Pricing and Specs announced for new McLaren 650S prior to Geneva launch.

• New McLaren 650S Coupe can accelerate 0-200km/h (0-124mph) in just 8.4 seconds
• Faster than rival ‘stripped out’ road racers, yet offers far superior comfort, refinement and equipment
• Available in Coupe and Spider variants from launch priced from £195,250 (RRP on the road)

As the first example of the McLaren 650S rolled off the line at the state-of-the-art McLaren Production Centre in Woking, McLaren Automotive has released performance numbers and confirmed pricing ahead of the global debut at the 84^th International Geneva Motor Show.

The latest addition to the McLaren range accelerates to 100km/h (62mph) from rest in just 3.0 seconds, and can reach 200km/h (124mph) in just 8.4 seconds. The standing quarter mile (400m) takes 10.5 seconds, and top speed is 333 km/h (207 mph). This performance puts the latest model from McLaren a full second quicker than the iconic McLaren F1 road car to 200 km/h, and 0.6 sec faster over the standing quarter mile, underlining its performance focus. This represents a sprint time to 200 km/h more than half a second quicker than the rapid 12C, which continues in production. Pricing for the McLaren 650S Coupe starts at £195,250, with the 650S Spider starting at £215,250.

Optimised aerodynamics ensure that the performance of the McLaren 650S is accessible and increases driver engagement. Enhanced handling, high-speed balance and steering turn-in result from improved levels of downforce. ‘Driving excitement is at the absolute heart of the McLaren 650S,’ explains Mike Flewitt, Chief Executive Officer, McLaren Automotive. ‘Of course the performance figures are important, and they help boost excitement. But they’re only part of the story. This is a car that’s about feel as well as measurement.’

Despite these impressive performance figures, more akin to a stripped out road racer, the McLaren 650S boasts a high level of luxury specification. Carbon ceramic brakes sit behind unique ‘650’ lightweight alloy wheels shod with Pirelli P Zero™ Corsa tyres, IRIS satellite navigation with Bluetooth telephony, DAB digital radio in Europe (SIRIUS satellite radio in North America), wireless tethering, audio streaming and voice control are all fitted as standard, and the cabin is trimmed in Alcantara. Enhanced levels of optional specification are also offered, including fixed-back carbon racing seats, based on the lightweight design found in the McLaren P1™, an electric steering column adjustment assists ingress and egress, a rear parking camera and extended carbon fibre throughout the interior.

The ‘no compromise’ McLaren 650S also performs efficiently, returning 24.2 mpg (11.7 l/100 km) on the EU combined cycle, and a CO₂ figure of 275 g/km making it one of the most efficient models in class. This is testament to the drive by McLaren for continued improvement and class-leading efficiency.

‘The McLaren 650S represents 50 years of road and racing car know-how,’ comments Mike Flewitt.‘Everything we’ve learnt from the 12C and the McLaren P1™ has gone into this car, creating a car with the widest breadth of capabilities of any production supercar. It’s also a new benchmark in pure driving excitement.’

The McLaren 650S Coupe and Spider make their global debuts on Stand 1240, Hall 1 at 12.00 CET (11.00 GMT) on Tuesday, 4 March 2014 at the 84th International Geneva Motor Show.

TECHNICAL AND PERFORMANCE DATA

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION– McLaren 650S COUPE

Drivetrain Layout	Longitudinal Mid-Engine, RWD	Track, F/R (mm)	1656 / 1583
Engine Configuration	V8 Twin Turbo / 3799cc	Length (mm)	4512
Engine PS / rpm	650 / 7250	Width (mm)	2093
Torque Nm / rpm	678 / 6000	Height (mm)	1199
Transmission	7 Speed SSG	Dry Weight (kg / lbs)	1330 / 2932
Body Structure	Carbon Fibre MonoCell with   Aluminium Front and Rear Frames	Active Aerodynamics	McLaren Airbrake
Wheelbase (mm)	2670	Suspension	ProActive Chassis Control
Brakes	Carbon Ceramic Discs with Forged Aluminium Hubs (F 394mm/R 380mm)	ProActive Chassis Control modes	Normal / Sport / Track
Tyres (F/R)	Pirelli P Zero Corsa 235/35 R19 / Pirelli P Zero Corsa 305/30 R20	Powertrain Modes	Winter / Normal / Sport / Track
Wheel Sizes (F/R)	19” x 8.5”J / 20” x 11” J

PERFORMANCE DATA

Efficiency	CO2	275 g/km
	Fuel consumption (combined)	24.2 mpg
	Power to weight (with lightweight options)	500 PS (493 bhp) /tonne
	CO2/power	0.42 g/km per PS
Speed	Maximum speed (650S Spider)	333 km/h (207 mph)
Acceleration	0-100 kph (62 mph)	3.0 s*
	0-200 kph (124 mph)	8.4 s*
	0-300 kph (186 mph)	25.4 s*
	0-400 m / ¼ mile	10.5 @ 224 km/h (139 mph)*
Braking	Braking	100-0 km/h     30.5 m (100 ft)
		200-0 km/h     123 m (404 ft)
		300-0 km/h     271 m (889 ft)

*with standard-fit Pirelli P Zero™ Corsa tyre
All figures apply to a European specification McLaren 6505 Coupé

T3 magazine names AUDI A8 winner of inaugural COTY tech awards.

Audi luxury saloon wins inaugural Car of the Year Award in influential technology magazine’s annual honours list

• Technology-focused magazine’s annual Gadget Awards recognise particularly innovative products
• Inaugural Car of the Year Award goes to Audi A8 luxury saloon described as ‘an outstanding example of innovation and design’

Technology aficionados at the UK-based T3 Magazine have added a new ‘Car of the Year’ category to their annual Gadget Awards, and Audi is proud to be the recipient of the inaugural award for the A8 luxury saloon.

Presented recently at a high profile ceremony in London that also honoured many other ground-breakers from the worlds of computing, mobile communication, photography, audio and visual entertainment, the awards are allocated not only on the strength of verdicts from a panel of nine tech-savvy journalists, but also based on over 500,000 votes cast online on the T3 website.

Kieran Alger, T3 Magazine Editor-In-Chief, summed up the intensity of the competition for the awards and the calibre of the winners by saying: “This year’s awards have been the hardest fought yet. Every single winning product is truly an outstanding example of innovation and design.” In its citation the A8 is described as ‘a tech-head’s dream motor’, and Editor Luke Peters closes by saying “you know a car’s good when you don’t want to get out of it”.

The primary focus of the Car of the Year award is not surprisingly technological merit. Singled out for particular praise in the A8 are its advanced adaptive air suspension system, its Audi connect technology bringing internet-based services such as Google Earth navigation and Google Street View to the car and creating a mobile wi-fi hotspot, and its ‘unrivalled entertainment systems’.

Built around the advanced, predominantly lightweight aluminium Audi Space Frame, the Audi A8 range has recently been further enhanced by subtle styling revisions, equipment upgrades and improvements to engines, all of which now meet tougher EU6 emissions limits applicable from 2014.

New MatrixBeam LED headlights

Of particular interest to the gadget lovers at T3 will be the futuristic new MatrixBeam headlights and dynamic indicators which become standard equipment for some new generation A8 models. The 25 individual LEDs in each MatrixBeam headlamp unit can be switched on and off or dimmed individually depending on the situation, meaning that the on-board computer can mask specific sections of the high beam by dimming or deactivating individual diodes when it detects other vehicles travelling ahead in either direction.

The lighting system in the A8 also uses predictive route data from the navigation system to adjust the distribution of light in response to the current driving situation, and can recognise and act on route data, such as corners and road classifications.

The dynamic indicators comprise blocks of LEDs arranged in a strip which are sequentially illuminated at 20 millisecond intervals, from the inside outwards, in the desired turning direction. This ‘sweeping function’ makes it even clearer to surrounding road users that the A8 is about to turn.

Cutting edge features are also very much in evidence in the engine bay of the new generation A8. This can now be filled by a wide range of EU6 emissions-compliant units including the latest 435 PS twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 TFSI or naturally aspirated 500 PS 6.3-litre W12 FSI engines, both now incorporating fuel-sparing Cylinder-on-Demand technology, or by a hybrid system combining a 2.0-litre four-cylinder TFSI engine with an electric motor.