Meet the McLaren 750S Spider, Robb Report's 2025 Car of the Year
It's been a banner few months for the British marque. Capping off the 2024 Formula 1 season, its racing division claimed the Constructors' Championship title for the first time in 26 years. Now, the production side starts out 2025 with an accolade it's earned for the first time ever, as the McLaren 750S Spider has been named Robb Report's Car of the Year.
More from Robb Report
'Took a Lot of Convincing': Lamborghini Execs Were Skeptical of the Best-Selling Urus SUV at First, CEO Says
Ford Wants to Build an Off-Road Raptor Supercar
Everything You Need to Know About Formula 1's Massive Offseason Driver Changes
McLaren has come close to our top podium spot before with its 720S finishing second in 2018, bested only by the Lamborghini Huracán Performante. With 740 hp, the new 750S Spider—with approximately 30 percent of its makeup either new or improved compared to the 720S—is not only more powerful than its 710 hp predecessor, but weighs less as well, thanks to its new McLaren Carbon Lightweight Architecture (MCLA) platform introduced on the hybrid McLaren Artura. With the carbon-fiber Monocage II chassis as its foundation, the convertible—with its track widened by 6 millimeters—also benefits from, according to the automaker, 'a new spring and damper design' as well as a bolstered hydraulic steering system, already incredibly responsive on the 720S.
Unlike its sibling Artura, though, the 750S is propelled solely by a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V-8—generating 590 ft lbs of torque—mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. The power train allows the 3,170-pound (curb weight) roadster to punch from zero to 60 mph in 2.7 seconds and crest 206 mph. Tempering that ability to surge are Brembo carbon-ceramic stoppers that arrest the car's cast-alloy wheels shod in Pirelli P Zero Corsa rubber. Those brakes, with precision and potency that judge Sean McConnell touted as 'spot-on,' bring the vehicle from 62 mph to a standstill in 98 feet.
'Absolutely at home on the track, and the 'wow' factor is activated at every single turn,' stated judge Morgan Saliny, while Jeff Mitelman called it a 'beast' that's 'only limited by your guts to push it.' Commenting on the model's 'near perfect balance of acceleration and handling' as well as its 'raucous soundtrack,' Eric Murphy opined that it's 'a truly fabulous car that will make any average driver feel like an F1 pilot.'
After entering through the dihedral doors and settling into the carbon-fiber racing seats, you'll find an instrument setup that now moves with the steering column, an enhanced infotainment display, and a more ergonomically intuitive location for a few of the controls. There's also the new McLaren Control Launcher (MCL), which allows the driver to customize certain drive dynamics and have the combination of those key adjustments available with one-button activation.
While on the private racetrack at the Concours Club in Opa-Locka, Fla., some of our judges opted to lower the retractable hardtop roof, an action that takes only 11 seconds and can be done at a speed of up to 31 mph. Whether flooring it through the straightaways or tackling the slalom sections of the segmented testing ground, they soon found there was no need for the onboard Bowers & Wilkins audio system, as the only harmonics of note were from the power plant's eight-cylinder song. That soundtrack is one that can be equally enjoyed while carving canyon roads or, in our case, having the 750S prove its street cred in traffic on Florida's I-95 when returning to the Boca Raton resort.
'A masterpiece for driving dynamics,' is how James Wilson Jr. described the car, extolling its 'great road feel through the steering.' He also commented that its 'handling is on another level; excellent turn-in allows you to nail the apex every time.' John Quigley called the 750S Spider a 'showstopper,' while a prescient Tim Olzer summed up the consensus of the judging majority, stating; 'Great looks, great acceleration, great handling, super fun to drive—gets my vote. This is the car!' Yes, Tim, indeed it is.Best of Robb Report
The 2024 Chevy C8 Corvette: Everything We Know About the Powerful Mid-Engine Beast
The World's Best Superyacht Shipyards
The ABCs of Chartering a Yacht
Click here to read the full article.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Drive
an hour ago
- The Drive
Ferrari and Hamilton Thought They Were Perfect for Each Other. That Honeymoon Is Over
The latest car news, reviews, and features. When Lewis Hamilton announced he would be leaving Mercedes after 12 seasons in favor of a shot at bringing a championship title to Ferrari, the pair were quickly and loudly dubbed the strongest driver-team duo in Formula 1. For a storied team like Ferrari—shackled by an 18-year World Drivers' Championship drought—the news that the seven-time champ would join the team brought with it an inauguration-like reception. A year before Italy would appoint a new pope, the nation had found faith in a 40-year-old race car driver turning in his Silver Arrow for Rosso Corsa. But the celebrations soured swiftly. Halfway through the 2025 F1 season, Hamilton sits in sixth place in the driver standings behind his former teammate George Russell, who sits pretty in fourth, and his current teammate, Charles Leclerc, who is now fifth. Italy's other hope for the future—18-year-old Bologna-born wunderkind Kimi Antonelli—and Hamilton's replacement at Mercedes trails just behind him in seventh. Getty While the spring brought the promise of speed, including a sprint win in China and a sprint podium in Miami, the first half of the season has been a rude awakening. Throughout the first 14 races of 2025, Hamilton's once-optimistic view of Ferrari has been tested. Ahead of the Belgian Grand Prix, he said he refuses to not win a championship with the team like former Ferrari drivers Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso. 'If you look at the team over the last 20 years, they've had amazing drivers: Kimi [Raikkonen], Fernando [Alonso], Sebastian [Vettel]—all world champions. However, they didn't win a world championship [at Ferrari]. And for me, I refuse for that to be the case with me.' (Raikkonen did win a title with Ferrari in 2007.) However, an 18th-place sprint qualifying position and a 16th-place starting grid place in the feature race in Spa chipped away at Hamilton's confidence. By Saturday's Hungarian Grand Prix qualifying session—where he failed to make it into Q3 while Leclerc took pole position—his resolve had all but disintegrated. 'I am useless. Absolutely useless,' he said. 'The team has no problem. You can see [Leclerc's] car is on pole. They probably need to change drivers.' The dramatic response echoed Hamilton's comments in April when he said the team bosses were 'not happy' with his performance and that he needed a 'brain transplant' to adapt to the Ferrari SF-25. Getty NurPhoto The prestigious title of 'Ferrari driver,' Hamilton has discovered, means taming something wild. The prancing horse turns out to be less of a polished, well-groomed show horse and more of a mustang, bucking off even the most experienced of drivers. In a sport full of adrenaline junkies, that is part of the appeal: to achieve what few have done before. To tighten the reins and win a championship with the temperamental beast. But to do so requires upending a systemic culture of mistakes and missteps. During the mini-break between Silvertone and Spa, Hamilton claimed to have drafted up documents detailing where the team goes from here and met with Ferrari's chairman, the team CEO, and Ferrari's team principal. The scramble of high-profile meetings made the team dynamic look less collaborative and more desperate for a change of pace. Leclerc, who has been the team's darling since 2019, has trudged through his own trenches at the team—this past weekend included. After securing Ferrari's first pole of the season, the Monegasque was poised for a podium finish. Leclerc crossed the finish line just shy of third place after ranting in a lengthy radio message during Sunday's race: 'This is so incredibly frustrating. We've lost all competitiveness. You just have to listen to me; I would have found a different way of managing those issues. Now it's just undrivable. Undrivable. It's a miracle if we finish on the podium.' Hamilton, in contrast, took the blame for his 12th-place finish: 'Really sorry about this weekend guys, for losing you points.' Following his points-less performance, he insisted he still loves the sport. 'I still love it… I still love the team,' Hamilton said. 'I look forward to coming back [in Zandvoort] … Hopefully I will be back.' Getty As Hamilton attempts to make peace with the career-defining risk he chose, he must also accept his role in steering another future: Carlos Sainz's career path. The former Ferrari driver who signed onto Williams for the 2025 season has only scored 16 points so far this season and is sandwiched between two rookies in 16th place. Sainz dragged his carbon fiber machine into 14th place on Sunday. Hamilton's move may have set off a domino effect in the driver market as seats opened up for rookies, but his and other drivers' insistence on extending their careers in F1 also clogged the pipeline from the junior series to the big leagues. Touted as one of the greatest drivers in the sport's history, Hamilton looked to Ferrari as the natural solution to his eight-time title challenge. 'This is the most positive feeling I've had in a long time,' Hamilton said just six months ago. 'I've always imagined what it would be like sitting in the cockpit surrounded by red.' However, the dream of taming a prancing horse seems to be left somewhere on track in Hungary—just like so many drivers who have looked to Maranello for success. As for Ferrari, the team is left with the question: If Hamilton can't fix them, who can? Got a tip? Email us at tips@
San Francisco Chronicle
3 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Lions hooker Dan Sheehan suspended for four matches after reckless ruck clearout
SYDNEY (AP) — British and Irish Lions hooker Dan Sheehan was suspended for four matches on Monday for his illegal ruck clearout of Australia's Tom Lynagh at the weekend. Sheehan was cited for charging into a ruck and hitting Lynagh's head on Saturday in the third test won by the Wallabies 22-12 in Sydney. At his disciplinary hearing, Sheehan disagreed that foul play occurred. But the panel found it was reckless with a high degree of danger. The panel suspended him from four Leinster club matches in September and October, but allowed him to be available for the fourth match if he completed World Rugby's tackle school. ___
The Hill
3 hours ago
- The Hill
Trump wades into controversial ad campaigns: ‘Being WOKE is for losers'
President Trump on Monday weighed in on the recent controversial ad campaign with actor Sydney Sweeney for American Eagle, arguing that the success of it is a sign that being 'woke is for losers.' 'Sydney Sweeney, a registered Republican, has the 'HOTTEST' ad out there. It's for American Eagle, and the jeans are 'flying off the shelves.' Go get 'em Sydney!' Trump said on Truth Social. The ad featuring Sweeney has caused backlash online, with critics claiming there are racist undertones surrounding the message that Sweeney 'has great jeans,' a riff on the idea of 'good genes.' American Eagle has defended the ad, saying it's only about 'jeans,' Bloomberg reported, and the company's shares rose when it was first released in July. The president on Sunday said, 'If Sydney Sweeney is a registered Republican, I think her ad is fantastic,' after BuzzFeed reported over the weekend that Sweeney has been registered to the Republican Party of Florida since June 2024. After his first mention on Sweeney, American Eagle stock climbed 14 percent. Trump, in his Truth Social post on Monday, added that Jaguar had a 'stupid' and 'seriously WOKE' ad from a year ago, pointing out the company's leader resigned after it. The British car company's CEO Adrian Mardell is set to resign, Reuters reported, and Jaguar ran an advertisement in 2024 that sparked criticism for being 'woke,' Fox Business Network reported. 'Who wants to buy a Jaguar after looking at that disgraceful ad. Shouldn't they have learned a lesson from Bud Lite, which went Woke and essentially destroyed, in a short campaign, the Company. The market cap destruction has been unprecedented, with BILLIONS OF DOLLARS SO FOOLISHLY LOST.' Trump said. And, he compared megastar Taylor Swift, who endorsed former Vice President Harris in last year's election, to Sweeney and said she is 'no longer hot.' 'Or just look at Woke singer Taylor Swift. Ever since I alerted the world as to what she was by saying on TRUTH that I can't stand her (HATE!),' Trump said. 'She was booed out of the Super Bowl and became, NO LONGER HOT. The tide has seriously turned — Being WOKE is for losers, being Republican is what you want to be.' The president has taken previous swipes at Swift, saying in May, 'Has anyone noticed that, since I said 'I HATE TAYLOR SWIFT,' she's no longer 'HOT?'' After the Sweeney advertisement, White House communications director Steven Cheung pointed to the backlash as an example of 'cancel culture run amok.' Vice President Vance also mocked critics in a recent interview, blaming Democrats for those who argue the commercial promotes eugenics.
