Spoilt for choice with bespoke McLaren offerings

MCLAREN Automotive has been doing a fine job these past few years rolling out some pretty special hand-built cars. The luxury high-performance sports and super cars may not be the obvious first choice for a woman, but that’s likely to change for those who get to experience them.

‘When you’re already spending half a million dollars on a set of wheels, a bit extra to stamp your personal preferences on it is typically a small price to pay.’

Provided driver and passenger have the glute, thigh and calf muscle strength to get in and out of them – they’re pretty close to the ground – it doesn’t take long to get an understanding of how well put-together these vehicles are. Everything in them is there for a reason which, ultimately, is to provide the driver with pure automotive pleasure. And that applies across the three product lines the brand builds, from its most accessible Sports Series range to the Super Series, right up to the Ultimate Series.

Madam Wheels has had the pleasure of road testing the the Super Series 570S Spider which, along with the McLaren Senna, was rolled out last year. This year, McLaren gave us the 600LT, which has been dubbed the most extreme, road-legal set of wheels yet produced in the brand’s Sports Series lineup. LT references the “Longtail”which harks back to McLaren race cars featuring elongated bodywork which reduced drag and increased downforce. Perfect for the race track, probably not so relevant for those looking for a day-to-day drive.

But people buy these cars for all sorts of reasons, and the lucky ones get to detail their own. After all, when you’re already spending half a million dollars on a set of wheels, a bit extra to stamp your personal preferences on it is typically a small price to pay. Hence the popularity of bespoke detail offerings from the best brands around. 

The McLaren Special Operations (MSO) division hand-holds people through the minutiae of that process, offering limitless possibilities to fulfil customers’ visions.

Two new design themes, for example, have been bestowed on the highly acclaimed McLaren 720S as part of bespoke commission requested of MSO. The so-called Track and Pacific themes were showcased at last year’s Geneva International Motor Show, featuring unique paintwork as well as satin and tinted carbon fibre finishes. The special treatment celebrated the design of the McLaren 720S, which took out “Best of the best” accolades at this year’s Red Dot Design Awards, one of the world’s largest and most important design competitions. 

The Pacific Theme, commissioned out of McLaren Glasgow, focuses on the technical luxury of the 720S, while our pick of the pair, the Track Theme, commissioned by McLaren Manchester, features an MSO Bespoke exterior paint called Anniversary White inspired by the championship-winning McLaren Formula 1 cars of the 1980s. It also includes plenty of that outstanding McLaren Orange throughout the car.

There’s a lot to love about these cars, and McLaren’s not done yet. More broadly, the company recently outlined its “Track25” business plan which will see it tip £1.2 billion ($A2.1b) into research and development to produce 18 new cars or derivatives by the end of 2025.

Ladies, it looks we’re going to be spoilt for choice.