McLaren 720s If we were standing together on an empty stretch of highway just before sunrise, and you asked me to point out one car that truly feels like it bends the laws of physics, I’d take a slow breath, smile, and gesture toward the McLaren 720s. Not because it’s loud or flashy, and not because it tries to be the star of every Instagram reel, but because few machines in the modern supercar world manage to blend science, emotion, and sheer insanity so effortlessly. The 720s isn’t just fast — it feels like speed in its purest, most distilled form.
| Category | Specification |
|---|---|
| Model | McLaren 720s |
| Engine | 4.0-litre Twin-Turbo V8 |
| Power | 710 hp (720 PS) |
| Torque | 770 Nm |
| Transmission | 7-speed dual-clutch automatic |
| Drivetrain | Rear-wheel drive |
| 0–100 km/h | 2.8 seconds |
| 0–200 km/h | 7.8 seconds |
| Top Speed | 341 km/h |
| Chassis | Carbon-fibre Monocage II |
| Suspension | Proactive Chassis Control II (hydraulically linked dampers) |
| Brakes | Carbon-ceramic |
| Kerb Weight | Around 1419 kg |
| Variants | Base 720s, 720s Performance, 720s Luxury |
| Seating | 2-seater supercar |
| Wheels | 19/20-inch alloy setup |
| Safety | Airbags, stability control, carbon tub rigidity |
| Fuel Economy | 7–8 km/l (combined real-world estimate) |
And yet, what makes the McLaren 720s truly unforgettable isn’t how quickly it disappears down a straight line. It’s the way it talks to you. The way it wraps itself around your senses. The way it makes every drive — even a slow one — feel like you’re watching a private preview of the future. Most supercars are loud statements. The McLaren 720s is a revelation.
Design: A Shape Formed by the Wind Itself
Look at the McLaren 720s from any angle and the first thing that hits you is how natural it appears, almost like it wasn’t designed but grown. The lines aren’t just curves; they’re conversations between air and carbon fibre. McLaren famously talks about “shrink-wrapping” its cars around their mechanical components, and with the 720s that philosophy feels more alive than ever.
The front fascia looks like something a deep-sea creature might use to navigate dark waters — wide eye-shaped air intakes house not just headlamps but channels that direct air straight through the body. There’s a strange beauty in it, like art born from turbulence. Run your fingers along the side of the car and you won’t find traditional side intakes. Instead, the entire body acts as an integrated aerodynamic shell, pushing air exactly where it needs to go. It gives the 720s a clean, sculpted appearance unlike anything else on the road.
From the rear, the car looks like a jet fighter that decided four wheels were enough. The thin LED tail lamps stretch across the back like strokes of neon light, flanking the central exhausts that spit out a sound equal parts metallic thunder and sharp crackle. The active rear wing has a mind of its own, rising and tilting as though it’s adjusting for atmospheric conditions on some alien planet.
Park a McLaren 720s next to almost any other supercar and you’ll notice the difference instantly. Others look aggressive. The 720s looks alive.
Interior: Futuristic Minimalism with a Human Touch
Swing open the signature butterfly doors and the cabin greets you with a mix of modern performance engineering and artistic restraint. Seating yourself inside the McLaren 720s feels less like entering a car and more like stepping into a cockpit designed for a mission — everything flows around you, angled toward your reach.
The dashboard is low and sleek, offering a panoramic view of the road that feels more like wearing a VR headset than sitting inside a machine. McLaren keeps things beautifully simple: a central touchscreen, a clean instrument cluster that flips down into a minimal display for track mode, and air vents shaped like sculpted blades.
What surprises most people is the comfort. The seats hug you like a firm handshake — supportive but never harsh. The leather feels premium without being showy. The carbon-fibre elements feel purposeful, not decorative. Even the stitching follows aerodynamic lines, like the designers couldn’t resist extending the exterior airflow theme indoors.
The cabin of the McLaren 720s is futuristic without being cold. It’s stylish without being dramatic. It feels like a sports science lab that also happens to smell like high-grade leather.
Features and Tech: The Subtle, Intelligent Kind
The 720s isn’t a car that floods you with screens or distracting gimmicks. Instead, McLaren focuses on intelligent tech — the type that improves the drive without dominating your experience.
The infotainment system, while minimal, is responsive and clear. The digital driver display transforms dramatically when you switch modes, collapsing into a slim strip of essential information when you enter Track mode, almost like a fighter jet visor lowering into place. The camera system, including a 360-degree view, helps tame the wide hips of the car in urban environments.
Active aerodynamics play a silent but essential role. The car constantly reads the road, throttle position, steering input, and even brake pressure. The rear wing adjusts in fractions of a second, helping the car stay planted without you ever noticing. It feels like invisible hands steadying the machine.
But the real magic lies in the hydraulically linked suspension — a McLaren signature that replaces traditional anti-roll bars with fluid channels. This allows the McLaren 720s to glide over imperfect roads like silk stretched over steel. It gives you comfort softer than most sports sedans yet cornering precision that feels telepathic.
Tech in the 720s doesn’t announce itself. It simply works.
The Engine: A Twin-Turbo V8 That Feels Like Compressed Lightning
Breathe on the accelerator, and you’ll understand why the McLaren 720s has such a fearsome reputation. The 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 doesn’t just deliver its power — it erupts. The moment boost kicks in, the car feels like it’s folded the world beneath it. The surge is relentless, almost surreal, like the physics engine of a video game struggling to keep up.
Yet it never feels brutal. The way the engine builds power is smooth, controlled, and frighteningly linear. Many supercars punch you in the chest; the 720s, instead, stretches the horizon and pulls you toward it. You don’t feel the boost as much as you feel distance disappearing.
The exhaust note isn’t theatrical like an Italian V12, but it has a metallic rasp that sounds engineered for performance rather than attention. There’s a raw sophistication to it — a motorsport tone polished for the street.
At speed, the McLaren 720s feels like a different class of machine entirely. It stays calm, composed, and confident even as the landscape blurs into streaks. You don’t realise how fast you’re going until you look down and think, “That can’t be right.”
Driving Dynamics: Sharp, Precise, and Almost Psychic
If the engine is lightning, the handling is the thunder that follows. The McLaren 720s drives like it has a direct hotline to your brain. You think, it moves. You breathe, it reacts.
The steering is beautifully weighted — light enough for city driving, but with that signature McLaren clarity that lets you feel the texture of the road through your palms. It’s not exaggerated or overly dramatic. Instead, it’s honest and shockingly precise. Turn the wheel even slightly, and the car slips into the arc with elegance.
Mid-corner behaviour is where the 720s truly shines. The carbon tub keeps the body rigid, allowing the suspension to do the fine work of adjusting every millisecond. There’s no roll, no drama, just pure balance. The car rotates effortlessly, yet always feels secure.