The McLaren 765LT Wants To Crush Porsche's 911 GT2 RS
After locking its 720S in the gym for some time with a hefty quantity of steroids, McLaren is ready to show the world the results. What you’re looking at here is the McLaren 765LT, which hits all the usual ‘Longtail’ targets - more power, bigger aero, less weight and beefier suspension.
Woking’s Ricardo-built M840T 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 of the 720S is retained, but here, it’s good for 755bhp (765PS, hence the car’s name) at 7500rpm and 590lb ft at 5500. McLaren hasn’t just fiddled with the ECU to achieve this - the 765LT gets new forged aluminium pistons, a ‘three-layer’ head gasket pinched from the McLaren Senna and carbon-coated valvetrain followers.
The worked over V8 sits on stiffer mounts and is hooked up to a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox. The transmission has tweaked ratios and a new ‘limit downshift’ function. With this, if you demand a downshift that’d over-rev the engine, instead of outright refusing, the 765LT will simply wait until the speed has decreased sufficiently before dropping in your requested cog.
In total, McLaren’s engineers have managed to shed 80kg from the 720S to create this car. Notable weight-saving areas include forged wheels with titanium bolts (-22kg), carbonfibre racing seats (-18kg), a titanium exhaust system (-3.8kg), a lithium-ion battery (-3g) and - optionally - carbonfibre front wings (-1.2kg). The lightweighting means the 765LT tips the scales at 1339kg (DIN), compared to 1470kg for a Porsche 911 GT2 RS. Not bad.
More power and less weight means that the 765LT is outrageously fast. The 0-62mph time of the 720S has been improved upon by a tenth to 2.8 seconds, while the 0-124mph benchmark of 7.8 seconds has fallen to 7.2. Good luck trying launch control without blurting out many expletives.
The LT is about more than just organ-compacting straight-line pace, though. It’ll be much quicker through the corners too, thanks in part to the all-carbonfibre aero package. The 765 gains a new front splitter, side skirts, redesigned bumpers and a new diffuser. The latter element is good for a 25 per cent downforce increase on its own, and it works together with a three-position active rear wing which - as with the part on the old 675LT - acts as an air brake too.
Like the 720S, the 765LT has hydraulically-linked dampers. Here, the springs and dampers are bespoke. The front end meanwhile has a slightly wider track width and is 5mm lower. Braking is sorted by carbon ceramic discs with Senna discs and LT-specific pads, while on the tyre front, McLaren has wrapped those lovely forged wheels with bespoke Pirelli P Zero Trofeo Rs.
The LT’s angrier bodywork can be finished in 17 different hues, with a couple of options - Nardo Orange and Smoked White - reserved for this car alone. Inside, you’ll find lashings of Alcantara and an exposed carbonfibre floor.
Want one? We don’t know how much it’ll be yet, but to give you an idea of how it might be priced, a 720S with the Track Pack is £237,000. Production will be limited to 765 units.
Growing up on a diet of World Rally Championship highlights and lengthy Gran Turismo 2 sessions, a life in cars was as good as inevitable for Matt.
Comments
Unbelievable car. Absolutely stunning.
The 4 pipe is cool but I think it would’ve looked better as a 3 pipe or something along the 600LT’s exhaust.
Still an absolutely stunning car
Looks amazing, but I can’t get over how the name looks like a typo of the older one.
Aventador SVJ>this and 488 Pista, cant choose between them>GT2 RS
The regular 720s would wipe the floor with the SVJ
It’s also 2.5 seconds a lap faster than the 720s around a ‘ designated test track ‘ it will be munching at the heels of a senna on track.
-3g from the battery. A little less than your average fart then
as soon as that wing goes up the whole rear end just turns into vents. That’s pretty cool.