The Ultimate McLaren for the Gumball 3000 Rally

The Gumball 3000 supercar journey, which will celebrate its 25th anniversary this year, is going big by bringing the event to ASEAN for the first time. The 3,000-mile route will cover five countries: Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore. With challenging roads ahead, the mega-rich are hesitant to register their megacars and hypercars, opting for more common supercars instead.

Hence, in the list of participants with McLaren cars, there are no Elva, Senna, or P1 models, nor any race car variants like the Senna GTR from previous years. Instead, they’ve chosen the 765LT, a limited-edition car that offers both speed and exclusivity.

While only three McLarens are set to join, a rather dull number compared to previous Gumball 3000 events, the presence of the 765LT models adds diversity to the fleet of Ferraris, Lamborghinis, and Porsches expected to attend.

The McLaren 765LT is not a stranger to Vietnamese enthusiasts, with an estimated five units already in the country, including four coupes and one convertible. Globally, McLaren produced only 765 units of each body style, clearly marking each car with its unique production number, unlike Lamborghini’s non-specific numbering.

The McLaren 765LT is not just a supercar for the streets; it’s designed to thrill its owners on the racetrack as well. Compared to the McLaren 720S, the 765LT boasts noticeable exterior changes and is 80 kg lighter thanks to extensive use of advanced carbon fiber components, titanium exhausts, and thinner glass.

The car features a full carbon fiber front bumper and side skirts, giving it a menacing, race-inspired look. With four round tailpipes, the McLaren 765LT has the most exhaust tips of any current McLaren model, promising an exhilarating soundtrack to match its performance.

Step inside the limited-edition McLaren 765LT, and you’re greeted by a cabin that’s predominantly wrapped in carbon fiber and black Alcantara leather. To achieve the ideal weight of 1,229 kg, McLaren removed standard equipment like audio speakers and air conditioning from the 765LT. However, Vietnamese customers can request to have these features reinstalled without incurring additional costs.

Following McLaren’s traditional naming convention, the number 765 indicates the limited production volume of this supercar. The letters “LT” stand for Long Tail, a nod to the car’s drag racing prowess. The McLaren 765LT is powered by the familiar V8, 4.0-liter, twin-turbocharged engine found in the 720S, but with a twist. McLaren’s engineers have worked their magic to extract 755 horsepower, an increase of 45 horsepower over the 720S.

Additionally, the 765LT delivers a peak torque of 800 Nm, an improvement of 30 Nm over the 720S, which holds multiple records in drag racing over 400m and 800m distances. This potent powertrain is mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission, which has been fine-tuned for faster shifts, now up to 15% quicker than the 720S.

The most impressive difference between the McLaren 765LT Spider and its Coupe sibling is the retractable hardtop. It takes just 11 seconds to open or close the roof, similar to the 720S Spider. However, the extensive use of carbon fiber in the Spider’s construction results in a weight reduction of 80 kg compared to the standard model, making it only 50 kg heavier than the Coupe.