McLaren working on sub P1 supercar, codenamed P15

Ambitious British supercar maker, McLaren, has confirmed the company is in the early stages of developing a supercar to sit between the wildly successful MP12-12C and the recently release McLaren P1 (pictured).

Codenamed P15, the car will use a mid-mounted turbocharged engine, likely to be a tweaked version of the 12C’s twin-turbocharged 3.8-litre V8. Speaking to Autocar in the UK, company officials have refused to divulge any specific information, saying it is still “quite a long way off” and technology will change from now to the lead up of the supercar’s arrival.

However, they have confirmed the car will utilize McLaren’s lightweight carbon fibre tub chassis, which sits at the core of all McLaren road cars. It will also differ in its purpose and character to the marque’s Porsche 911 Turbo rival, the P13 which is set to hit showrooms in 2015.

The P15 is likely to cost in the region of £400,000 when it goes on sale, while the P13 will kick off at £120,000 in the UK. McLaren expects the P13 to account for between 2,000 and 2,500 cars per year.

A Spyder version of the P13 and a hardcore stripped-out variant with extra performance to rival the Porsche 911 GT3 is also on the cards.