Let me set the scene. Somehow, I got my hands on a Papaya Spark 2022 Mclaren GT. A car with a £160,000 price tag. This car will achieve speeds of over 200mph.

Now you’ve probably heard a load of reviews from your average +40 journalist, but what about from a 20-year-old petrolhead? What about “The Younger Perspective”?

 It’s a Mclaren…GT

The Mclaren GT does kind of look like a toned-down 720S … mixed with a speed tail, a 675LT, and a 570GT. Yes, it looks pretty good, it’s got the bonnet creases, the dihedral doors, the twin exhausts, the huge side vents, and it’s orange. But it does lack that wow factor, and what I mean by that is a talking point that truly differentiates it from its siblings. For example, the 570GT was called that because it was the GT version of the 570. Now they’ve made the Mclaren GT, a softened version of the 720S, So why didn’t they just call it the 720GT?

Was it a missed opportunity for Mclaren to make an out-and-out GT car?

 Leather and a boot bigger than yours

With leather bucket seats, a leather dash, and a leather steering wheel, it’s a comfortable Mclaren! I drove 7 hours from the Netherlands in this car and got out of the car without needing to see a chiropractor.

The interior design is sleek and modern, minimalist; I could almost call it Volvo-like. The single-center touchscreen controls just about everything, even the A/C and heated seats. It’s quick, responsive, clear, and, on my long drive, easy to use. However, personally, I really struggle with using A/C controls on a touch screen, having to cycle through menus, and making sure my finger is on the right part of the screen, all of which take my attention off the road.

The inbuilt navigation is good for a supercar, in fact, it’s very similar to Waze, but it’s still not up to the standards of BMW for example. I used the system for my entire journey back from the Netherlands and had no real issues except almost missing an exit once or twice, which, to be honest, could have been down to me having maybe a little too much fun.

Now the boot is bigger than most midsize cars, 420 liters to be exact, plus a 150-liter froot. That’s two sets of skis, two sets of golf clubs, a suitcase, and racewear. I have to hand it to the GT, It has decent luggage space and is definitely a practical car to take on a weekend trip to Europe. Both the luggage compartments are lined with what Mclaren refers to as “Superfabric ”. This material is covered in hexagonal shapes, these, in fact, are the armor that adds to its strong, durable characteristics. It’s a breathable, waterproof fabric, that prevents stains and odors and is super easy to clean too.

 Super GT

Yes, many GTs have big power and torque figures, but this has a Mclaren chassis with a track-ready suspension setup. 612hp and 620nm of torque are sent to the rear wheels. Most RWD cars with power figures this high would leave you stationary in a cloud of tire smoke, but this car really knows how to get the power down. Let’s give some context, the 675LT, a “Lightweight Supercar” does 0-60 in

2.9 seconds. This Mclaren GT, a softened down, comfortable car with a boot, does 0–60 in 3.1 seconds. That’s only 0.2 seconds slower than the 675LT, which was inspired by the Le-Mans winning F1 GTR!

The GT will achieve speeds of 203mph, more than enough for the autobahn. Remember, this is a GT though; it’s not a supercar … Or is it?

I spent a decent amount of time driving the car, and I have to say I loved every second of it. Having the ability to switch the car’s engine and suspension into “Track” was addictive. You feel the whole car tense, and the steering sharpens and encourages you to push through the corners. Hearing the exhaust valves open, amplifying that incredible flat-plane twin-turbocharged 4-liter V8, is a sound that will never get old. One of my favorite sounds this car makes is the pop on the up-shift, it’s not obnoxious or too quiet; it’s perfect, especially going through a tunnel don’t lie, we all do it; it’s the LAW!

After you’ve finished being a child, you can put the car back in comfort, relax, and forget about all the traffic violations you just broke.

Thanks to its newly designed engine, the M840TE is essentially the same engine as the 720S, just with two smaller turbos. For an everyday GT car, this is absolutely perfect. Those smaller turbos reduce lag and improve low-end torque, resulting in improved drivability in urban areas.

 Only had to stop once for fuel!

Mclaren claims the car returns 24mpg (Combined), paired with a 72-liter tank, it should have a range of 376mi. I can confirm that on my 7-hour drive, I achieved an average of 35mpg! That’s with a mixture of motorways and city driving, so very reasonable all things considered. However, once you find a nice back road, downshift, and start to push, that will rapidly decrease, but that’s expected. It’s not a Toyota Prius by any means, but who wants a Prius … definitely not me.

 It doesn’t try to kill you.

Yes, it’s RWD with over 600hp but thanks to its incredible TCS and ESC, you shouldn’t wrap it around a tree. Big emphasis on “shouldn’t” there. You can’t expect to go around a hairpin, in the wet and floor the accelerator mid-corner and not end up facing the wrong way. However, hitting some B-roads is great fun, and the car really fills you with confidence. The way it transfers its weight and grips through the corners, and then slingshots you out the other side is incredible, after all, it is a Mclaren, so I’d expect nothing less.

 Would I have one?

Of course, I would; it’s a Mclaren, for god’s sake! However, an Audi R8 is £30,000 cheaper, and I wouldn’t have to wait a lifetime to receive a delivery. But if I had to put both of those things aside, yes, I would definitely get a Mclaren GT.

In my opinion, it should’ve been called the Super GT because it’s so much more than a GT car. When you think of a GT car, straight away the Bentley GT comes to mind, but to compare the two would be unfair and wrong because they’re completely different cars. The Mclaren is a GT car that maintains the essence of a track-ready supercar.

The Mclaren GT, “The Everyday Supercar”.

The guest post was written by Jack Lockwood

Director / Producer, Driver61 and OVERDRIVE