RoadVitals

2013 McLaren MP4-12C Owner Complaints

Reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers, shown in full

Data refreshed

Complaints on fileComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
2
Latest Mar 1, 2023
Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
0
Filed in the last 12 monthsReports filed with NHTSA in the trailing 365 days. Recent volume reflects attention and vehicle age as much as anything else.
0
Reports on file since Feb 6, 2018

What this page shows

Our database holds 2 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 2013 McLaren MP4-12C. Each one is a report filed by an owner or driver and published by NHTSA without most of them being verified. A complaint is not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. Narratives are shown exactly as filed.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

Complaints, most recent first

Showing 1–2 of 2

Exterior lighting
Filed Mar 1, 2023

The contact owns a 2013 McLaren MP4-12C. The contact stated that mold was developing in the lens covering the headlights, causing the headlights to be foggy. The contact stated that the failure was affecting his vision of the roadway while driving and was causing a glare for oncoming drivers. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the headlight housings needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and covered the replacement of the headlights housing; however, the failure persisted, and the headlight housings were replaced with the same model of headlight housings. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 4,900.

NHTSA ID
11509758
Incident
Feb 1, 2018
Mileage
4,900 mi
Exterior lighting
Filed Feb 6, 2018

THE HEADLIGHT LENSES ON BOTH SIDES ARE GROWING A MOLD AND FOGGING. THE FOGGING IS GRADUALLY WORSENING, AND, AT SOME POINT, WILL COMPROMISE THE LIGHT EMITTED AND RESULT IN GLARE. IT IS A WELL-KNOWN ISSUE IN THESE CARS, AND SHOULD BE ADDRESSED UNDER WARRANTY, BUT MCLAREN REFUSES TO REPLACE THE LENSES FOR ANYONE WHO HAS TRIED TO GET THIS DONE BY THEIR DEALERS, MYSELF INCLUDED. IT IS CLEAR THAT THIS IS IN VIOLATION OF YOUR REGULATIONS S5.1.2 (B) AND (C): HTTPS://WWW.GPO.GOV/FDSYS/PKG/CFR-2004-TITLE49-VOL5/XML/CFR-2004-TITLE49-VOL5-SEC571-108.XML IT IS ESTIMATED THAT, OF THE 3400 MP4-12C CARS IN THE US ALONE, ABOUT 40% OF THEM HAVE THE PROBLEM. I CAN NOT VOUCH FOR THIS NUMBER, BUT ON A MCLAREN FORUM, THIS PROBLEM HAS BEEN NOTED BY MANY OWNERS AND THEIR DEALERSHIPS WERE UNABLE TO GET MCLAREN TO AUTHORIZE REPLACEMENT OR REPAIR. IT IS ALSO NOTED THAT KOENIGSEGG CARS HAD A SIMILAR PROBLEM, AND THAT NHTSA DID TAKE ACTION. PHOTOS ARE ATTACHED, BUT IT IS DIFFICULT TO SHOW HOW BAD IT REALLY IS WITH THE PHOTOS. APPROXIMATELY 30% OF THE LENS SURFACE IS INVOLVED ON THE RIGHT, AND 20% ON THE LEFT SIDE, AND IT IS PROGRESSING. THE HEADLIGHT DESIGN FAILED TO MEET THE STANDARD THAT IT WOULD NOT HAVE SUCH ISSUES WHEN EXPOSED TO THE ENVIRONMENT. MY CAR HAS HAD NO ACCIDENTS OR ANY SPECIFIC INJURY TO THE HEADLIGHTS.

NHTSA ID
11067214
Incident
Oct 12, 2017
Mileage
4,200 mi

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.

Data sources

Data on this page last refreshed .