about this - a British company, created only a few years ago, is now being directly compared to its Italian competitor, with decades of pedigree behind it.

McLaren automotive has come from nowhere. And yet they are already taken very, very seriously. And so they should be.

This car is epic, while the Laugh-er-rarri is derivative. The Italian car looks like it came from the last decade, while the McLaren looks like it comes from now and the future.

I am sure both cars are fantastic. But I am thrilled for McLaren, that they have achieved so much in such a short period of time. Not bad for a bunch of boffins from Woking.

[A3tdi]

toppstuff said:

THIS is the most exciting car of the moment.

Lets us just pause and think about this - a British company, created only a few years ago, is now being directly compared to its Italian competitor, with decades of pedigree behind it.

McLaren automotive has come from nowhere. And yet they are already taken very, very seriously. And so they should be.

This car is epic, while the Laugh-er-rarri is derivative. The Italian car looks like it came from the last decade, while the McLaren looks like it comes from now and the future.

I am sure both cars are fantastic. But I am thrilled for McLaren, that they have achieved so much in such a short period of time. Not bad for a bunch of boffins from Woking.

The fanboy is strong in this one.

[Alfa159Ti]

A3tdi said:

The fanboy is strong in this one.

Hardly - I couldn't agree more with Topstuf and I usually have a natural affinity for Italian cars.

[toppstuff]

A3tdi said:

toppstuff said:

THIS is the most exciting car of the moment.

Lets us just pause and think about this - a British company, created only a few years ago, is now being directly compared to its Italian competitor, with decades of pedigree behind it.

McLaren automotive has come from nowhere. And yet they are already taken very, very seriously. And so they should be.

This car is epic, while the Laugh-er-rarri is derivative. The Italian car looks like it came from the last decade, while the McLaren looks like it comes from now and the future.

I am sure both cars are fantastic. But I am thrilled for McLaren, that they have achieved so much in such a short period of time. Not bad for a bunch of boffins from Woking.

The fanboy is strong in this one.

I am not normally given over to hyperbole. But in this case I make no excuses. British engineering and design at its finest. A reminder that we are not a spent nation, not yet.

[kambites]

Alfa159Ti said:

A3tdi said:

The fanboy is strong in this one.

Hardly - I couldn't agree more and I have a natural affinity for Italian stuff usually.

Same here to an extent. To my eye the four new hypercars seem to sit on an aesthetic spectrum, with the Lamborghini at the "ridiculous" end, going through the Ferrari and then this to the Porsche at the "cohesive but perhaps a little dull" end.

To me, the Lamborghini looks horrific, the Ferrari looks infinitely better but still ungainly and like it's trying too hard. As the others have emerged, this has looked increasingly elegant and restrained, although I think I still prefer the simplicity of the Porsche design, personally.

I doubt anyone knows which drives better, but I doubt most owners will care, either.

[A3tdi]

kambites said:

Alfa159Ti said:

A3tdi said:

The fanboy is strong in this one.

Hardly - I couldn't agree more and I have a natural affinity for Italian stuff usually.

Same here to an extent. To my eye the four new hypercars seem to sit on an aesthetic spectrum, with the Lamborghini at the "ridiculous" end, going through the Ferrari and then this to the Porsche at the "cohesive but perhaps a little dull" end.

To me, the Lamborghini looks horrific, the Ferrari looks infinitely better but still ungainly and like it's trying too hard. As the others have emerged, this has looked increasingly elegant and restrained, although I think I still prefer the simplicity of the Porsche design, personally.

I doubt anyone knows which drives better, but I doubt most owners will care, either.

I agree, the Lamborghini is awful. However i think Ferrari have hit the spot.

Its amazing how much the Porsche/Ferrari/McLaren have split opinions!

[ian mcwilliams]

I agree totally with the pro McLaren posters here. McLaren have done an AMAZING job in just a few years being not only compared but favourably compared with the super successful and super cool supercars of Ferrari. The Ferrari LaFerrari to me looks like it's trying to hard and has not got the wow factor that the F40 or Enzo had. IT looks like the styling was handed over to some junior who has mashed together a few old ideas. The back end looks great though and the interior is definitely more inviting and high tec than the McLaren.

But all credit to the boys from Woking - you have produced one of the worlds most fabulous cars!

[DonkeyApple]

Alfa159Ti said:

A3tdi said:

The fanboy is strong in this one.

Hardly - I couldn't agree more with Topstuf and I usually have a natural affinity for Italian cars.

Yup. I was hoping the Fezza would be exciting like other top Ferraris have but I'm kind of underwhelmed by it. The P1 just looks better, more iconic, less derivative.

[ukaskew]

When all is said and done it's just great that these cars exist. I really can't understand the hatred displayed by some towards a particular car maker. The looks are a very personal thing, but I love the completly different approaches to similar(ish) outcomes, considering the similarities displayed in many segments due to crash regs etc (Astra, Megane, Focus, anyone?) it's great that real individual design still exists.

Assuming they all sell out (which seems likely) it's job done, regardless of the many thousands of words written by people who will only likely ever drive one on a PS4. There are probably only a few people on PH in a position to make the choice. For the rest of us happily plodding along in life it's just a joy to see one at Goodwood or Wilton.

[Gorbyrev]

Is it just me or does the F150 nose intake in the bonnet ape the regulation step on 2012/13 F1 Fezza's? Great to see a titanic struggle like this. Surely you have to add in the Huayra and the Agera R. The P1 looks remarkable and the drivetrain is fascinating. Got to love the F150 engine note mind you. A veritable feast of barely affordable hypercars.

[storminnorman]

I don't really feel the lambo has anything to do with this fight as it's such a one-off. It's probably bloody fast in it's own right but we're probably never going to know how it shapes up let alone see any of them again.

I agree that the McLaren is a brilliant feat of British engineering and in that respect I think it's great. I don't really care who wins the fight on track because at the end of the day I'm just pleased that this whole showdown is happening - although I have a suspicion the P1 might edge it despite the specs.

Styling wise I like them both - I hate that Ferrari is throwing 458 headlights on everything though. The P1 is great especially when you realise all the stylistic nods to the F1. When you consider that the P1 is styled with aero efficiency and functionality in mind it's still a very beautiful car.

Do we know how many P1 are to be made?

[Wadeski]

I'm usually not a big modern Ferrari fan, but they've made the P1 look like a soap dish.

Aero software would appear to be able to design a car, Ferrari can still style one.

[redroadster]

We can all talk about which looks the best but the reason they have been made is to be the best performance cars on the planet so who will be the first to test them against each other , my money is on mcclaren anybody want to bet against me ? .

[Gizmoish]

toppstuff said:

I am not normally given over to hyperbole. But in this case I make no excuses. British engineering and design at its finest. A reminder that we are not a spent nation, not yet.

Well said.

The P1 is a brilliantly "British" car. Engineered properly, unveiled with an almost literary style of denouement.

In comparison, the Ferrari is a tasteless, talentless Katie Price: no class whatsoever. Not that the baseball-cap-and-keyring-buying fanbois will care. Ferrari will undoubtedly sell every one they can make (and of the FXX derivative to come I don't doubt) but it won't give it style.

[jackal]

Am i the only one who thinks it looks dreadful ?

[Dr Z]

For me, the P1 is the only hypercar that looks like it's dropped in here from another planet. All the others have an air of predictability about them, the Veneno being comically predictable. P1 looks like it was designed by an alien civilisation and in a good way is more of what a 'hypercar' is about, IMHO. Questions about the powerplants and performance, notwithstanding, I don't have a prejudice against turbos or feel the need to wave my willy around about V12s that rev to a gazillion rpm.

[andyps]

The line that intrigues me the most in the article is the one saying that Gordon Murray was on the McLaren stand, haven't seen anything else about this. Are there any comments from him about the P1?

In terms of the comparison between the P1 and la my preference is the McLaren, but based on the pictures the Ferrari is the best looking car they have done for a while. Trouble is I thought that about the 458 based on pictures but don't like it so much in reality, there is something too contrived and trying too hard for my taste, but I fully recognise this is personal. I'm looking forward to seeing them both next week though.

I agree that it is great that a relatively new car manufacturer has come up with a truly credible alternative to the ultimate current Ferrari, at a comparable price and being built in relative volume (as opposed to the Pagani/Koenigsegg volume). Well done McLaren, will any journal get to do a twin, or triple test including the Porsche?

[Mastodon2]

I've got to hand it to McLaren, after the MP4-12C, which imo was a car which held back on drama, this car delivers it by the bucket load. The performance is going to be monstrous, that much is obvious.

[Japveesix]

The more I see of the P1 the more I think it genuinely looks quite amazing. That rear view is spectacular and so different to anything else that's ever been on the road. Really striking design.

[marcosgt]

jackal said:

Am i the only one who thinks it looks dreadful ?

At least they seem to be addressing the complaints of those who said the MP4/12C is just a bit ordinary looking...

They can't win really

I have to say in those colours it looks rather kit car-ish, will probably look better in something more subtle.

M.