What do we know about the new McLaren supercar?

The next McLaren Ultimate Series car will debut online on Dec. 10. (© McLaren Automotive)

On Dec. 10 at 12:01 a.m. GMT, British supercar company McLaren Automotive will be taking the wraps off what it claims is one of the most extreme performance cars it has ever built.

That's a comparatively easy statement to make, considering that McLaren Automotive has only been in business since 2010 and in that time has launched just six vehicles. However, each of those cars has rivalled Porsche, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Audi or Mercedes in terms of styling, performance and technology. Therefore there is a huge buzz of excitement and anticipation surrounding the next new model, currently codenamed the P15.

Destined to be part of the company's ultimate series range -- in other words, to be a very limited edition car that can be mentioned in the same breath as its P1 hybrid hypercar -- McLaren describes the car as "the ultimate track-focused McLaren."

The car will boast a two-seat, mid-engine layout, and power will come from a 4-liter twin-turbocharged V8 engine, similar to the one that debuted in the new McLaren 720S but with a significant increase on the 710bhp, 770Nm of torque, 0-100km/h time (2.9 seconds) and top speed (341km/h) that it delivers when powering that car.

However, don't expect it to use a hybrid system like the one on the P1. McLaren is holding that piece of technology back until the launch of another Ultimate Series car -- the BP23 -- which is coming in 2019.

Likewise, those expecting monstrous performance and a cosseting cabin will be disappointed. McLaren has made it clear that in the pursuit of ultimate on-track performance, the P15 will sacrifice a host of creature comforts. So expect the car to come with little if any soundproofing, and with things like air conditioning and infotainment as options rather than standard equipment.

McLaren has also warned those with a delicate eye for aesthetics that they may struggle to come to terms with what it calls a "brutal" approach to exterior design which is 100 per cent about optimizing aerodynamics, road holding and downforce.

All of which suggests that the car, which won't be revealed in the flesh until the 2018 Geneva Motor Show, is aiming to break the 2018 Porsche 911 GTR 2's Nurburgring lap record. In September, the car set an incredible time of just six minutes 47.3 seconds.

By unveiling the car in December, before its real-world debut in March, McLaren will have a full three months to put its newest model through its paces (undisguised) around the punishing 20km+ circuit with the ultimate goal of launching this ultimate series car alongside a new world record lap time. However, even if it doesn't better the Porsche's time, expect every single model in the production run to be accounted for before assembly of the first car begins.