Straight out of the factory, the McLaren 720S can run low-10 second quarter miles and in perfect conditions, even dip into the 9-second range. Now one particular 720S has become the very first to record a quarter mile in the 8’s.
The 720S’s 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 engine pumps out 710 hp but this 720S offers up 943 hp at the rear wheels thanks to aftermarket turbochargers and a custom exhaust system without catalytic converters. It is also running on a set of sticky Toyo R888 tires, allowing it to get off the line at frightening speeds.
The video below details just how much effort it took to get the car to set a sub-9-second quarter mile.
With tire warmers getting everything toasty and the tire pressures set to the right amount, the supercar started to run in the low 9’s straight out of the gate. A number of runs were hampered when the car went into limp mode part way down the drag strip, however.
With a sticky drag strip later in the day, the car was able to record consecutive 9.00 second quarter mile and the team then knew that it had an 8-second sprint up its sleeve. Ultimately, the best the team could deliver was an 8.993-second quarter mile at 159.55 mph (256.8 km/h). That may be only just under the 9-second barrier but it does make this the quickest accelerating McLaren road car out there.
Given the love many have for the McLaren, we expect other tuning companies to create wild 720S models and also take them to the drag strip. May the McLaren wars commence.