British luxury sports car maker McLaren Automotive Ltd. hopes to sell its new MP4-12C model in Newport Beach starting this summer.
McLaren is locked in on a local dealer, according to Lynne Arciero, spokesperson for the company’s North American headquarters in New York. McLaren also is eyeing a building along Mariner’s Mile in Newport Beach, according to city officials.
The company is keeping mum on a dealer and a location until all the legal details are wrapped up.
If McLaren lands in Newport, it will join a number of other luxury auto dealers. Palo Alto-based Tesla Motors Inc.’s company-owned dealership opened in 2010. The city is also home to Newport Auto Center, which sells Bentley, Audi and Porsche. Then there’s Ferrari and Maserati of Newport Beach.
McLaren’s MP4-12C likely will cost $225,000 to $250,000. The model is expected to debut in North America at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in August.
McLaren expects to have 10 dealers lined up around the U.S. for its launch.
Dealers already set are Auto Gallery in Beverly Hills, Park Place in Dallas and Price Family Dealerships in San Francisco. McLaren expects North American dealers to account for 30% of its first-year sales, pegged at 1,000 vehicles.
The cars are being made in England.
Double-Digits Gains Seen
Sales at Orange County auto dealerships rose significantly in November and early indicators from December point to a 12% increase for 2010.
November sales rose nearly 18% from the same month a year earlier to 9,288 autos, according to the Newport Beach-based Orange County Automobile Dealers Association.
The figure is based on registrations with the state, a barometer of sales.
Nearly all auto brands saw higher local sales in November.
The strong sales still are short of pre-recession totals. Orange County saw 12,994 autos sold in November 2006, just before the economy began to slow.
South Korean automakers Hyundai and Kia, which have their U.S. bases in Orange County, continued to make gains.
Hyundai was up 47% to 605 autos sold in November. Kia was up 190% to 290 autos.
Toyota also continued its upward climb. The Japanese automaker was up 7% to 1,826 autos sold in November.
Key rival Honda was up, with a 27% increase to 1,048 autos.
Among domestic brands, Ford led with a 43% jump to 838 autos. General Motors’ GMC brand was down 3% to 106 autos. But GM’s Cadillac and Chevy brands were up. Cadillac sales were up 27% to 109 autos. Chevy was up 26% to 409 autos.
Totals were mixed for other luxury brands.
Mercedes-Benz was up 20% to 801 autos for November. Lexus was down 31% to 347 autos. BMW was down 7% to 438 autos.
Porsche was up 33% to 64 cars. Jaguar sales were down 15% to 17 autos.
Audi was up 35% to 171 autos.
The top 10 gainers in registrations for the year through November were Buick, Cadillac, Audi, Hyundai, Volkswagen, Infiniti, Kia, Porsche, Acura and Subaru.
Tuttle-Click in South County
Irvine-based Tuttle-Click Automotive Inc. recently bought Capistrano Ford in San Juan Capistrano.
The dealership, which sells new and used autos, has been renamed Tuttle-Click Capistrano Ford. The management team remains the same, led by Jerry Key. The dealership employs 85 people.
Tuttle-Click operates five dealerships in Tustin and Irvine. It sells a roster of brands that includes Hyundai, Mazda, Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep.
Robert Tuttle and Jim Click own the dealer group.
Tuttle’s late father, Holmes Tuttle, opened his first dealership in Los Angeles in 1946. The company opened its first Orange County dealership in 1980.
Bits and Pieces
The District at Tustin Legacy mall won a 2010 CalRecycle Waste Reduction Award for its recycling program … Chapman University’s annual economic forecast points to a continued retail recovery in 2011. Personal income in Orange County is forecast to increase 3.6% in 2011, compared to an estimated 2.8% increase in 2010. Total retail sales, including cars, furniture, clothing, food and other goods, are forecast to be up 4.5% in 2011, compared to an estimated 3.6% rise in 2010. In 2009, retail sales were down nearly 2%.
