Renowned worldwide for the exclusive, luxury, high-performance supercars on which it has built its reputation over the past decade, McLaren Automotive revealed another landmark model: the 765LT Spider. Complementing the 765LT 'Longtail' coupe unveiled last year - all of which are sold - the new Spider is McLaren's most powerful-ever convertible supercar and brings highest-ever levels of driver engagement to the McLaren LT experience.
Engineered in addition with the other core attributes intrinsic to any McLaren Longtail - minimised weight, track-focused dynamics and optimised aerodynamics - the McLaren 765LT Spider has all of the class-leading abilities of the coupe and also meets the LT demand for exclusivity: just 765 cars will be available globally for customer order. Carrying over the coupe's dynamic and aerodynamic DNA with no structural compromise and only a minimal 49kg weight increase - primarily from the retractable hard top and accompanying operating mechanism - the 765LT Spider weighs in at just 1,388kg (DIN weight), which is 80kg lighter than a 720S Spider and circa 100kg lighter than its closest comparable competitor.
The electrically operated, one-piece carbon fibre Retractable Hard Top (RHT) enables open-top motoring in just 11 seconds and operates at speeds of up to 50km/h, bringing the dramatic soundtrack of the quad-exit titanium exhaust system into the cabin to take driver engagement into another dimension.
With all 765 examples of the 765LT coupe sold, it's no surprise that as we publicly announce our new LT Spider, production capacity for 2021 is already filled." Mike Flewitt, Chief Executive Officer, McLaren Automotive.
Maximising the McLaren LT experience
The Longtail name became legend nearly a quarter of a century ago, when an extreme lightweight version of the Le Mans-conquering McLaren F1 GTR race car, wearing a stretched body, swept all before it in the 1997 FIA GT Championship. The principles behind that car - ultra-low weight, enhanced aerodynamics, extreme performance and absolute driver engagement - were revisited in 2015 when McLaren introduced the 675LT. The new McLaren 765LT Spider, like its predecessors, stays true to those Longtail principles, placing the driver at the very centre of the sensory, dynamic and - especially in this case - aural experience, the triple-patented Retractable Hard Top roof taking driver engagement to an ever-higher level.
Saving weight, the McLaren way
Every McLaren is designed to a philosophy of super-lightweight engineering, to the point where further reducing weight is extremely challenging. The 720S Spider from which the 765LT Spider is developed weighs just 1,468kg and boasts a better power-to-weight ratio than any of its competitors. But the Longtail ethos has always demanded relentless pursuit of lowering weight: the original F1 GTR was unthinkably light for its day, but the F1 GTR Longtail was more than 100kg lighter still. True to the LT bloodline, at 1,388kg (DIN) the new Spider shaves 80kg off the DIN weight of the 720S Spider. Whether coupe or Spider, weight matters because it lessens inertia, which in turn sharpens response to every driver input to accelerator, brakes or steering. McLaren's expertise in carbon fibre comes to the fore, not just in the MonoCage chassis but also in many bespoke body panels and components, while other super-lightweight materials such as titanium are also introduced. In addition, powertrain and chassis parts have been reworked and optimised, comfort and convenience features have been deleted and ultra-lightweight seats fitted.
Designed to deliver the highest levels of performance
The elongated silhouette which gave the original Longtail its name back in 1997 was created for a very specific purpose, and everything McLaren has designed since then has followed that philosophy of 'everything for a reason' and 'form follows function'. The 765LT Spider is the absolute example of this, with every detail of its highly complex, sculpted shape serving the cause of higher performance.
The McLaren vehicle warranty
Normal service intervals for the new McLaren 765LT Spider are one year or 15,000 km (12,400miles), whichever occurs first. McLaren's Vehicle Warranty covers the car for three years from purchase without mileage limitation, while paint surface is warranted for three years and perforation corrosion of the vehicle body for 10 years. The new LT Spider is also eligible for the McLaren Extended Warranty, which is available from time of first purchase in 12- or 24-month periods until the vehicle is 10 years old, making it possible to cover the car for up to 12 years.
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