Driven: 2024 McLaren 750S Spider Is Reaching For Supercar Nirvana

Shock and awe. That’s how we felt when we first drove the McLaren 720S. I remember wondering how McLaren could possibly improve, and make a more exciting supercar. The 720S was already perfect. Well, it’s a good thing I don’t work for McLaren because I would have left it there, never even attempting to improve on perfection. The 2024 McLaren 750S arrives as a replacement for the 720S, mildly updating the styling, improving on the daily livability, and of course, adding more power.

We spent a weekend in an Indy Orange 2024 McLaren 750S Spider, the drop-top version of McLaren’s mid-level mid-size supercar. The 750S currently slots above the hybrid Artura and comfort-focused GTS, but below the track-only Solus GT and the upcoming W1 hypercar. It features the same 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 found in its predecessor, now producing 740 horsepower, along with a few improvements from the newer Artura and the outgoing 765LT. Did McLaren really find a way to improve on the outstanding 720S, or does the 750S feel more like a minor facelift? I’ll tell you.

Exterior Looks: 720S Version 2.0

It’s pretty hard to find fault with how a supercar looks unless you nitpick. We could criticize McLaren for making the 750S look so much like the outgoing 720S that an average person may not be able to tell the difference between the two cars. We also aren’t the biggest fans of the painted front bumper on the 750S, especially when painted in a bright color like Indy Orange. It’s just a bit… too much. The 720S had a nice contrasting black piece on the lower fascia that helped break it up more. McLaren has also experimented with a new body-color headlight surround (an $1,850 option), which again, ends up looking strange to our eyes. Instead, we’d opt for either the gloss black or gloss carbon fiber options, or just go for a darker exterior color.

Minor gripes out of the way, the 750S is a visually stunning vehicle. It may look a lot like the 720S, but that’s fine since that car wasn’t grotesque by any metric. Indy Orange may not look great with the body-color headlight surrounds, but this 60th Anniversary color is otherwise exciting, albeit at a cost of $12,100. McLaren only offers five standard colors on the 750S, one of which is a similar color called McLaren Orange, and customers can specify one of 17 Elite colors or 15 outrageous MSO colors. Three different wheel styles are available, all 19 inches at the front and 20 inches in the rear, but our tester’s Strike 10-spoke Forged Lightweight wheels are our favorites. These particular wheels can be finished in silver, gloss black, or Stealth with McLaren Orange (pictured).

The 750S Spider looks almost identical to the coupe. Keen-eyed car enthusiasts may spot the Spider’s roofline, which is different from the coupe, but with the roof up, it’s hard to tell this car is a convertible. You can spot the Spider via its flying buttresses in the rear, which are see-through so they don’t ruin visibility. For $9,100 extra, you can opt for an electrochromic glass roof in the convertible top, which can become clear or opaque with the press of a button. As with all McLaren vehicles, the doors rise upwards to the sky in a dihedral motion, turning every drive into a spectacle.

Interior & On-Board Technology: More Livable Than Ever

As with the exterior, it’s clear that McLaren didn’t build a new car from the ground up, instead improving on what didn’t work in the 720S. Our tester came equipped with the Comfort seats, which are still pretty firm by “normal” seat standards, but livable when graded on a supercar curve. These are the seats we’d pick, but if you want to track the car or bruise your backside, McLaren offers carbon fiber racing seats and even more aggressive super-lightweight carbon fiber seats with barely any padding. Unlike most modern cars, the 750S is devoid of buttons on the steering wheel, keeping it focused only on the task of driving.

It’s a stretch to say the 750S is a “luxury” vehicle, but it does have some amenities, many of which are optional, including:

• Navigation, Bluetooth, & Sirius with a McLaren audio system (standard) or Bowers & Wilkins sound (optional, $5,400)
• Power heated seats with memory ($3,900)
• Performance Interior with Alcantara and contrast accents ($9,000)
• Electrochromic glass roof ($9,100)
• 360 degree park assist ($4,000)

Infotainment: Better, But Buggy

Nearly every function in the 750S is controlled via a portrait-oriented touchscreen that includes a single volume knob beneath it. This system is a massive improvement over the one in the 720S, particularly because it adds wireless Apple CarPlay. You now get all the modern tech features you could want in a new vehicle, unless you own an Android phone, in which case you are out of luck. Though this screen is snappier and easier to use, it’s still laggy when the vehicle first starts, and it can sometimes take a full minute to boot up and become usable. When it is finally up-to-speed, touch interactions don’t feel sluggish. A digital gauge cluster displays clear information to the driver with different themes depending on the drive mode, but the screen no longer folds down in James Bond style as it did in the 720S.

Though you may want to listen to the glorious V8 engine behind your head, the optional Bowers & Wilkins audio is outstanding. In terms of storage, there’s limited space inside the cabin with a small cubby in the armrest, a net between the seats, and an area behind the touchscreen. Everything else needs to go in the front trunk, which has enough room for a small carry-on bag.

Performance: Bone Chilling Quickness

The 720S Spider was the most exciting and precise supercar I’ve ever driven, and I honestly didn’t think McLaren could possibly make it any sharper to drive. I was wrong. Output increases from 720 to 740 horsepower, and torque goes from 568 to 590 lb-ft. Along with the additional power, McLaren also incorporated the shorter gear ratios from the 765LT, meaning you get to interact more with the excellent seven-speed dual-clutch transmission without needing to do ballistic speeds. A revised kickdown strategy makes what was already one of our favorite transmissions feel even quicker. Gear changes are lightning quick, swapping cogs before your brain can even compute in both automatic and manual modes.

Performance Impressions

McLaren quotes a 2.7-second 0-60 mph time for the 750S Spider, the same time as it takes for the 750S Coupe to reach this speed. In our testing, we couldn’t quite match this estimate due to a lack of grip from the Pirelli P Zero tires, taking 2.98 seconds. Once the rear tires hook up, the in-gear acceleration is vision-blurringly quick. 0-124 mph takes 7.3 seconds, just one-tenth of a second slower than the 750S Coupe. The Sports Exhaust blares like a flourish of trumpets on-throttle, then spits like a firecracker when you let off. As you approach the 8,500-rpm redline, the whooshing from the turbochargers starts to reach your ears, making it sound like the 750S is about to enter hyperspace. Keep your foot in it long enough, and the 750S Spider will reach its 206 mph top speed.

Ride and Handling

The 750S continues to evolve McLaren’s Proactive Chassis Control linked hydraulic suspension, which is now in its third iteration. This sytem uses hydraulic lines to connect each of the four wheels, precluding the need for anti-roll bars or overly stiff suspension. The result is ride comfort that won’t leave you needing a chiropractor, combined with level handling that will shock you on a racetrack. There is almost no give to the suspension when going around corners, even in the standard Comfort mode. McLaren offers two drive mode controllers on either side of the gauge cluster – one for handling and one for powertrain – each with Comfort, Sport, and Track modes. The track modes are a little aggressive for the street, so make sure you are alert before engaging them. McLaren is one of the last companies to still use a hydraulic steering rack, giving the 750S some of the most engaging controls of any car on sale today. The steering wheel transmits everything from the road back to the driver in a way that most modern cars no longer can.

Fuel Economy

Fuel economy in the 750S Spider is rated at 15/19/17 mpg city/highway/combined, which is on-par for a mid-engine supercar. We actually averaged 17.5 mpg during our weekend with the car, proving that the EPA ratings are pretty accurate. Spirited driving, however, will see fuel economy drop into the single digits. The in-car computer actually changes rapidly depending on how you drive, so it’s not uncommon to see your range drop by 50 to 100 miles during a short drive.

Verdict & Pricing: Awe Inspiring

It should come as no surprise that a supercar comes with a super price tag. The 2024 750S Spider starts at $343,700 – a $19,700 premium over the 750S Coupe. If you’re spending this kind of money, you won’t notice the price difference, nor will you notice the tenth of a second lost on your sprint to 124 mph. The Spider offers virtually no compromise with the added benefit of being able to hear the exhaust more closely. Get the Spider.

Chances are, if you can afford a car like this, your car shopping decisions are typically an “and” situation, not an “or” one. You could buy the 750S and park a Ferrari 296 GTS or Lamborghini Temerario next to it. The Ferrari is more expensive than the McLaren, assuming you can even get Maranello to sell you one, and the new Lambo will not arrive on the market until late next year, meaning it may also be difficult to find an allocation. Both of those cars have more power than the 750S, but both complicate the equation with plug-in hybrid systems.

Every McLaren after this will likely feature some form of electrification, but if you want one of the purest supercar experiences left on the market, the 750S Spider is the clear choice. It’s so good, we named it our Performance Car of the Year for 2024.