Summary
The McLaren 720S was mid-engined supercar available as both a coupé and convertible (720S Spider). The 720S formed the ‘middle tier’ of the McLaren range, knows as the Super Series. The coupé model was launched at the 2017 Geneva motor show, with the Spider following in late 2018.
The 720S, like all McLaren models, was built at McLaren’s production facility in Woking, Surrey, in a new factory next door to the McLaren Formula One team’s base.
There is a higher-performance model called the 765LT, which is not covered here. We have a separate page for this model.
The McLaren 720S and 720S Spider received unanimously positive reviews from the UK motoring media (which is not all that surprising, really). There was plenty praise for both its incredible performance and everyday usability.
As of May 2024, the McLaren 720S holds a Used Car Expert Rating of D, with a score of 55%. Despite excellent review scores from motoring journalists, its overall rating is inevitably dragged down by high running costs and poor emissions levels.
- McLaren 765LT (2020 onwards) – Expert Rating
- More McLaren Expert Ratings, new car reviews, news and features
Key specifications
Body style: coupe / convertible
Engine: petrol
Price when new: From £218,020
Launched: Spring 2017
Last updated: Summer 2020
Discontinued: 2022
Image gallery
Media reviews
Reviews, road tests and comparisons from across the UK automotive media. Click any of the boxes to view.
The Car Expert
Model reviewed: 720S Spider
“The British-built McLaren 720S Spider is an ultra-focused and highly polished supercar that deserves a place among the greats from anywhere in the world.”
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Auto Express
Model reviewed: 720S coupé
Score: 10 / 10
“The McLaren 720S takes on the Ferrari 488 – with more power, greater performance and a dash of practicality.”
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Model reviewed: 720S Spider
Score: 9 / 10
“There are few cars on the road that are as savagely quick as a McLaren 720S. The drop-top Spider version ups the excitement levels even further, and we loved it.”
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Auto Trader
Model reviewed: 720S coupé
Score: 8.6 / 10
“Even when compared with other supercars, the McLaren 720S really is something special. Engaging, absorbing and thrilling, and for our money, it’s the best of the supercar breed.”
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Autocar
Model reviewed: 720S coupé
Score: 10 / 10
“The McLaren 720S’s class-transcending performance comes combined with a remarkable breadth of ability on the road, with excellent usability, too, and with more indulgent on-the-limit track handling than any McLaren we’ve known before.”
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Model reviewed: 720S Spider
Score: 9 / 10
“With the roof up, the driving experience is indistinguishable from that of the coupé.”
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Model reviewed: 720S Track Pack
Score: 10 / 10
“It’s an awful lot of money considering you might never use the telemetry or the cameras or the six-point racing harnesses, but for some it will be worth paying simply for the palpable sense you’re driving the most focused McLaren 720S that exists.”
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Car
Model reviewed: 720S Spider
Score: 10 / 10
“The amazing thing about the McLaren 720S Spider is its range of virtues. It goes as hard as any supercar with all the exhilaration and high-speed prowess, and yet it rides with astonishing suppleness.”
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Model reviewed: 720S Track Pack
Score: 10 / 10
“If you’re all about hot laps, the track-optimised 600LT would be a better bet. And if you’ve decided it has to be the 720S, be clear about what you’ll use the car for. You may be better off going for a few options and put the saved money into financing some unforgettable pan-European road trips.”
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Model reviewed: 720S coupé
Score: 10 / 10
“If you can get on with those headlights, and are rich enough not to flinch at paying more for the McLaren 720S than its rivals, the only real sticking point is the standard car’s too-quiet exhaust.”
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Carbuyer
Model reviewed: 720S coupé
Score: 7.8 / 10
“The stunning McLaren 720S offers all you want in a supercar, and more.”
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Model reviewed: 720S Spider
Score: 8 / 10
“Breathtaking performance combined with unadulterated engine noise makes the McLaren 720S Spider an even more visceral experience than the coupe.”
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Daily Mirror
Model reviewed: 720S Spider
Score: 10 / 10
“The two-seat mid-engined McLaren 720S supercar is beyond brilliant. It’s incredible.”
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Evo
Model reviewed: 720S Spider
Score: 9 / 10
“Top-down motoring to the list only increases the McLaren 720S’ appeal, however the compromises felt dynamically still makes the coupe our choice.”
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Model reviewed: 720S coupé
Score: 10 / 10
“Wild looks, warp speed acceleration, delicious handling balance and surprising civility mark out the remarkable McLaren 720S.”
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Model reviewed: 720S coupé
Score: 10 / 10
“The McLaren 720S is an improvement over its predecessor in every respect.”
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Heycar
Model reviewed: Range overview
Score: 8 / 10
“McLaren keeps on re-defining what’s possible with its Super Series models, and the 720S does that, and more, making ridiculous performance accessible and useable, assuming, of course, you have the means to pay for it.”
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Parkers
Model reviewed: Coupe
Score: 9 / 10
“Latest Brit bruiser one of the best yet”
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Model reviewed: 720S Spider
Score: 9.8 / 10
“An astonishingly capable all-round supercar”
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The Sun
Model reviewed: 720S Spider
“Aside from its monstrous capabilities, the McLaren 720S Spider is just as pleasing to the eye. You just want to drive it over the horizon and into the sunset.”
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The Sunday Times
Model reviewed: 720S coupé
Score: 6 / 10
“It may look brilliant, but you cannot get around the fact that it simply doesn’t have the soul of a Ferrari. It’ll kick a Fezza’s arse in any race, anywhere, anytime, but you can’t help feeling it’s a car built after a meeting in a Travelodge with a flip chart.” (Jeremy Clarkson)
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The Telegraph
Model reviewed: 720S Spider
Score: 8 / 10
“Better looking than the coupé with none of the drawbacks of a convertible in terms of chassis twisting and/or reduced performance; it also has minimal weight gain for a drophead.”
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Model reviewed: 720S Luxury coupé
Score: 8 / 10
“Faster and more stable, the new McLaren 720S is a more dynamically competent than its predecessor, although whether it could be genuinely described as “all-new” is debatable.”
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Top Gear
Model reviewed: 720S Spider
Score: 9 / 10
“All the best bits of the coupe, now with added fresh air.”
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Model reviewed: 720S coupé
Score: 9 / 10
“Probably the single most accomplished supercar we’ve ever driven.”
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What Car?
Model reviewed: 720S coupé
Score: 8 / 10
“The McLaren 720S is staggeringly fast and involving yet perfectly usable every day.”
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Safety rating
Independent crash test and safety ratings from Euro NCAP
No safety rating
The McLaren Super Series (720S and 765LT) was not tested by Euro NCAP during its production life.
Eco rating
Independent economy and emissions ratings from Green NCAP
No eco rating
The McLaren Super Series (720S and 765LT) was not lab tested by Green NCAP during its production life, so you’ll just have to imagine how eco-friendly a twin-turbocharged petrol V8 supercar is likely to be…
Reliability rating
Reliability data provided exclusively for The Car Expert by MotorEasy
No reliability rating
As of May 2024, we don’t have enough reliability data on the McLaren 720S to generate a reliability rating.
The Car Expert’s reliability information is provided exclusively to us using workshop and extended warranty data from our partner, MotorEasy, sourced from both official dealerships and independent workshops.
As soon as MotorEasy has sufficient data on the 720S, we’ll publish the results here.
Running cost rating
Monthly cost of ownership data provided exclusively for The Car Expert by Clear Vehicle Data
Fuel consumption | Average | Score | Variation | Score |
Petrol models | 23 mpg | E | 23 – 23 mpg | E – E |
CO₂ output | Average | Score | Variation | Score |
Petrol models | 276 g/km | D | 276 – 276 g/km | D – D |
Insurance group | Average | Score | Variation | Score |
All models | 50 | F | 50 – 50 | F – F |
The McLaren 720S is a very expensive car to own and run, according to whole-life cost numbers provided exclusively to The Car Expert by our data partner, Clear Vehicle Data.
We don’t have servicing cost data at this time, but you can be confident that it will also be very expensive…
Awards
Trophies, prizes and awards that the McLaren 720S has received
2019
- World Car Awards – World Performance Car
2018
- Red Dot Design Awards – Best of the Best
2017
- evo Awards – Car of the Year
- Scottish Car of the Year Awards – Sportscar of the Year
Similar cars
If you’re looking at the McLaren 720S, you might also be interested in these alternatives
Aston Martin DBS | Ferrari F8 Tributo | Lamborghini Huracan | Mercedes-AMG GT R | Porsche 911 Turbo
More information
More news, reviews and information about the McLaren 720S at The Car Expert
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