Seeing a limited edition Le Mans 650S “in the flesh” confirms the fact that it’s one of the coolest McLarens up to date.

In fact, I could call it the coolest modern McLaren ever built, considering all its visual cues are a throwback to the F1, F1 LM and the Le Mans winning No59 F1 GTR. It was even designed in consultation with Peter Stevens, the F1’s original designer.

Maybe one of its most prolific design cues is the roof-mounted “snorkel” air intake, which channels air to the twin-turbo V8 under the bonnet. Of course, the Le Mans edition lightweight 5-spoke wheels and the “Sarthe Grey” color are just the icing on the cake.

The wheels are not there to visually impress and that can be confirmed by the 19 inch rims in the front and 20 in the rear setup. They might look boring to some, but nothing ever made the 650S look so detailed and clean.

As you can see from the custom plaques, this limited edition variant was developed by McLaren Special Operations division to commemorate the 20th anniversary of McLaren’s 1995 Le Mans performance, where five F1s finished 1st, 3rd, 4th 5th and 13th in the demanding 24-hour race.

Limited to only 50 units worldwide and available only as a coupe, the McLaren 650S Le Mans is a rare sight to see even in unofficial pictures.

It has carbon fiber everything; carbon fiber side mirrors, carbon fiber side skirts, carbon fiber air vents, carbon fiber splitters, spoiler and engine cover. But the best part is found at the interior, on the headliner, where the snorkel is exposing its carbon fiber body, giving the cabin a racing-car aura, just like the rough vibe of 90’s carbon-fiber garnished cockpit would.

If you look closely at the front fenders, you will notice some horizontal vents. Those are actually louvers made to reduce air pressure over the front wheels and are seemingly tempered in contrast to the ones present on the original GTR.

All in all, the level of detail this car carries is truly amazing and it can keep you captivated for hours. But how much does it cost to stare at a McLaren 650S Le Mans all day? Well, McLaren Newport Beach will happily sell you this very example for a cool $355,139.

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