McLaren will pay homage to founder Bruce McLaren at the 2023 Monterey Car Week, celebrating his bold vision and its greatest moments since the company’s formation in England in 1963 – sixty years ago. McLaren Automotive will also be looking to the future with the North American debut of the new McLaren 750S Spider supercar and delivery of the first customer Solus GT hypercar at The Quail, A Motorsports Gathering. Both will be showcased during a 12:00pm press conference with McLaren CEO, Michael Leiters.

The McLaren 750S features a 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 engine, which produces 740bhp and torque of 590lb-ft. Combined with new lightweight elements, the power-to-weight ratio is 579bhp-per-tonne – an impressive 22bhp-per-tonne greater than its closest competitor. With more power and less weight (66lbs DIN) than the 720S it replaces, the new 750S is capable of 0-60mph in 2.7 seconds and 0-124mph in 7.2 seconds. At its lightest dry weight of just 2,815lbs, the 750S is a remarkable 425lbs lighter than its closest competitor. Its outstanding dynamic capabilities are further unlocked by a new version of McLaren’s Proactive Chassis Control linked-hydraulic suspension, PCC III.

Also featured at The Quail will be the first customer example of the hypercar that ‘stole the show’ last year – the ultimate expression of McLaren’s pioneering spirit – the Solus GT.

Leaping out of the virtual world and into reality, the Solus GT is a track-only development of a futuristic concept featured in the Gran Turismo SPORT video game. Just 25 customer cars will be built, all of which have been sold. The Solus GT is powered by a naturally aspirated 5.2-liter V10 engine that revs in excess of 10,000rpm and is mated to a bespoke seven-speed sequential transmission, resulting in 829bhp and 479lb ft of torque. Those specs, combined with its super lightweight of less than 2,205lbs, equal astonishing performance: 0-60mph in less than 2.5 seconds and a top speed of over 200mph. Wind-tunnel research combined with Computational Fluid Dynamics work results in an aerodynamic package capable of developing over 2,645lbs of downforce, reinforcing the extreme track ability of the Solus GT. 

The Solus GT was the winner of last month’s timed Hillclimb shootout at the prestigious Goodwood Festival of Speed, storming to the top of the timesheets with an incredible 45.342 second run up the 1.16-mile course.

The car on display at the Quail will be the first example delivered to one of the 25 clients. Each customer worked individually with McLaren Special Operations to tailor the specification to their own imagination. All will have bespoke finishes delivered by some of the world’s most capable craftspeople.

To celebrate 60 years of McLaren track success, the 750S Spider and Solus GT will be joined on the Quail stand by the 1970 McLaren M8D Can-Am car driven by Denny Hulme – one of the cars that helped McLaren dominate this legendary series with five consecutive Championship victories and 43 wins from 1967-1971. It was the M8D chassis that Bruce McLaren was testing when he tragically died in an accident earlier in 1970.

Behind the McLaren display at the Quail will be a stunning grid of other iconic McLaren Racing cars, including a very rare public appearance of McLaren’s very first Formula 1 car, the M2B, which was driven by Bruce McLaren in the 1966 season, the 1973 McLaren M16C IndyCar driven by Jonny Rutherford, a 1974 McLaren M23 Formula 1 car driven by McLaren’s first ever World Champion, Emerson Fittipaldi, and the iconic 1992 McLaren MP4-7A, which features the last iteration of Honda’s V12 engine that Ayrton Senna drove to victory in that season’s Monaco Grand Prix.

Completing the line up will be an example of this year’s MCL60 as driven by Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in the 2023 Formula 1 World Championship.

At the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance on Sunday August 20th, these cars and many more will feature in one of the largest gatherings of historic McLarens ever assembled. 

“This year is the 60th anniversary of McLaren being founded, and Monterey Car Week is a wonderful event to celebrate six decades of thrilling performance with our fans and customers. Alongside iconic cars from our past, we will be showcasing our current model range that strengthens the foundations for a new future of performance for McLaren.”

Nicolas Brown, President, McLaren, The Americas