And it's lost none of the Coupés presence, either.
British supercar marque McLaren could have very easily made their new 720S Spider by taking an axe to the roof of their amazing 720S Coupé. However, rather than going the easy route in the gestation from coupe to convertible, they instead took the opportunity to set a precedent in the industry, and to do a convertible supercar like never before.
So not only is it just 4% (or 49kg) heavier than the coupe it’s based on, but thanks to an integrated rollover protection system and a revised version of the McLaren Monocage carbon-fibre construction, it doesn’t feature any additional chassis strengthening. That’s why the 720S Spider is just as potent, with the same 530kW/770Nm power output and 2.9-second century sprint time as its fabulously-fast coupé sibling.
And it features flying buttresses behind the doors. We always like free-standing bodywork.
The 720S Spider is the first new model as part of McLaren’s Track25 business plan, a £1.2-billion investment that aims to push McLaren further to the very forefront of automotive engineering & innovation, and to grow its sales considerably further than where they are today.
“The new McLaren 720S Spider offers an unparalleled blend of extreme performance, crafted luxury, driver involvement and daily usability, all with the exhilaration of open-air driving whenever required. As the most accomplished convertible supercar ever, the new Spider delivers across a remarkable spectrum of abilities to outstandingly high levels, and as lightest in class with an increase of just 49kg over the 720S Coupé, moves us even further ahead of our competition in the weight race.” — Mike Flewitt, Chief Executive Officer, McLaren Automotive
The new one-piece retractable hard top (RHT) is a brand-new design from McLaren, utilising carbon-fibre in its construction to ensure maximum rigidity with minimal weight penalty. It’s the fastest-operating roof among supercars, taking just 11-seconds to either open or close, which can be done at speeds of up to 50km/h. Being electrically-driven rather than hydraulically-driven contributes to that.
Additionally, should you want to let the day in without opening the roof, the RHT now features an electrochromic glass panel that can go from clear to tinted with the push of a button. When the car is switched off, this panel goes to its fully-tinted state automatically, as to protect the cabin from excessive heat. It does however remember what state it was in before the vehicle was shut off, so that when owners return and start it up, the roof will return to its desired state.
The McLaren 720S Spider is already on sale and open for orders in England, where it commands a heady £237,000 price tag. In Australia, we should expect to see it come in a little higher than the $490k that the 720S Coupé commands, so we’d reckon a price tag somewhere in the mid-$500k mark, with deliveries earmarked for the end of 2019.
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