McLaren’s flourishing automotive business is built on the solid foundation of the brand’s illustrious Formula One racing history. The British automaker has created a new special edition 720S to commemorate McLaren’s first F1 victory which took place at the 1968 Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps 50 years ago. Called the “720S Spa 68,” it was designed by McLaren Special Operations (MSO), the company’s customization division, and commissioned by McLaren Brussels. What makes the 1968 Belgian Grand Prix doubly special is that victory was earned at the hands of the company’s founder Bruce McLaren. With that victory, he became only the third driver to win an F1 race in a car of his own design. It was also Bruce McLaren’s fourth and final F1 race win before his death in a crash in 1970. That victory marks the beginning of McLaren’s immensely successful F1 journey which includes eight constructor championships and 12 drivers’ championships.
The special edition 720S Spa 68 collection has three cars which all wear MSO’s Anniversary Orange paint, the hue of which has been done in the style of the original 1968 M7A F1 car. Special touches include outlines of the track on the bodywork and on the headrests, a numbered plaque to mark the series number, and an orange script on the carbon fiber sill cover just inside the door. Mechanically it is identical to the standard 720S, which uses a 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8. It produces 710 horsepower and 568 ft-lb of torque, which is enough to rocket the supercar from 0 to 62 mph time in just 2.8 seconds and give it a top speed of 212 mph. Two of the three Spa 68 cars are already spoken for, according to McLaren, which means one of them is still up for grabs. There is no word on the price though.
[Via:Autoblog]
