$2.3M McLaren Speedtail Hypercar Caught Driving on Public Roads Outside Company HQ
Look at the tail on this baby.
The McLaren Speedtail is one of the hottest items to come out of the automaker’s Woking HQ in years. It was revealed back in October of 2018 as the fourth addition to McLaren’s “Ultimate Series,” following the P1, Senna, and F1. But the Speedtail has yet to be seen on the road and that’s because it’s still more or less in the midst of its research and development phase, so much in fact that specific engine details have yet to be divulged. But one Instagram user had a lucky day when he spotted a Speedtail driving through a roundabout in the United Kingdom and was fast enough to catch it in the wild.
There’s not much drama to the short Instagram video, but seeing a McLaren Speedtail on public roads is still a site to behold since none of them have officially reached the hands of their owners. You can even hear the Instagrammer, @jaranhalmans, express his surprise with a gasp and mumbling “McLaren Speedtail” in awe.
From what we know, the Speedtail is based on the same platform that underpins the 720S. It’s set to be the automaker’s most powerful production model to date, boasting over 1,035 horsepower from an undisclosed hybrid powertrain, possibly including the company’s venerable 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8. McLaren claims that it’ll be able to hit a top speed of 250 miles per hour while doing a 0 to 186-mph sprint (299 km/h) in just 12.8 seconds, which is faster than what most cars can do in a hard quarter-mile drag.
Other unique features of the Speedtail include a three-seat arrangement like the original F1 with the driver sitting in the center, while the car will also come with electrochromic glass, which can tint itself at the touch of a button when an electrical signal gets pulsed through the panes. This eliminates the need for sun visors which supposedly reduces weight. The Speedtail will also do without side-view mirrors and will feature high-definition cameras in their place to help streamline the body for reducing drag, which is what will aid the Speedtail in achieving breakneck speeds.
McLaren only plans to build a total of 106 Speedtails, all of which have been accounted for at the cool price of 2.1 million GBP, or $2,621,850 USD at today’s conversion rates.
Interestingly, around 35 percent of the Speedtail’s buyers are U.S. based and yet, the car won’t be street legal on stateside roads. However, owners will supposedly be able to import the car through the “Show and Display” clause of NHTSA regulations.
