McLAREN 720S GT3X

McLaren upgrades its GT3 race car to let loose an unhinged track-day weapon

- JAMES DISDALE

So what exactly is the McLaren 720S GT3X? One of the fastest track-day weapons ever made? A race car that can’t be raced? A rich person’s plaything? The truth is that it’s all of these things. And it’s also one of the most sensational four-wheeled experiences that (quite a lot of) money can buy.

You’re likely to have already seen and read quite a bit about this mighty Macca, but it’s probably worth a quick recap. Essentially, it’s a GT3 racer uncorked; one that dispenses with the closely fought slicks-and wings-sports-car category’s ‘balance of performance’ power cap of around 500bhp and turns up the wick to 710bhp – or 740bhp if you’re brave enough for the brief squirts of push-to-pass power injection.

To achieve this, the GT3 engine is ditched and replaced by McLaren’s familiar M840T twin-turbocharged 4.0-litre V8, but a version that’s handbuilt with stronger pistons, revised heads, a titanium exhaust and electronic mapping that’s massaged to favour top-end frenzy at the expense of low-rev muscle.

It’s mated to a six-speed Xtrac paddle-shift gearbox that drives the rear wheels through a 12-stage electronic traction control system.

The rest of the car is almost pure GT3, with the same carbonfibre tub and exterior panels, impressive-looking aerodynamic package and suspension set-up. To all intents and purposes, it’s a bona fide race car, albeit one that, due to its outrageous power boost, is ineligible to race.