The road-legal McLaren 620R promises GT4 racer performance

Just 350 620Rs are available for order, keeping an element of exclusivity for a car that McLaren chief Mike Flewitt says will offer an “authentic motorsport driving sensation  on both track and road.” Prices start at £250,000.

The 620R is in effect a roadgoing version of the 570S GT4 race car, the McLaren machine whose winning record in the hands of customer teams around the world since 2017 has made it McLaren’s most successful GT race car.

The 620R’s drivetrain, suspension and aerodynamics mirror those of the GT4 racer and in some ways surpass them: without racing regs to comply with, the 3.8-litre, twin-turbocharged V8 can produce an unrestricted 620PS  (612bhp) with 620Nm (457 lb ft) of torque – making it not only the most powerful of McLaren’s entry-level Sports Series but potentially quicker than the race car.

The closeness of 620R and GT4 racer is evident in most aspects of the new car, which is to be available for delivery from February in orange, white or black – all with contrasting stripes – or with a Senna GTR-inspired livery available as an option.  It’s not just the look, the stripped-out cabin with racing buckets and full harnesses that speak of track inspiration, but the hardware under and on the body – and the most obvious part of that is the rear wing.

The carbon-fibre wing is taken straight off the 570S GT4 and differs only in having the required third brake light and in being mounted higher to minimise drag, something that facilitates a 200mph top speed. Just as with the race car it is adjustable (by a McLaren retailer). There are three available angles of attack, the most aggressive of which provides downforce of 185kg across the aerodynamic bodywork at 155mph. The front bumper, splitter and bonnet – featuring an assortment of aero addenda like dive planes, aero blades and nostrils – are likewise inspired by the track car.

The main structure is the same carbon-fibre Monocell II chassis but for the 620R the engine mounts are stiffer, the tracks wider and the suspension lowered. Driver-adjustable coil-over dampers from the GT4 car are fitted, offering bespoke settings (up to 32 per corner) for both compression and rebound. Steel replaces rubber for the suspension mounts, and the anti-roll bars are stiffer than the Sports Series norm. The brakes are carbon-ceramic discs (390mm front, 380mm rear) with forged aluminium brake calipers.

The 620R comes as standard on Pirelli P Zero Trofeo R road tyres, but the point here is to tick the box for the optional set of slicks. They have been developed specially for this car by Pirelli Motorsport to complement the 620R’s track performance, and in particular offer what McLaren calls “a whole new level of braking performance”.

Driving to a circuit and then switching to the slicks promises to be faff-free too, with McLaren claiming the 620R represents the first time a road-legal car with 19-inch front wheels and 20-inch rear wheels has been engineered to be able to run on slick tyres without the need for additional mechanical adjustment. The wheels are the centre-locking type naturally.

The 620R is about lap times most of all of course, but in road car terms it uses its 620PS and a (targeted) dry weight of 1,282kg to good effect, sprinting from 0-62mph in 2.9 seconds, 0-124mph in 8.1 seconds and despatching the standing quarter mile (400m) in just 10.4 seconds. It’s performance that belongs more in McLaren’s Super Series.

Keeping the weight down involves the inevitable ditching of road car fripperies like air-con, navigation, audio, carpets and glovebox, and the installation of two super-lightweight carbon-fibre racing seats and six-point racing harnesses, though you get regular road seatbelts as well – a bit easier on a trip to the shops. Extended shift paddles and McLaren Track Telemetry (MTT) are included.

McLaren’s Flewitt says the 620R has been developed so it retains the DNA of a fully homologated track car in order to deliver the most authentic race-car feel and is very much he says a response to “repeated customer requests”.

The customers always know best? Of course. Super-luxury Speedtails and comfortable and accommodating GTs of the sort we have seen recently from McLaren are all well and good, but the 620R shows that McLaren’s focus on cars to go around circuits as quickly and securely as possible remains as laser-sharp as ever.