To Be OFFERED AT AUCTION at RM Sothebys' Fort Lauderdale event, 29
- 30 March 2019.
Estimate:
$225,000 - $250,000
- Shown by McLaren at the 2012 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance
and the 2013 Goodwood Festival of Speed
- Last of 25 GT3 cars built; signed by McLaren drivers
- Recently serviced and tested by Flying Lizard Motorsports
- Unique opportunity to own an MP4-12C GT3 that has never
raced
With its MP4-12C on the road, McLaren was ready for endurance
sports car racing for the first time since its F1 GT about two
decades prior. Suffice it to say, times had changed
considerably.
The homologated version of the MP4-12C's wind tunnel-honed body kit
draped over what was otherwise a remarkable testament to the
road-going 12C. A specially tuned ECU was paired to a largely
unmodified 3.8-liter twin-turbo V-8 engine mated to a
racing-specification six-speed sequential gearbox developed in
conjunction with Ricardo. The ECU ensured that the engine was rated
at 493 hp to comply with FIA GT3 regulations.
The MP4-12C GT3 debuted in 2011 as a single-car entry at the Spa
Francorchamps British GT Championship round followed by the
grueling Spa 24 Hours. An MP4-12C GT3 run by a rebooted Hexis
Racing won the third round at the Circuito de Navarra in Spain.
In the spring of 2012, McLaren GT completed the last of its 25
MP4-12C GT3s, the car offered here. While designed for endurance
racing, this MP4-12C GT3 has led a far more genteel life. McLaren
exhibited it at the 2012 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance in 12C GT
Can-Am specification before it was converted back to GT3 about a
month later. The car was later showcased at the 2013 Goodwood
Festival of Speed. British sports car firm Lawton Brook took
ownership of the car from McLaren in late 2012 but did not campaign
it.
The car's first private owner acquired it in 2016 and chose to have
the passenger seat installed at the factory in Woking, the only GT3
to have had this done. The car features signatures from GT3 drivers
Alvaro Parente and Robert Bell on its A-pillars. Flying Lizard
Motorsports in Sonoma, California, recently completed a service and
tested the MP4-12C GT3 at Sonoma Raceway.
Presented in never-raced condition, the MP4-12C GT3 represents a
snapshot into the latest incarnation of McLaren's endurance racing
history.
Please note that this lot is offered on a Bill of Sale only.
To view this car and others currently consigned to this auction,
please visit the RM website at rmsothebys.com/en/auctions/fl19.
