Tuesday, December 31, 2019

McLaren GT

McLaren has been wowing the modern supercar scene for almost a decade with the Sports Series, the Super Series, and the Ultimate Series. Now, the British supercar maker is trying to rewrite the rules by creating their dedicated grand tourer that is more on comfort and more on manners, well almost. Say hello to the first-ever McLaren GT, a grand touring McLaren made for casual driving in mind.
2020 McLaren GT

Priced at around 163,000 Pounds unless some optional extras from the pricelist will hike it further, the new McLaren GT is a serious super grand tourer that is all about refinement on the road rather than being a racy supercar with some F1 knowhow involved underneath it. 

Of course, most McLaren people said that they've already made a grand tourer in the form of the 570GT but the new GT serves as the replacement for the 570GT, and judging by the customer feedback, the McLaren GT is taking shape with its perfect balance of style and performance suitable for the gentleman driver rather than the average speedo boy in the neighborhood.

Beginning with the styling, the exterior of the McLaren GT can be easily confused with the Ferrari F430 because the front looks like it of course, whereas the back of it is nothing much to say for sure. Despite that, the GT's styling fits rather well for its grand tourer status as well as the well-crafted interior and some luggage space suitable for the lifestyles of the rich and famous.

The McLaren GT is separate from every other McLaren supercar because it uses its own monocoque body structure developed specifically for this car. Not only a hundred kilograms lighter than its closest rival but it can accommodate up to 570 litres of boot space on both sides. Under the hood, the McLaren GT uses a specially-made 4.0L V8 Twin Turbo engine producing 620PS of power and 630Nm of torque. Mated to a 7-speed SSG transmission, it can do 0-60mph in 3.2 seconds and a top speed of 203mph. Not as fast as a Ferrari 812 but this is surprisingly quick for grand tourer standards.

Although the dynamics are focused solely on comfort in mind because the suspension, steering, and brakes are made specifically for this car, that doesn't stop drivers from taking it to a track like every Super Grand Tourer does because why not? Not only it can enjoy some leisure trips on the road but it can also do some laps on track even though it wasn't made to do so. It may be a grand tourer but it's still a McLaren and you'll have plenty of reasons to fall in love with it.

It's easy to fall in love with the first-ever McLaren GT from start to finish because while it wasn't quick enough to beat any supercar on track, it's worth stimulating to drive on the open roads. McLaren really pulled off the grand touring stint after the 570GT experience years ago and now, we're getting jealous to have one.

Photo: McLaren Automotive

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