The sports car was slated for a Geneva unveiling next month, and McLaren had themselves just released a teaser of the badge, but now the cat’s out of the bag. Though the 650S was expected to split the difference both price- and performance-wise between the 616hp, $250,000 MP4-12C and the 727hp, $1.2 million P1, it looks as if it could also be an evolution of the 12C.
Visually, the The nose is dominated by a larger grille than the MP4-12C’s, more aggressively shaped to direct air towards the front intakes and stretching to the base of the headlights like the P1. Along its flanks, the 12C’s “gills” have been replaced with one large vent on each side. Out back, the rear appears to be more or less in line with the current MP4-12C without any major changes.
Reports suggest that the 650S name is a reference to the 650 hp output from its 3.8-liter V8, the same unit that powers the MP4-12C. Are subtle visual changes and a 5.5 percent increase in horsepower enough to warrant a new model, or is the 650S simply the next iteration of the MP4-12C? After all, the 12C debuted in 2011 and the 650S is expected to go one sale as a 2015 model. We’ll have the answers at the live reveal on March 4 in Geneva.
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