– McLaren Automotive, the British maker of hand-built supercar based on Formula1 racing technology,   said Thursday it was  hitting the sales targets it had established as  it launches the ultra-expensive sports car in the United States.

 The company, which made its name in building race cars for big manufacturers such as Mercedes-Benz, has sold 450 vehicles since the first $240,000 McLaren coupe was exported to the US  back in December, it has already sold 450 of the vehicles even though it has only nine dealers spread across the United States, said Richard Power, McLaren’s aftermarket sales manager in the  U.S. 

 “It is on target,” he said when asked during a press preview of McClaren  in Detroit. The Spider variant, of the McLaren super car will cost $266,000 and will reach the U.S. early next year,  Powell added.

Michele Shapiro,  manager of McLaren’s public relations in the U.S., who was in Detroit to show the car to automotive reporters in Detroit, said  most of the cars have been sold in three cities spread across the U.S. – Los Angeles, Miami and New York. “There is definitely a wow factor involved as well as all the other factors in buying a car like this,” she said after the Spider was unveiled for reporters. 

 But a lot of the affluent buyers are car buffs, who know the McLaren name from Formula 1 racing and understand the tech ology that goes into the car, she said.