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Let me get one thing straight. Personally I am not a fan of McLaren. I have nothing against the team, its Formula One drivers or the firm's awkward behaviour of naming its cars after fax machines. It's just like Manchester United vs Liverpool or Rafael Nadal vs Roger Federer or Tiger Woods vs well whoever he competes with. However there are one or two things I admire about McLaren. Firstly, its futuristic, yin-yang inspired factory at Woking, U.K. Secondly, the automaker's approach to cars and the firm's obsession with implementing technology. I have mentioned a countless number of times in the blog, as much as I like cars and the science, art and engineering behind it - I like technology, gadgets and gizmos. As such I cannot think of any other automaker in this era (perhaps besides Audi) that harnesses science, technology and cars as well as McLaren. Ferrari is a front to sell road legal Formula One cars to fund their F1 programme while Lamborghini is a German engineered Italian on steroids and performance enhancing drugs. Pagani is a new kid on the block that is all about theatricality, flamboyance and art. McLaren celebrated - with pride - their 50th anniversary as a racing team. 50 years is a long time, but the British firm has only created five road going cars thus far, and all five have been blockbusters in their own right. We have the iconic and legendary McLaren F1, the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren, the MP4-12 and 12C and now we have the long awaited and alien looking McLaren 'Designed by Air' P1. The McLaren P1, together with the Porsche 918 and LaFerrari, welcome the next generation of hypercars and motoring in general. They are from three different countries in one continent but they share a similarity - they are all hybrids. Unlike its predecessors, the McLaren F1, Porsche Carrera GT and Enzo Ferrari, they are not purely naturally aspirated. Each feature an electric motor of some sort to boost performance to an already capable internal combustion engine. http://dai.ly/x14g7to In the case of the P1, the futuristic looking vehicle is unlike anything I have ever seen. The aesthetics have time travelled 10-15 years from the future, combined with the technical limitations of today. It is powered by a substantially revised 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8 petrol engine, coupled to a single electric motor, for a combined power output of 903bhp. Top speed is electronically limited to 350km/h, with the 0-100km/h standing start acceleration taking less than three seconds. The McLaren P1 will power from rest to 200km/h in less than seven seconds, and on to 300km/h in less than 17 seconds - a full five seconds quicker than the McLaren F1. Despite this, the P1 is also efficient with CO2 emissions less than 200g/km, and the ability to cover more than 10km in emissions free electric mode. Undergoing the final stages of testing before commencing on first customer deliveries soon, fellow self-confessed automotive and collector, Jay Leno, became the first man outside the development team at Woking, and Jenson Button, to drive the McLaren P1. The 12 minute video is pretty much split into two sections, a tour of the McLaren engineering centre that looks nothing short of a cathedral while the second part is Leno thrashing the all new hypercar on what I think is the Top Gear test track - who was gleaming with excitement every single minute of course. As mentioned at the start, I am not a fan of McLaren, but does that mean I should not be jealous?

Point a kid or teenager to the Chevrolet Camaro and they will probably just scream "Bumblebee!" Thanks to GM's association with the billion dollar Transformers trilogy (S$3.38 Billion in box office receipts to be exact), the retro Beetle was replaced with the fifth generation Camaro concept, and modified versions of it appeared in the sequels - much to the hatred of hardcore Transformers fans. But hey at least the sfx was awesome. The Camaro was envisioned as a competitor to the legendary Ford Mustang. But compared to the American stallion, the bowtie did not fare well in sales or recognition as a muscle car in its first year. Production commenced in September 1966, and the Camaro survived four generations until the model went out of production in 2002. After eight years of hibernation, the Camaro name was revived with the fifth generation (or post Transformers generation) armed with a new design and platform. I have to admit after years of viewing the mustangs, corvettes and challengers - it was refreshing to see the sharp and striking looking Camaro. Not to mention the larger than life heroic portrayal in the live-action Transformers trilogy aided the nameplate, especially with the younger audience. I am no expert in muscle cars, but if there is anyone out there who knows his muscle cars more than anyone else - it could be is none other than the self-confessed auto nut, Jay Leno. Frequent visitors of the blog might be familiar with his web series

"Welcome to another episode of Jay Leno's Garage" - is Jay Leno's usual introduction whenever he starts off a web video. Visiting his garage recently was an iconic but important Lamborghini. At 20 mins it is nearly the running length of a sitcom, but may I say if you are a car enthusiast, it is truly worthy of your time. Visiting his garage was the legendary Lamborghini 350 GT from 1965 - The first Lamborghini ever. With him is Andrew Romanowski of Lamborghini Club of America, and together they discuss about the car and a brief history of the marque before finishing off with a auralgasmic drive down the street. If you are a young car enthusiast probably from the iGeneration and are more familiar with recent models like the Gallardo, or Aventador.. then you should watch this. Think of it as a automotive history lesson.

Jay Leno, a self-confessed petrolhead, had a chance to test out the Lamborghini Gallardo LP550-2, and from the review we can tell he was enjoying it throughly. Accompanying him was Andrew Romanowski from the Lamborghini Club America. Though Jay tried to do a burnout, it was may I say, weak? This is the video of Jay Leno being interviewed by Jeremy Clarkson during one of the Top Gear Episodes.

The Pagani Huayra is one of the highly anticipated cars this year. The successor to the highly successful Zonda, the Huayra has large shoes to fill, and it didn't disappoint. Honestly I am not sold on the styling. Though the car looks absolutely fabulous in red and I highly think it should have been the launch colour instead of the metallic silverish colour, the front facia doesn't attract me like the Zonda did. Things that I like are the active aerodynamics flaps that reminds me of airplanes, the side mirrors that were inspired by the eye of a female and the rear with the iconic 4 central exhausts. I like the the gullwing doors which is refreshing compared to the usual Lamborghini scissor doors or the McLaren butterfly doors. The interior looks avant-garde yet flashy and loud and reminds me alot of Dutch supercar Spyker. The one thing I can't comment is the performance, well because neither have I nor my colleagues at SGcarmart have driven one, though given the opportunity we would love to. I have been spending some time on the web reading and watching reviews of the Huayra and though of sharing 2 videos that caught my interest. One is from the self confessed Petrol Head Jay Leno and its has Horacio Pagani himself in the video to explain the car. The second reviews comes from a guy named Chris Harris from the Drive network who shares his honest experience with the Huayra, more of a video blog style, including his initial frustrations at the Italian airport. Jay Leno Chris Harris

Most of us will never know what it's like to order a supercar. Thankfully, we have collector extraordinaire Jay Leno to share the process. Leno is the proud owner of a 2012 McLaren MP4-12C, and he recently discussed how he went about buying his new toy. Leno says that normally, acquiring the latest exotic can be annoying. Sales associates want to tell you that the car is sold out while also pushing options you may or may not need. Not so with McLaren. When Leno ordered his MP4-12C, he simply phoned the McLaren office and went through the options list. When doing so, he found a refreshing level of honesty in the person helping him buy the car. Leno said he wanted the carbon ceramic brakes, and the sales associate asked whether Jay would be tracking the car or not. Leno said no, and the salesperson told him he wouldn't need the ceramics, then, as the standard steel brakes were cheaper, lighter and very effective. The associate also informed Leno that the carbon fiber interior accents were merely decorative and offered no weight savings, helping Jay save even more on the bottom line. All told, it seems Jay Leno is just as smitten with the car as he with McLaren's operation as a whole. The MP4-12C will occupy a space in Leno's giant garage, positioned, we assume, right next to the McLaren F1 he already owns. Before purchasing the MP4-12C, however, Leno took a trip to Woking to see how the car is made. He got some track time, too, which you can watch in the clip posted after the jump.