The New Benchmark
McLaren is a name synonymous with motor racing success all across the globe, particularly with Formula 1. Building an incredible reputation that stretches all the way back to Bruce McLarens first success is Formula 1 at just 22 years old (a record at the time). He then went on to construct his own cars that competed with unrivalled success in the Can-Am championship where it dominated with nearly three times the victories of Porsche.
Fast forward many decades and countless wins in F1, Le Mans and Can-Am, the McLaren F1 and the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren, the decision was made that it was time to produce a stand alone super-sports car to take on Ferrari and Lamborghini…and beat them.
The first offering was the car we present here, the MP4-12C. The 12C heralded a new breed of supercar; it took new design approaches and advanced the use of composites in road car manufacture. The MP4 platform would indeed become the backbone of every McLaren on the road today, which can still trace its roots and chassis architecture back to the prototype 12C from 2010.
McLaren had a bespoke engine built by Ricardo specifically for the MP4 platform and for a first car, it was pretty spectacular. Utilising a 3.8L twin-turbo V8 architecture, the 12C developed 441Kw and 600Nm of torque and set a supercar benchmark which would soon have other following suit. Even some 12 years later, the McLaren is still astonishingly fast and feels every bit a 2024 performance car (with the statistics to match).
Not only did the MP4-12C’s engine set new supercar benchmarks, it also featured a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox. As with the rest of the car, McLaren’s Formula 1 ties shone through, as the transmission brought with it a selection of aspects that continue to be defining features in all McLaren road cars.
McLaren’s innovation didn’t end under the engine cover, as it’s possibly the groundbreaking suspension that was the biggest departure from the supercar norm. Still to this day, the 12C defies belief that a car that handles as mind-bendingly as it does, can have the ride quality of an S-Class Mercedes on pitted and gnarly road surfaces.
We proudly offer for sale this stunning 12C, which we believe is already a future classic. The early 12Cs were made in low production numbers and are not offered for sale very often. Specified as follows, this car also benefitted from the factory 2013 model upgrade (which also included a power hike to 460Kw along with a host of other upgrades):
With 24,700klms, a perfect McLaren Sydney service history from new, and a two owner car, MP4-12Cs don’t come much better than this.