These increased outputs are matched by an obsessive
reduction in weight. Every component was put under the
microscope during the car’s development: ‘We’ve revised
all the hydraulic pipework to reduce the amount of fluid
by 1.24kg,’ reveals engineer Marcus Wade. In isolation
that sounds like an engineer who needs to get out more,
but combined with a similarly forensic examination of
everything, it creates a lighter, more responsive supercar.
‘It’s about looking at the minutest detail to make things
even better,’ adds Wade. No stone was left unturned: the
already lightweight carbon-ceramic brakes were revised to
lose two kilos; the suspension’s double wishbones are an
incredible 16kg lighter. So despite being longer, wider and
more comfortable than the outgoing 650S, the new 720S
is an impressive 18kg lighter overall. That means the new
McLaren isn’t just the most powerful supercar in its class –
at 1419kg, it’s also the lightest..
But the biggest leap of all, in terms of control, is the new
Proactive Chassis
Control II, with a new electronic brain for the suspension.
This is the result of a five-year project initiated by McLaren
and carried out by researchers at Cambridge University.
A raft of sensors send a constant stream of information
to a central control unit, allowing it to continuously
adapt to every driving condition and road surface. It’s an
intelligent system, spooky in its complexity, impossible to
understand if you don’t have a PhD; but the result for the
driver is a widening out of the Super Series’ already broad
abilities. From a bumpy back road to a highway to a grand
prix circuit, it offers an unmatched combination of sharp
dynamics and a compliant ride.
All these facts and figures might make you think that
science has triumphed in the 720S, and everything about this
car can be measured with a slide rule. But that’s categorically
not the case: while McLaren might not stray into the
supernatural, it certainly explores that less tangible arena of
human nature – specifically the emotions that we feel when
we drive.
“The engine is at the heart of a supercar,” explains Head of
Powertrain, Michele Scotti. “But it needs to deliver a whole,
entertaining engagement that is not just a brutal, physical
force. It needs to go beyond a pure performance figure.”
Which means accelerating from 0-124mph in just 7.8sec
isn’t enough in itself: it must also feel amazing. Scotti tells
us the first 720S he drove accelerated so fast from second to
fourth gear that he felt as if he was driving ‘a time machine’.
Which doesn’t sound very scientific.
So perhaps the most bewitching spell cast by the 720S
is the way it makes you feel, from the moment you step
through those doors to the sound of the engine to the
breathtaking acceleration. It’s the sensations that really
matter, sensations that flow across the cabin, through
the driver’s seat, out of the steering wheel and into your
fingertips. This car is all about the thrill – which is surely
closer to magic than science? As Arthur C. Clarke also said,
“The only way of discovering the limits of the possible is to
venture a little way past them into the impossible.”
Which really doesn’t make any sense, but we all know
exactly what he means.
For further information, videos and specifications visit
720s.mclaren.com
All specifications correct at time of going to press.
ONE OF THE MOST distinctive features of the McLaren 720S is
what’s absent: there are no visible side vents. This gives the body a
smooth and muscular appearance. Cooling air is directed into the
engine bay down this clever channel, between the door’s ‘double skin’
OVER 40 PERCENT of the components in the 4.0-litre twin turbo V8 are new,
boosting power and torque. The engine lies at the heart of the car, so it’s fitting
that it glows in a potent, blood-red light when the ignition is switched on
86 Pindara Magazine 2017