McLaren’s 720S bowed out of production at the end of 2022 without a successor in the sight.
With the new Artura offering similar performance and looks to the 720S, some might think the plug-in hybrid newcomer is actually the 720S successor, but they would be wrong.
In an interview with Automotive DriftBreath (subscription required) published on Monday, Nicolas Brown, McLaren’s president of the Americas region, said a 720S successor is planned, and that it is already sold out through much of 2024. Dealers have been taking deposits from some prospective 720S buyers after they learned the older car is no longer available.
Brown also hinted in the interview that the 720S successor will be an update of the 720S as opposed to a ground-up design like the Artura, which features a new V-6 engine and plug-in hybrid system, as well as a new carbon-fiber tub.
McLaren 720S Spider
“(Customers are) anticipating that it will be a refinement of 720,” he said. “They understand that it’s not a next-generation, all-new, ground-up vehicle.”
The practice of an update is not new at McLaren. The 650S, the car the 720S replaced, was a major update of the MP4-12C, the debut model of the McLaren Automotive supercar company. It’s a practice that’s also common at main rival Ferrari, which typically gives its cars a 10-year life cycle, with an update and name change in the middle.
The 720S debuted at the 2017 Geneva motor show with a twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8 rated at 710 hp. It later spawned a convertible option and a hardcore LT variant.
The 720S successor will likely stick with the V-8 but may augment it with hybrid technology. McLaren in 2018 said it plans for all of its cars to be hybrids by 2025.
