No aftermarket tuning required. McLaren Customer Racing is now offering an unrestricted version of its 720S GT3 race car for track use only. Buyer beware, it has not been homologated for any racing class or championship so while tuning isn’t required, you’re probably going to want to modify it if you are planning to race it.
The car was designed in-house by McLaren’s GT performance team. It has a lightweight but strong carbon fiber MonoCage II chassis, which underpins the entire 720 series range. It has the same 4.0-liter bi-turbo V8 engine as the rest of the 720s as well. Fitted with track-ready components, engineers are able to get 710 brake horsepower out of the power plant, and an additional 30 brake horsepower as part of a boost function.
“Due to GT3 balance of performance requirements, the 720S GT3 car has to run with a considerably reduced power output than the road-going 720S Spider and Coupe variants,” said Ian Morgan, Director of Motorsport, McLaren Automotive. “The brief for the GT3X project was to unleash the full potential of the 720S GT3 car using a massively increased power output to fully exploit the aerodynamics and chassis dynamics of the car. Additionally, the car is now able to carry passengers for the first time, thanks to the re-design of a new bespoke roll-cage and passenger seat installation. Brake cooling has also been improved to cope with the additional demands of increased speed and the mass of a passenger.
“The 720S GT3X now offers a unique opportunity to experience a fully-fledged GT3 car. The lap time is significantly reduced from the GT3 benchmark through both the huge standard power increase and the additional 30bhp from the push-to-pass button. The end result is a car that offers a truly unique experience.”
It’s about the same weight as a Mazda MX-5 Miata, tipping the scales a 2,668 pounds. Still, that’s about 440 pounds lighter than the 720S on which the racing model is based. Weight savings can be attributed to the lack of creature comforts in the cabin. A carbon fibre and Kevlar FIA-approved race seat hugs the driver and weighs just 22 pounds.
McLaren has finished the car in an MSO Carbon Black paint job that features a McLaren Orange pinstripe. The car rides on gloss black center-locking wheel rims, while an ‘X’ graphic stretches across the upper canopy.
The car’s ergonomically-designed race steering wheel is fitted with all key functions via rotary switches and buttons. There’s a six-point harness and revised roll cage to make the car track compliant.
Each buyer will receive dedicated technical support for their car. This program is carried out by the customer support engineers from the in-house McLaren Customer Racing division.
The 720S GT3 has a price tag of over $500,000 (based on 2018 pricing) and can be ordered through a McLaren Motorsport Retailer: McLaren Beverly Hills, McLaren Houston, McLaren Newport Beach, McLaren Philadelphia, McLaren San Francisco, and McLaren Toronto.
