A GT IN MORE THAN NAME (some text hidden) SECTIONED_new_mclarengt_2023

By Jonathan Crouch

Introductionword count: 30

The McLaren GT was a crucial model for the Woking maker, but it's far more of a McLaren than a GT. If you want one, you'll be fine with that.

Modelsword count: 2

(2dr coupe)

Historyword count: 257

Can a McLaren ever be a proper GT - you know, like a Bentley Continental GT, an Aston Martin DB11 or a Ferrari Roma? Well the McLaren GT was arguably about as close to being a Grand Tourer as any pure sports car model from the Working brand is likely to get. It was aimed at customers who liked the company's old 570GT but wanted something slightly more practical and luxurious - and maybe even a bit faster. The McLaren GT was launched in 2019, then updated three years on. The '22 model year changes were minor - a little extra refinement, lighter dihedral doors and some rationalised trim options. Otherwise, things were much as before. Whereas this model's 570GT predecessor was merely an adapted Sport Series model with a bespoke glass hatch and altered suspension, this GT was much more its own car. It had its own unique bodywork, its own specification of carbonfibre monocell - and even its own version of the 4.0-litre V8 engine used in the 750S. Plus the brakes, steering, stability system and the tyres were all bespoke-tuned for this model. Despite all this effort, the GT was a model that became a little forgotten in the McLaren line-up amidst all the hype surrounding much pricier designs from the brand in this period like the 765 LT and the V6 hybrid Artura. But it was arguably more significant than either of those two cars for Woking's bottom line. The GT sold until early 2024, when it was replaced by the McLaren GTS.

What You Getword count: 422

You'd know this GT as McLaren at first glance - but perhaps a slightly less aggressive-looking one that in this case was only available as a coupe. It's based around a stretched version of the brand's usual 'Sport Series Monocell' chassis that delivers a 114mm body length increase over the 750S in order to provide for this model's required extra boot space. Nothing in the design of the GT is without purpose - everything is for a reason. Invisible to the eye, the airflow is managed, manipulated and channelled around, across and through the car by exact shapes, creases, curves and ducts in the bodywork. Get behind the wheel and you'll find the usual McLaren driving position, legs outstretched and arms bent, with the brake pedal set perfectly and a thin-rimmed race-style steering wheel cleansed of the usual buttons. The finishing surrounding all of this is quite opulent, but despite that, your first impressions here aren't really of any kind of GT: this is clearly the cockpit of a super-sports car, even though you sit a couple of inches higher than you would in other McLaren models. A fractional 5mm wheelbase increase over the 750S (and the old 570GT) doesn't make much difference to cabin space. So put all the Grand Tourer marketing out of your mind and instead revel in the fact that all the essential ingredients for focused, high-performance driving are here, including intuitively located controls and excellent forward visibility past slim windscreen pillars. There's also a near-perfect seating position, unless you object to the fact that the car's header rail is rather close to your eyeline. There's a 12.3-inch screen for the instruments and a 7-inch portrait-shaped monitor for the infotainment functions. As usual with this maker's sports cars, there are only two seats - in a class where many rivals are 2+2s with tiny but useful rear pews. Let's finish with a look at boot capacity accessed by a power-operated soft-close rear tailgate. Once it's raised, there's 420-litres of space available, thanks to the way the exhaust system was reconfigured and the engine lowered. That capacity's pretty impressive for a McLaren, 200-litres more than the old 570GT and also more than something conventional like, say, a Mercedes-AMG CLA 45 Shooting Brake. There's also a further storage space in the nose. Raise the bonnet and the frunk space revealed is actually larger than the tapered nose leads you to expect, though it's rated at just 150-litres in size: the brand claims that two small overnight bags would fit there.

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