McLaren P1 interior takes shape

MCLAREN has released images of the interior of its P1 supercar, revealing a minimalist cabin with the feel of the “cockpit of a fighter jet”.

A glass canopy adds to the cockpit effect of the P1, as does the long windscreen that is deeper than it is wide, which McLaren claims “makes the car all the easier to plant on road and track.”

The British car-maker has used a number of measures to ensure weight-reduction in the P1, including extensive use of carbon-fibre.

As well as external body panels, the lightweight material is used on the dashboard, floor, headlining, doors, and a single piece shaped for the central control unit.

McLaren has minimised the use of switchgear in the cabin, but claims to have maintained luxury touches such as climate control, sat-nav, and a sound system co-developed with hi-fi specialist Meridian.

The supercar’s racing bucket seats have also been used to reduce the overall weight of the P1, using the minimum amount of foam and and ultra-thin carbon fibre shells that are mounted on lightweight runners and brackets for a saving of 10.5kg per seat.

Carpet is an option in the P1, but if chosen by the buyer, is fitted with a lightweight backing.

McLaren opted not to include interior sound deadening for the P1 to maximise weight-saving and has minimised trim covering, leaving much of the cabin exposed.

The supercar-maker has even ensured that the diameter of the Alcantara trimmed, carbon fibre steering wheel is as precise as a McLaren racing driver’s wheel.

McLaren said that its goal is for the P1 to be “the best driver’s car in the world on road and track.”

Mystery still surrounds the powertrain and performance capability of the P1 as McLaren has drip-fed information since the car’s initial unveiling as a design study at the Paris motor show in September last year.

A production-ready version of the supercar – widely seen as the successor to the McLaren F1 – will be revealed in full at the Geneva motor show on March 5.