McLaren 720S Spider Breaks Cover

If you think that winter is the right time to see a new hot vehicle, then you agree with McLaren, that has revealed its newest V8 turbo supercar. This is British marque’s latest: the 720S Spider, a powerful convertible with a retractable hardtop.

In line with the 720S Coupe, the Spider variant is built on a maturity of that vehicle’s MonoCage II carbon fiber chassis, which is called the Monocage II-S. It drops the central ‘’spine” overhead from to rear, and sports a redecorated upper back construction to house the new folding top.

That roof and related back-seat compartment contribute 49kg more weight to the 720S Spider compared to its Coupe counterpart, resulting in a total 1,332kg dry weight. Nevertheless, McLaren claims it’s the lightest vehicle in its class. As a comparison, the rival Ferrari 488 Spider has a dry weight of 1,420kg. So yes, the Spider is lighter here.

Under the bonnet, there’s the recognizable 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 engine paired to a seven-speed transmission and RWD system, pumping out the identical 710bhp and 568lb-ft of torque. Just like the Coupe. As a result, it also has the same capability of hitting 62mph in 2.9 seconds, while 0-124mph can be achieved in 7.9secs, which is a bit slower than the Coupe. The supercar clears a quarter mile in 10.4secs and its maximum speed will reach 212mph with the roof up.

Lowering the roof requires only 11 seconds, reducing the top speed to 202mph. That retractable hardtop comes with a one-piece carbon-fiber roof panel, which can be electrically operated at speeds of up to 31mph. Its operation is six seconds quicker than the 650S Spider’s roof.

McLaren claims the hard top’s noise level to be so much lower than before that it’s now just like the “background noise in a quiet library”. This makes us think the marque’s engineers have been reading diligently lately.

The car’s underfloor aero has been revised to be compatible with its latest rear and self-adjusting spoiler, and you can opt for a carbon-framed, glazed top that lets extra light into the compartment. It can also be tinted at the push of a button.

In conclusion, the new 720S Spider still has a lot in common with the Coupe. The frame tech is the same as before, as well as the interior and driving modes. But it offers new colors and ten-spoke forged alloy wheels.