NEW YORK MOTOR SHOW: McLaren's 911 fighter unveiled

McLaren has lifted the lid on its all-new entry-level 570S Coupe, designed to take on the Mercedes-AMG GT, Audi R8 and the world's most popular supercar, the Porsche 911.

On paper, the British supercar maker's cheapest new model matches the 911 Turbo for performance with a claimed 0-100km/h acceleration time of 3.2 seconds and a 0-1200km/h in 9.5 seconds.

Other new details of McLaren's first 'Sports Series' model, which was revealed ahead of its world public debut at tomorrow's New York motor show, include a top speed of 328km/h (204mph) and a dry weight of just 1313kg.

McLaren says that makes the 570S almost 150kg lighter than its closest rival, and that 58 per cent of its mass is positioned over the rear wheels.

As McLaren has previously revealed, the 570S Coupe's 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8 produces 419kW (570hp, hence its name, at 7400rpm) and 600Nm of torque between 5000 and 6500rpm.

Unlike the all-wheel drive 911 Turbo, it drives only the rear wheels -- through a seven-speed SSG transmission, consuming 9.22L/100km of petrol on the EU Combined cycle and emitting 258g/km of CO2.

That gives the 570S – which is about the same size as the 911 at 4530mm long and 2095mm wide but just 1202mm high – a class-leading power-to-weight ratio of 434ps per tonne, claims McLaren.

Fitted as standard on the 570S are carbon-ceramic brakes and super-sticky Pirelli P Zero Corsa measuring 225/35/R19 at the front and 285/35/R20 at the rear, wrapped around a new range of forged alloy wheels.

Other standard features include LED headlights and tail-lights, leather-trimmed sports seats, steering wheel and dashboard, and dual-wishbone suspension with independent adaptive dampers featuring ‘Normal’, ‘Sport’ and ‘Track’ handling settings.

There's also a full infotainment system including an all-new TFT digital instrument cluster that changes configuration according to driving mode, and a seven-inch IRIS touch-screen with integrated climate-control functionality, Bluetooth connectivity and four-speaker DAB digital satellite radio mounted on a ‘floating’ centre console.

McLaren says an extra 150 litres of storage in the front luggage bay gives the 570S more usable stowage space than any other McLaren.

Options include race seats, a range of Alcantara, nappa leather and carbon-fibre materials, a McLaren Audio Plus 8-Speaker Upgrade System and bespoke Bowers & Wilkins 12-Speaker Premium Audio System with 1280 Watts of surround sound.

Under its all-aluminium body, McLaren's new entry-level mid-engined super-coupe is based on a development of the carbon-fibre tub used in the current 650S. McLaren says the MonoCell II chassis weighs less than 80kg

Positioned below the existing Super Series (650S, 675LT) and Ultimate Series (P1, P1 GTR -- not sold here) model families, the new Sports Series range also shares the company's M838TE 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8, but is claimed to be 30 per cent new for the 570S.

Pricing will be around £140,000 for the base coupe model in the UK (about $A270,000), but the 570S will be priced above $300,000 in Australia, probably between the 911 Turbo ($366,500) and Turbo S ($444,900).

McLaren's discontinued 12C ($398,000 coupe, $441,780 convertible) still appears on McLaren's Australian price list, but the Sports Series should also undercut the 650S ($441,500 coupe, $486,250 convertible) as McLaren's cheapest model -- and a direct rival for the $295K Mercedes-AMG GT and top-end versions of the Porsche 911 and Audi's new R8.

The 570S Coupe will be followed by spider and GT models in the Sports Series, while a hard-core 'Long Tail’ version of the 570S is also expected to join the range later on, developed from the Sports Series GT3 racer that McLaren’s believed to be developing. Next month McLaren will reveal a more affordable 540C at the Shanghai show in China.

Last year McLaren sold 1649 cars globally and 26 in Australia, but hopes to expand that to 4000 with the full rollout of all three model lines.