McLaren MP4-12C Gets Pre-launch “Emotion” Tweaks: Report

McLaren's MP4-12C is set to gain a number of tweaks, before even a single example has hit the showroom floor. According to British magazine Autocar, the new McLaren has proven too clinical for the average supercar buyer. 

Feedback from early customers and the international press has seen the F1's successor described as capable and quick - but without the 'sense of occasion' one expects from a supercar.

To combat this, McLaren is reportedly tweaking the MP4-12C's Intake Sound Generator, which controls the amount of engine noise that makes it through to the cabin.

Simply by opening the system's butterfly valve further, the aural experience in the cabin is considerably improved.

“It was a bit too sensible before,” a McLaren spokesperson told Autocar. “You won’t notice the changes in normal mode, just when you’re really having fun and pushing it.”

All things being equal, the pre-tweak quiet of the new supercar's cabin could be considered an accomplishment. To produce a car that rivals the boisterous Ferrari 458, matching its abilities with (the appearance of) a minimum of fuss - that's an engineering achievement.

In the world of supercars however, there is an expectation of 'emotional feedback' and, for many, that means noise. The 458 could be quieter if Ferrari wanted it - but Ferrari knows supercar buyers well enough to know better.

Now, it seems, McLaren does too.