McLaren has revealed the first of 15 new models due to go on sale before 2022 at this week’s Geneva Motor Show.
The 720S will replace the 650S as the brand’s core model when it hits UK roads this May, priced upwards of £208,600.
Incredible numbers
If that price tag was an eyebrow-raiser, wait till you see the other numbers associated with the 720S, which will be faster, lighter, roomier and more aerodynamic than the car it replaces.
Driving the 720S is the new M480T engine, linked to a seven-speed SSG transmission. This twin-turbocharged 4.0-litre V8 unit produces up to 710bhp and 770Nm of torque and thanks to the carbon fibre chassis, the car doesn’t weigh very much – around 1.2 tonnes.
Pairing this level of power with such a low kerb weight results in a dazzling power-to-weight ratio of 553bhp per tonne.
What that means for you and I is that the car gets up to 62mph from rest in just 2.8 seconds. Hitting 124mph is possible in 7.8 seconds – the length of time most cars take to reach 62mph – and the 720S won’t stop picking up speed until it hits 212mph.
Only the crazy would exploit that kind of power without the ability to stop just as forcefully. Fortunately, Surrey-based McLaren haven’t cut corners in this regard. The 720S’ carbon ceramic brakes capable of slowing the car from 124mph to a total halt in 4.6 seconds with a stopping distance of just 117 metres.
The 720S represents the first car in McLaren’s second generation Super Series, which “personifies the blend of extreme performance, crafted luxury and unparalleled driver involvement that is the McLaren heartland”.
This is according to McLaren Automotive CEO Mike Flewitt, who added: “This is the first time we have replaced a product family and the new 720S is absolutely true to McLaren’s pioneering spirit in being a revolutionary leap forwards, both for our brand and the supercar segment.”
McLaren retailers are accepting orders for the 720S now, with initial customers set to receive their car in May.
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