Wednesday 20th September 2017

McLaren Ultimate Vision Gran Turismo announced

Virtually the fastest McLaren ever made...

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McLaren has joined the long list of manufacturers to flex their considerable design muscle in creating a futuristic concept for Sony's Gran Turismo series. Marques from Bugatti to Citroen have previously taken on the challenge, set by franchise creator Kazunori Yamauchi, to dream up a visionary GT car which embodies the characteristics of their brand.

Spot the typo...

The McLaren Ultimate Vision Gran Turismo - still a catchier title than MP4-12C - is said to demonstrate the British manufacturer's "design thinking, focus on technical excellence and continued commitment to putting the driver first." To that end, power for the rear wheels, theoretically, comes from the twin-turbo, 4.0-litre V8 seen in the 720S; whilst the front wheels are driven by high output electric motors. This results in a total power output of 1150hp, with 940lb ft of torque instantly available from launch thanks to electric propulsion and all-wheel drive.

Extensive use of carbon fibre throughout results in a virtual kerbweight of just 1,000kg, with centrally mounted carbon-ceramic brakes keeping unsprung mass to a minimum. Handling is further improved by "ultra-advanced active aero" aiding cornering by opening a series of tiny apertures on key external surfaces to create additional downforce, without the need for large moving surfaces. Inside the car meanwhile, the driver is positioned head first, giving an unobstructed view of braking points and apexes.

Doesn't preview a production car. Honest

Whilst McLaren is at pains to stress this is not a prototype for any future model, the lack of design constraints does allow for an interesting insight into the kind of technology we might be seeing in the next decade or so. Imagine being shown a P1 GTR when Gran Turismo 4 came out back in 2004...

Speaking about the project, McLaren Design Director Rob Melville said, "We wanted to break new ground and to innovate and the McLaren Ultimate Vision Gran Turismo does exactly that. It puts the driver absolutely at the centre of the action, delivering a sensory overload with incredible sound and awe-inspiring acceleration." Sounds good to us!

With the release of the game now, finally, less than a month away it shouldn't be too long before players get behind the wheel and experience the car for themselves. Gran Turismo Sport comes out exclusively for PS4 on October 17th.

 

[NJJ]

The successor to the current P1 GTR? ETA 2020.

[DanielSan]

Vision for 2030? So McLaren are about 13 years behind Aston/Red Bull/Newey

[Marwood79]

I think we're approaching 'peak car' with this latest generation of hypers... I think toy are going to actually have to fly, or generate their own perpetual motion to move the game further forward.

[phil4]

I've never read so much twaddle in my life.

It's all 1s and 0s, they could have given it any horsepower, any downforce and any cornering braking ability they wanted in the game model, why try and justify how they "might have" achieved those figures. Just stick the word "virtually" in front of each and every claim above, and then you get the idea.

At least it'll be more reliable than the F1 team's car.

[redroadster]

Since mcclaren started there road car division ex first f1 road car there race team performance has steadily got worse

[geeks]

redroadster said:

Since mcclaren started there road car division ex first f1 road car there race team performance has steadily got worse

Yes I am sure only achieving 1 Constructors and 3 Drivers titles are all the result of having released road cars

[spikyone]

phil4 said:

I've never read so much twaddle in my life.

It's all 1s and 0s, they could have given it any horsepower, any downforce and any cornering braking ability they wanted in the game model, why try and justify how they "might have" achieved those figures. Just stick the word "virtually" in front of each and every claim above, and then you get the idea.

Couldn't agree more. As a long-time GT player, all the imaginary and concept cars strike me as being a bit out of step with a game calling itself the Real Driving Simulator. I'd much rather they developed decent AI, better sounds, and crash damage, rather than waste time dreaming about the performance of something that has never been driven in the real world.

Oh, and it looks a bit like a Mazda Furai. Meh.

[Ares]

geeks said:

redroadster said:

Since mcclaren started there road car division ex first f1 road car there race team performance has steadily got worse

Yes I am sure only achieving 1 Constructors and 3 Drivers titles are all the result of having released road cars

Last title 2008 (Lewis)

First McLaren Automotive car 2011 (catchily named MP4-12C)

[jayemdoubleu]

redroadster said:

Since mcclaren started there road car division ex first f1 road car there race team performance has steadily got worse

Nope, you can include the F1 road car in that decline.
Since 1992 when the F1 started production (25 years ago), McLaren have won 3 driver's (98, 99, 08) and 1 constructor's (98) title.
In the 25 years prior to the F1 production, they won 9 driver's (74, 76, 84, 85, 86, 88, 89, 90, 91) and 7 constructor's (74, 84, 85, 88, 89, 90, 91) titles.

[Ares]

jayemdoubleu said:

redroadster said:

Since mcclaren started there road car division ex first f1 road car there race team performance has steadily got worse

Nope, you can include the F1 road car in that decline.
Since 1992 when the F1 started production (25 years ago), McLaren have won 3 driver's (98, 99, 08) and 1 constructor's (98) title.
In the 25 years prior to the F1 production, they won 9 driver's (74, 76, 84, 85, 86, 88, 89, 90, 91) and 7 constructor's (74, 84, 85, 88, 89, 90, 91) titles.

But McLaren didn't really start building their own cars, as part of a road car business until 2011. They lead the build/development of the F1, but that was a single car and only just a road car.

[daytona111r]

Wow that's a beautiful stunning design. Good car designers can still pull it out when they really want to. Reminds me a bit of the Furai.

[Arun_D]

On the heads-up-display, the car is doing over 5000rpm in 2nd gear, yet is only doing 22mph?

Yeah I know, I'll go now

[spikyone]

Arun_D said:

On the heads-up-display, the car is doing over 5000rpm in 2nd gear, yet is only doing 22mph?

Yeah I know, I'll go now

55mph

[cho]

Is the second picture a dig at the F1 team with the guy holding the lollipop?

Sorry just saw the caption

[Leins]

jayemdoubleu said:

Nope, you can include the F1 road car in that decline.
Since 1992 when the F1 started production (25 years ago), McLaren have won 3 driver's (98, 99, 08) and 1 constructor's (98) title.
In the 25 years prior to the F1 production, they won 9 driver's (74, 76, 84, 85, 86, 88, 89, 90, 91) and 7 constructor's (74, 84, 85, 88, 89, 90, 91) titles.

And don't get me started on the curse of the Clio Williams

[BeirutTaxi]

Is GT any good these days? I remember playing it years ago and thinking that the AI drivers were a bit dull and that the whole game lacked a bit of fun factor compared to its rivals.

[danlowe42]

Is the "Breaks On" a special instruction to Alonso that they have the deck chair ready?

[mrclav]

spikyone said:

phil4 said:

I've never read so much twaddle in my life.

It's all 1s and 0s, they could have given it any horsepower, any downforce and any cornering braking ability they wanted in the game model, why try and justify how they "might have" achieved those figures. Just stick the word "virtually" in front of each and every claim above, and then you get the idea.

Couldn't agree more. As a long-time GT player, all the imaginary and concept cars strike me as being a bit out of step with a game calling itself the Real Driving Simulator. I'd much rather they developed decent AI, better sounds, and crash damage, rather than waste time dreaming about the performance of something that has never been driven in the real world.

Oh, and it looks a bit like a Mazda Furai. Meh.

In light of the Solus GT, both these comments have not aged well.