Yahoo Autos This Is a McLaren 720S With a Center Driver's Seat
One of the most recognizable aspects of the McLaren F1 is its center seating position. Ever since the company started building series production road cars, we've waited, hoped, and prayed that another center-seat McLaren would hit the road. Now, McLaren has a 720S with the seat in the middle.
Of course, this isn't a production model. It's a test mule currently being used to test the company's upcoming BP23 hypercar. It has a center-mounted cluster, steering wheel, and seat, just like McLaren's original road car, the F1.
This mule was created to "investigate different ergonomic solutions" for its upcoming Ultimate Series three-seater, the BP23. From the inside, we can see the car retains the 720S's trick folding instrument display, but there isn't much else that's recognizable. Instead of two rear-view mirrors stuck on either side of the windshield like on the F1, there are two digital displays. The buttons for Drive, Neutral, Reverse, along with the engine start button and mode selector dials are found on a vertically mounted piece of exposed metal to the left of the steering wheel. Obviously, this isn't close to production-spec.
The outside is pretty much identical to a normal 720S, save for a set of massive side-mirrors mounted on either door. Also, in case you haven't noticed, that's Chris Goodwin, McLaren's Chief Test Driver, behind the wheel.
McLaren's already said the BP23 - limited to just 106 units worldwide - won't be a successor to the F1, despite its center-seat layout. The company also confirmed it will be the "fastest ever McLaren." While the company is being coy about what they actually mean by "fastest," we know that the BP23 is designed more for over-the-road speed than track times. Is this the McLaren that eclipses the F1's 242 mph top speed? It sounds like that might be the case.
You Might Also Like
