The stunningly handsome McLaren MP4-12C has made its American debut at Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, but obviously not all prospect customers could get there and see the car. So the British company is sending their new compact supercar on a Tour in which it’ll visit its selected North America dealership locations where people can spend some with it and chat with McLaren officials about it. Now this being McLaren it means these visits will be big parties with lots free bubbly involved!
A Supernova Silver 12C, Titanium Silver 12C and the XP13 rolling chassis were presented to over 1,000 guests at the Pebble Beach event by a McLaren Automotive team including Managing Director Antony Sheriff and Design Director Frank Stephenson. Visitors to the McLaren Automotive display included Governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger and world-famous car collector, Jay Leno.
McLaren Automotive subsequently moved on to Beverly Hills and presented the 12C to prospective customers at its future McLaren Beverly Hills location on Wilshire Boulevard. On Thursday evening the dealership hosted a cocktail reception for approximately 300 guests followed by private viewings of the vehicle throughout the day on Friday and Saturday. Guests were able to get close to the 12C and the positive feedback from sports car owners in California can be seen in a short film entitled “McLaren MP4-12C: The North American Debut”.
On September 1st and 2nd the MP4-12C will be presented by Pfaff Automotive Partner, McLaren’s retail partner in Toronto, Ontario. Thereafter, a team of McLaren Automotive experts will visit the following new members of the McLaren family with the 12C:
- McLaren Chicago: Lake Forest Sportscars
- McLaren Dallas: Park Place
- McLaren Greenwich (McLaren’s representative in the New York Tri-State area): Miller Motorcars
- McLaren San Francisco: Price Family Dealerships
- McLaren Tampa Bay: Dew Luxury Motor Cars
- The Collection McLaren (representing the Miami market)
These dealerships will be eight of the initial ten launch retailers for the North American market. Two locations, Newport Beach in Orange County, and Philadelphia remain open but will be appointed in the coming weeks.
Tony Joseph, McLaren Automotive’s Regional Director for North America said: “Each retailer on this tour will be registering customer interest in the 12C and it’s clear from the feedback at the McLaren Beverly Hills event that our prospects in North America really understand our brand and are looking forward to the launch of McLaren Automotive.”
“We look forward to delivering a great range of unique, innovative sports cars to customers in North America, with a network of McLaren Automotive retailers committed to delivering an ownership experience every bit as good and revolutionary as the 12C itself.”
North American retailers will begin selling the 2012 McLaren MP4-12C from summer 2011 with a base MSRP within a range of between $225,000 and $250,000.