A few months back there were rumors flying around that McLaren had a new supercar in the works with the codename of P15. It immediately grabbed the attention of most of the automotive world because it was supposedly going to be even more performance oriented than the all mighty P1. However, those were rumors and we all know better than to consider them as fact until getting official word from the manufacturer. A prime example of that is the Ram Rebel TRX. Luckily though, the P15 won’t follow the same fate as the TRX because McLaren just confirmed that not only is it coming but it’ll be as good or better than expected.
The P15, which won’t be its official name once production begins, will be part of McLaren’s “Ultimate Series” which is the top of the line, ultra-high performance machines in the automaker’s lineup. The P1 and P1 GTR are currently the only cars in the Ultimate Series but that’s soon to change and in a very good way.
Photo: autocar
According to McLaren, the P15 will be the company’s most extreme, track focused car they’ve ever built which is really saying something when you look at the cars already to their credit. Even though the P15 will be street legal, McLaren has made it very clear that on-track performance is the highest priority and they are willing to sacrifice any and all practicality and comfort in order to achieve that goal. Needless to say, the form will follow function and that’s all that matters, and that’s something that you can’t help but have respect for.
What really caught my attention with the P15 is the fact that the performance benchmark is that of the P1. The powers that be at McLaren want the P15 to even surpass that of the P1, and to do so without the help of a hybrid powertrain. Because of that, they are also quick to point out that the P15 is not the successor to the P1. That’s where the even more badass BP23 will come in to play.
To match the P1’s extraordinary performance, McLaren engineers came up with a way to coax around 800hp from the 4.0L twin turbo V8, the same one that currently powers the obnoxiously fast 720S. But even with all that power, they still had to get creative when it came to the weight savings. The P15 is projected to weigh in at approximately 2,870lbs (the P1 tipped the scales at 3,400lbs), just in case you don’t have a calculator handy that’s just over 500 lighter than the P1 which is a significant difference. That being said, even though the P1 has just over 100 more horsepower, the P15 will have a better power to weight ratio.
McLaren plans on making only 500 examples of the P15 and unfortunately if you don’t already have one reserved, each one has already been spoken for. Most of the details on the car are still under wraps however they did give us a teaser image of the tri-pipe exhaust, not much, but better than nothing I guess. They do plan on releasing more by the end of the year, and will officially debut the car in early 2018. One thing is for sure, it’s exciting news coming from the McLaren camp and if the P15 is a glimpse into what the future will bring I’d say we are moving into a whole new world of high-performance vehicles.
