Launching a lightweight, high- performance variant of a supercar in the midst of a pandemic might not seem like opportune timing, but McLaren Automotive is finding the opposite with its 765LT.
Despite the 765LT not having a glitzy Geneva auto show introduction — McLaren, like other automakers, had to scramble to host an online reveal after the show was canceled — interest in the 765LT was strong throughout 2020 and the automaker’s newest model is sold out.
The coupe’s name provides two indicators as to why. The British exotic brand will build just 765 cars, while “LT” refers to Longtail. The nomenclature harks back to McLaren’s F1 GTR Longtail race car that ran in the 1997 FIA GT Championship and 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The 765LT, based on the 720S coupe, is McLaren’s fifth LT production model.
The 675LT coupe launched in 2015 and a 675LT convertible followed in 2016. In 2018, McLaren added the 600LT coupe, and a convertible version joined in 2019.
As with prior LTs, McLaren focused on two engineering goals with the 765LT: more performance and less weight.
“I think the reason 765LT has not been affected is that everybody already understands what an LT is,” CEO Mike Flewitt told Automotive News last month. “If we say we’re launching a new car and it’s an LT version of the 720S, people understand that. We are communicating something that people fundamentally understand and expect from McLaren.”
The 765LT is powered by a twin-turbo V-8 engine with 755 hp and 590 pound-feet of torque, compared with 710 hp and 568 pound-feet of torque found in the 720S.
A titanium exhaust system, a thinner windshield and thinner side window glass helped bring the 765LT’s weight down to 2,952 pounds, 176 pounds lighter than the 720S.
The use of carbon fiber for aerodynamic components such as the front splitter, front bumper, side skirts, front floor, rear bumper, rear diffuser and rear spoiler also helped save weight.
The 765LT starts at $363,500, and the 720S coupe starts at $303,650. Both prices include shipping. Deliveries began in November and will run through the middle of 2021, Flewitt said.
Given the rollout of previous LT models, a 765LT convertible variant should follow with a likely 2021 debut.
For a brand such as McLaren with a small lineup of supercars, the 765LT not only represents a new model but is further proof that the automaker has a budding subbrand with the LT variants.
“The LT has definitely been one of the real successes of what we’ve done in terms of creating a subbrand within McLaren that our customers understand, expect and look forward to,” Flewitt said. “We have people who literally collect the LT models. And every one of them has, frankly, been absolutely best in class in terms of the way it drives. We’ve set ourselves a precedent here and we need to keep delivering against it.”
Flewitt said that since 765LT demand exceeded supply, McLaren is distributing the models in proportion of its global sales. About 250 to 300 cars will end up in the U.S. Demand was so brisk that McLaren has sold a 765LT from its media fleet, a spokesman noted.
“We actually try to be fair and say, ‘Hey, if the U.S. is taking 35 percent of our global market, we’ll give them 35 percent of the allocation for LTs,’ ” Flewitt said.
“It is a market that likes and appreciates the LT. The demand has been great. The LTs do resonate.”