McLaren 765LT Spider debuts as the brand’s most powerful convertible ever

Share

Tweet

Share

Share

Email

Comments

Lighter and faster than the 720S Spider.

It has been more than a year but the drop-top version of the 765LT is finally here. The 765LT Spider is now available to order, with prices in the UK starting at £310,500. As with the coupe, the Spider too will be limited to 765 units and McLaren said that the slots for 2021 production are already sold out.

Since this is a Spider, let’s start with the roof—or the lack of it. As with the 720S Spider, the electrically operated, one-piece carbon fibre Retractable Hard Top (RHT) can be lowered or raised in just 11 seconds and can be operated at speeds of up to 50 km/h (31 mph). There’s also a powered rear window that can be lowered even when the roof is up to better listen to that 4.0L V8 biturbo motor behind.

Thanks to the stiffer MonoCage II-S carbon fibre tub, no extra bracing is required for it nor any reinforcement for the windscreen surround. Which means the weight difference between coupe and Spider is only 49 kg (108 lbs) — a difference similar to the difference between 720S and 720S Spider. However, at 1,388 kg (3,060 lbs) (DIN weight), the 765LT Spider is 80 kg (176 lbs) lighter than 720S Spider. The dry weight is claimed to be 1,278 kg (2,817.5 lbs), which makes the 765LT Spider 54 kg (119 lbs) lighter than the 720S Spider.

The M840T 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 motor pumps out the same 563 kW (765 metric hp) at 7,500 rpm and 800 Nm (590 lb-ft) of torque at 5,500 rpm. A 7-speed SSG drives the rear wheels. The official performance figures remain unchanged too: a 0-100 km/h (0-62 mph) in 2.8 seconds and a top speed of 330 km/h (205 mph). However, compared to the 720S Spider, the 765LT Spider is 0.1 seconds quicker and the top speed is up by 5 km/h (3 mph).