2024 McLaren 750S is ferociously powerful, yet user-friendly

Article content

For almost 30 years, McLaren has built sports car for the road. Not sport-utes, not sedans, hot hatches or EVs (yet) — the recent released Artura is a hybrid — just sports cars for the well-heeled. And not the cute and cuddly variety such as the Mazda Miata. Think brutally fast, mid-engine missiles — P1, 570, 650, 720 and others, in all their permutations — shaped not by any aesthetic inspiration but by aerodynamic efficiency, ripping through the air at speeds that defy common sense yet inspire lust and envy.

Article content

So, when the British automaker says its new 750S “defines a new benchmark for supercar performance and driver exhilaration,” it isn’t spin doctors blowing an abundance of smoke but an unadulterated fact from a company with a laser focus and a obsession for continual improvement.

It’s not as if the 750S’s predecessor, the 720S, was particularly deficient in the speed department, or somehow past its “best-before” date. The 720S debuted at the 2017 Geneva Motor Show as a replacement for the 650S. With its lightweight chassis and 710-hp turbocharged V8 heart, the supercar delivered performance that challenged much more expensive hypercars. It could sprint to 100 km/h in less than three seconds, and had a top speed well north of 320 km/h.

Article content

Toggle full screen modePrevious Gallery Image

Next Gallery ImageToggle gallery captions

All 8 Photos for Gallery

Function Not Available

Full Screen is not supported on this browser version.

You may use a different browser or device to view this in full screen.

OK

Yet the new rear-wheel-drive 750S, like the 720S available in both hardtop and convertible versions, combines advances in weight-saving, powertrain, aerodynamics and handling to move the driving experience to new levels. Of the visual changes that probably only McLaren cognoscenti will recognize — extended front splitter, narrower eye-socket intakes, new rear wheel arch vents, lengthened carbon fibre active rear wing and new front and rear bumpers. McLaren says approximately 30 per cent of 750S components are either new or changed to deliver these improvements.

Let’s delve further into what the company proclaims is its lightest and most powerful series-production model.

Article content

How light is the McLaren 750S?

McLaren’s philosophy of super-lightweight engineering is readily apparent. Already 30 kg lighter than the 720S coupe at 1,389 kg, the 750S’s avoirdupois can be further reduced with additional carbon fibre and lightweight options. Ticking all the boxes results in an ultra-lightweight coupe dropping another 112 kg. (Think of this as a sports car that weighs about 240 kg more than a new Miata only with four times the power!) Without naming names, McLaren says the 750S is 193 kg lighter than its “closest rival,” (Ferrari’s 296 being the most likely suspect). In conjunction with the 740-hp V8 engine, the math shows a “segment-leading” power-to-weight ratio of 579 hp-per-tonne — a 22-hp advantage over the competition.

Article content

Some of the specific shedding of kilograms includes fibre-shelled racing seats that are a combined 17.5 kg lighter than the sports seats previously standard on the 720S. The new, standard 10-spoke forged alloy wheel brings a 13.8 kg weight reduction over 720S. The exhaust system sheds 2.2 kg.

The 750S Spider is no porker either, McLaren citing an advantage over rival open-top supercars built with aluminium and steel because of the 750S’s inherent stiffness and rigidity advantages of carbon fibre. “The Spider needs no additional strengthening, and the changes from the coupe — the retractable hard top, integrated rollover protection system and bespoke rear upper structure — are all constructed from carbon fibre. The droptop supercar weighs 1,438 kg, 30 kg less than the 720S Spider. Applying the same available lightweight components as in the coupe results in an open air speedster weighing only 1,326 kg.

Article content

What powers the McLaren 750S?

Further developed from the 720S’s 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8, the 750S’s monster motor adds another 30 hp for a chest-thumping 740 horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque. Performance is nothing short of ferocious with the 750S capable of rocketing to 100 km/h in just 2.8 seconds, the Coupe doubling that speed in a further 4.4 seconds, faster than many sports cars get to 120. The Spider takes just another tenth to reach 200. McLaren says that with a segment-leading power-to-weight ratio of 579 hp-per-ton, the Coupe has a 22 hp advantage over its “closest competitor” (the previously mentioned Italian sports car).

Complementing the increased power and torque is a seven-speed sequential-shift transmission with a shorter final drive ratio, resulting in even quicker acceleration. McLaren is particularly proud of its pinion and crown wheel within the transmission final drive, made from a high-performance nickel chromoly alloy more often seen Formula One applications.

Article content

What does the McLaren 750S’s cabin look like?

Not being familiar with the 720S, I asked a few of my confreres if they thought the 750S’s cabin and controls showed noticeable improvement. The answer was a resounding yes. New features include Apple CarPlay and a new central information screen that features more detailed graphics; I was impressed by precision and visuals of the built-in navigation system. The rear-view and surround-view camera system are also upgraded, for higher definition and clarity, and a new vehicle-lift system raises the front of the 750S in only four seconds compared to the 10 seconds it takes in a 720S.

McLaren cites innovative technology and exquisite materials, but, getting down to basics, the company says the layout is more driver-focused, starting with new information and instrument displays, the latter fitted to — and moving with — the steering column. This driver-centric display is mounted in a binnacle that has the controls for Powertrain and Handling modes located on either side, meaning the driver can easily switch between Comfort, Sport and Track Active Dynamic settings while keeping hands on the wheel.

Article content

Then there’s the McLaren Control Launcher (MCL), a new bit of technology debuting on 750S. Button activated, MCL allows the driver to personalize their driving experience by storing a bespoke dynamic preference — such as a favourite combination of aero, handling, powertrain and transmission settings — that can instantly be recalled.

How does the McLaren 750S drive?

In the 1996 movie The Long Kiss Goodnight, Geena Davis stars as a suburban mom/schoolteacher who turns out to be a ninja-like CIA assassin. Such is the seemingly contradictory duality of the McLaren 750S. On the autoroute and twisty hill roads surrounding the Estoril race circuit near Cascais, Portugal, the sports car is surprisingly docile, happy to doddle along in city traffic or behind some delivery truck, ready to pounce when the road clears. Steering is firm and direct, the composite ceramic brakes more than enough to scrub speed on the tight, meandering back roads. Switching to Sport mode from Comfort elicits a sharper response in upshifts, each pull of the paddle accompanied by a tiny thunk, with a crescendo of crackles and pops from the centre-exit exhaust between shifts or when backing off the throttle. Yes, the blind spots are huge and there’s little grace trying to get in or out of the car. You duck under the dihedral-hinged door, drop down into the carbon-fibre-shelled racing seat, pull the knees up tight and then rotate into position. At least you have gravity working for you getting in. Exiting is a gym workout, like trying to extricate yourself from a deep bathtub.

Article content

Out on Autódromo do Estoril’s complex, 4.2-kilometre-long,13-turn, former F1 circuit, the assassin came out, the 750S abundantly demonstrating the engineering expected of a company with an intimate connection to motorsport. In consideration of the car’s potential speed and the varying track experience of the assembled auto writers, helmets and HANS devices were supplied and we were strapped into five-point race harnesses. The cars were fitted with the optional track brake upgrade, discs and monobloc front calipers derived from the McLaren Senna, complete with F1-inspired integrated caliper cooling. Finally, each of us had one of McLaren’s highly qualified driving instructors riding shotgun. My guy was Andre.

Article content

With Andre’s calming demeanour in my favour, I began to learn the intricacies of the track and the 750S’s capabilities, building speed and confidence through the turn with each lap. Estoril’s signature feature is the final Turn 13, the appropriately named Parabolica Ayrton Senna. Hug the inside line at speed, centrifugal force will shoot you out into the beginning of the circuit’s kilometre-long pit straight. Foot to the floor, the McLaren literally takes off like a rocket, full thunder and raw fury. It felt like the afterburners kicked in somewhere around 4,000 rpm, with acceleration beyond any car I’ve driven before. I know we hit at least 257 km/h, that being the last time I glanced at the speedometer, my focus on what was coming up. Then hard, hard on the brakes for the 100-degree right of Turn One.

Article content

The thing is, at no time did the 750S attempt to lash out; it was the very model of decorum even when my entry intro or exit out of a corner was less than the perfect line. The composite ceramic brakes were heroic in their stopping power and the grip from the Pirelli P Zero Trofeo R rubber nothing short of limpet-like — at least in the dry. A light rain had started falling for my third go-round on the track, turning the tarmac greasy. A slight step out in the low-speed esses of 8 and 9 meant a drastic reduction of speed, Andre using the time to help me perfect my racing line.

Final thoughts

McLaren states the 750S is “unashamedly a supercar for the purist.” Agreed, but that statement could also be made for the Audi R8, Corvette Z06, Ferrari 296 GTS and Lamborghini Huracan Tecnica, to name some of the more notable mid-engine, big-buck sports cars — the ‘Vette being an absolute bargain on a fun-per-dollar basis. Moot point, really, each has its loyal fan base. And once it takes three seconds or less to hit 100, is a tenth difference really that significant? Ditto the variance between 310 and 320 km/h.

Article content

The 750S is desirable because it is visceral, both ferocious and user-friendly, expensive but not seven-figure hypercar silly, the latest and possibly last of a memorable line of internally combusted, mega-power, driver-focused machines that are slowly being phased out by a new generation of hybrid and battery-powered supercars.

If it is the last of its kind — and even if it isn’t — the 750S makes a hell of a first impression.

How much is the 2024 McLaren 750S in Canada?

The McLaren 750S is priced in the Canadian market from $363,700 for the Coupe and $392,700 for the Spider. Options will take both well over the $400K mark. Now the bad news. It has already been sold out through the end of 2024. What makes this especially impressive in that, until this drive program, there had had been no formal launch activities beyond static displays of the car at various events.