McLaren’s new supercar gets a manual gearbox

Is this like Ferrari’s new ‘manual’?

Nope. Unlike the new version of the Ferrari 12Cilindri, the McLaren McL 6GT has a proper six-speed manual gearbox, with a proper mechanical clutch-and-shift mechanism.

In fact, it’s the first such gearbox that McLaren has made for one of its cars since the original Gordon Murray-designed F1 of 1993.

That’s not the only retro touch by the looks of it...

You’re quite right. The McL 6GT’s styling has been inspired by the look of the classic M6 GT, a road-going coupe based on the fearsome McLaren M6 Can-Am race car.

The original M6 GT, which still exists thanks to a recreation by McLaren Special Operations (MSO), was the only road-going car made by McLaren when founder Bruce McLaren was still alive.

Sadly, he died in a testing accident in 1970, leaving his dream of making an entire range of road cars unfulfilled until the 2000s. The arrival of this McL 6GT, incidentally, coincides with the 60th anniversary of the McLaren team’s F1 debut.

What else do we know about the McL 6GT?

Let’s stick with the styling for a minute because we think this is awesome. There’s a whole mixture of classic styling cues in here, from that original M6 GT to the Ford GT40 MkIV (which Bruce himself raced to fourth place at the 1967 Le Mans 24 hours, having won the race outright the previous year in the GT40 MkII) and there’s even a bit of 1980s Group C car in there too, if you ask us.

The styling is much cleaner and less fussy than that of most contemporary McLaren cars, and the retro look is topped off by a badge on the car’s roof pillar that harks back to the racing team’s original Kiwi logo (Bruce McLaren was from New Zealand).

You’ll also find Bruce’s signature reproduced inside the car’s engine bay. The low nose and broad ‘shoulders’ are pure 1960s Can-Am racer, as is the Kamm-style tail, even if the ultra-slim LED brake lights are modern looking, although they also take some stylistic cues from the classic McLaren M6 GT.

As a final neat touch, the registration number of that original M6 GT - OBH500H - is subtly inscribed on a panel above the rear diffuser.

Is this what all new McLarens are going to look like?

Sadly no, but it won’t necessarily be alone. McLaren says that the McL 6GT is the start of a new strand in its lineup, which is a bit more special than the regular road cars, but which has a different focus to the ‘ultimate’ likes of the Senna, P1 and W1.

What’s powering it?

The McL 6GT gets a turbocharged V8 engine driving the rear wheels, but McLaren hasn’t released any performance figures for the car as yet. However, it might not necessarily be going for out and out speed - the McL 6GT’s remit is to “celebrate purity in design and driver connection” or in other words to be more focused on driver engagement than outright numbers.

That said, underneath, much of the car’s carbon structure is based on the McLaren 750S supercar, so it certainly won’t be slow. The manual gearbox, though, is a sign that McLaren is focusing more on driver enjoyment than on trying to win the YouTube Top Trumps race.

That gearbox - and its exposed, mechanical linkage (and a ‘Speedy Kiwi’ logo built into the shifter) - is part of an ethos that is designed to “Celebrate a form of driving connection that is increasingly rare: tactile, analogue and deeply mechanical” says McLaren.

That extends to the steering too, which is hydraulically boosted (not electrically like in most modern cars), which gives a more natural sense of communication with the driver.

What about the rest of the interior?

It’s stripped back and simple, but with some delicious details. There are ‘Speedy Kiwi’ logos everywhere, and a bright orange finish for the throttle pedal, a colour splash repeated on the 12-o’clock marker on the part-carbon steering wheel.

There are also proper physical switches, with a knurled aluminium finish, for serious in-car tactility and the seat upholstery is ‘box-quilted’ in another throwback to those classic sportscar racers of the 1960s.

What do we think?

McLaren has often been accused of making sports cars and supercars that while fast and brilliant, have also been a touch cold and ‘tech-y’ compared to the sheer Italian passion of Ferrari.

If anything, this McL 6GT reverses that story at a time when Ferrari seems to be rather too self-consciously raiding its own back catalogue. The McL 6GT looks distinctively different to any modern McLaren, and all the better for it. The manual gearbox is the icing on a very tasty cake. More like this, please McLaren.