For McLaren, usability and form-meets-function go hand-in-hand in everything they do. For our latest automotive deep dive, we got a closer look and a ton of seat time in its latest example of the aforementioned characteristics: the 2024 McLaren 750S.
The 750S stands as the brand’s flagship vehicle of consumer supercars – ultimately a replacement for the 765LT. While numerically it’s “down” from its predecessor, the 750S does take attributes and components from the 765LT while optimizing and refining the 720S platform. In fact, McLaren states 30 percent of the vehicle is new or changed from it, prioritizing lightweight construction and acceleration to produce some serious numbers in a familiar package. Power stands at 740 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque from the delightful twin-turbocharged 4.0L V8 petrol engine – no hybrid electric powertrain here. This makes the 750S slightly down in horsepower from the 765LT, but matches its torque figure and 0-60 time, and surprisingly topping its predecessor’s top speed of 205 mph at 206. Its carbon fiber/aluminum lightweight chassis makes it 2,815 lb. at its driest, also supporting its performance abilities.
While we were in Las Vegas for its press drive, the first thing we noticed in our Tokyo Cyan unit was the svelte design of everything – it’s impressive that the familiar curves and lines of McLaren vehicles have now become ubiquitous with the brand. The ‘eye socket’ headlights retain their stylish functionality of lighting and air intake, while the new front bumper employs a cleaner arrangement across its face from both the 720S and the 765LT. At the rear, the wing adopts an extra large surface area that’s effective in all three of its deployment stages: low-drag down, downforce mid, and straight up to the sky for airbrake. We also gravitated towards the large central-exit exhaust that’s both new and tuned for noise and engagement as you let off the throttle in Sport mode.
Exterior details were really impressive as well, such as the glazed flying buttresses on our Spider model. When we asked about the feature, our McLaren representative stated the striking design was highly functional for rear-view visibility – a feature we put to the test as we drove alongside other 750Ses in our group on the public roads. And speaking of Spider, we couldn’t decide which looked and sounded better: retractable hard top and windows up with the rear engine window down, or everything down with the sun beating down on us. Nevertheless, we appreciated the Spider to have these options, even if it did mean the extra 108 lbs. of added weight to the coupé.
Eddie Eng/Hypedrive
Eddie Eng/Hypedrive
Eddie Eng/Hypedrive
Eddie Eng/Hypedrive
Eddie Eng/Hypedrive
Eddie Eng/Hypedrive
Inside, the cabin is refined to make everything much more user friendly. McLaren stated all the touch points have been optimized, from the handling and mode selector switches on top of the gauge cluster, to repositioning non-essential switches – mirror adjustment, axle-lift, even the headlight toggle – away from your hands on the steering wheel. Our example had the 10-way electric “comfort” seats that certainly made getting into the proper driving position a cinch, however we couldn’t help but fall in love with both the Alcantara-lined bucket seats and the “Senna” CF shell seats our fleet companions had in theirs. Regardless, spending six hours in the 750S didn’t tire us out at all and only encouraged us to drive more and more, thanks to the comfortable interior.
The McLaren 750S is available now in both coupé and Spider configurations, starting at $324,000 and $345,000 USD respectively.
