Mclaren 720s Coupé

This is the quickest supercar we have ever tested. It also happens to be one of the most accessible and playful…

ASTUTE CAR readers may have already raised an eyebrow at that intro blurb proclaiming the 720S the quickest vehicle we’ve ever configured in our rigorous performance-testing programme. There’s a caveat, yes, and it’s this: with a 0-100 km/h time of 3,09 seconds, the rear-wheel-drive McLaren is beaten by the all-wheel-drive Audi R8 V10 Plus, which posted an astounding figure of 3,03 seconds on our test strip when we tested it in September 2016 (and it dipped below the three-second mark during Performance Shootout 2017, but that was on a grippier surface elsewhere and, for reasons of fairness and equal comparison, we’ll leave that time out of this argument).

What we mean is the McLaren leaves absolutely everything behind in-gear, by margins that may not look large on paper, but in reality are veritable gulfs. This thing is staggeringly quick. It takes just 1,31 seconds to race from 60 to 100 km/h. From there to 140 km/h? 1,62 seconds. 

But how does that feel in real life? Like this: spot a gap in traffic on a flowing country lane, gently squeeze the throttle and what was before is suddenly a speck in the rear-view mirror. The driver of a 720S is quicker than 95% of other road users on 20% throttle travel. The brand-new 4,0-litre, mid-mounted V8 barely stirs before your right foot eases off the loud pedal.

A train of five cars? You’re past them in a blink.

What happens, though, when the road ahead is clear, the surface is dry and the driver feels brave enough to use the other 80% of travel? Acceleration so ferocious, one CAR tester described it as painful. Imagine, if you will, your organs enveloping your spine while nerves in your hands prickle with sensation as the hydraulically assisted steering communicates the road’s minute surface details and your ears absorb what is (finally) a melodious McLaren V8.