McLaren took the 720S back to the drawing board, improving the aerodynamics, retuning the chassis, making it more powerful and lighter, and giving it a new name: the 765LT.
At a first glance, having a more track-focused version of the mighty 720S sounds like an interesting deal – well, if you can afford to pay $358,000 for it in the U.S., that is.
Related: Let McLaren Show You Some Of The Finer Details Of The Incredibly Fast 765LT
Sure, with the 720S, McLaren’s engineers had a solid base to work on. Compared to the “regular” Super Series, the 765LT has a stiffer suspension, a titanium exhaust system, bucket seats with racing harnesses and no traditional door pockets, air conditioning or stereo, so as to keep the weight down.
The twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 has been tuned to deliver 755 HP (765 PS / 563 kW) and 590 lb-ft (800 Nm) of torque, up 45 HP (45 PS / 33 kW) and 22 lb-ft (30 Nm) over the 720S. The latest LongTail Macca does the 0-62 mph (0-96 km/h) in 2.7 seconds, can run the quarter mile in 9.9 seconds and will keep going up to 205 mph (330 km/h). The 720S, on the other hand, is 0.1 seconds slower to 60 and has a maximum speed of 212 mph (341 km/h).
What matters much more than a tenth of a second here or there, though, is the driving experience – and the 765LT promises to be even more focused than the 720S. Does it deliver?