McLaren GTS: The Everyday Supercar Refined

When McLaren introduced the original GT in 2019, it was a fascinating proposition: a mid-engine, carbon-fiber tub supercar designed specifically to rival traditional front-engine grand tourers like the Bentley Continental GT and Aston Martin DB11. It offered the raw dynamics of a McLaren with the luggage capacity and ride comfort necessary for cross-continental travel.

However, as the supercar market evolved, McLaren recognized the need to sharpen the GT’s edge. In late 2023, they unveiled its replacement: the McLaren GTS.

The GTS is not a radical reimagining, but a comprehensive, meticulous refinement of the original concept. It is lighter, more powerful, and visually more aggressive, proving that a car can be a ferocious, 200-mph track-capable machine while still swallowing a set of golf clubs and remaining comfortable on a five-hour highway journey.

The Grand Tourer Argument

McLaren’s entry into the grand tourer segment was always philosophically interesting. The traditional grand tourer — the Bentley Continental, the Ferrari Roma, the Aston Martin DB11 — places its engine in the nose for packaging reasons, accepting the handling compromise of a front-heavy layout in exchange for a long, sweeping bonnet line and generous front luggage space.

McLaren’s counterargument was structural: there is no law of physics that requires a GT car to have its engine at the front. If you build a carbon-fiber tub light enough, and package the mid-mounted engine low enough, you can achieve the same luggage capacity (via a combined front trunk and rear storage area) while benefiting from the superior weight distribution and handling balance of a mid-engine layout.

The GT proved this argument with considerable success. Its 570 liters of combined storage — 150 liters in the nose, 420 liters above the engine — genuinely accommodated two adults’ luggage for extended travel. Its ride quality, enabled by McLaren’s hydraulic suspension, was genuinely grand tourer-compliant rather than merely acceptable for a supercar. And its handling, even in the GT’s softer state of tune, remained leagues ahead of any front-engined competitor.

The GTS sharpens this proposition without abandoning it. The luggage capacity is unchanged. The ride quality in Comfort mode remains exceptional. But the powertrain response is quicker, the exhaust note more characterful, and the visual presence more commanding.

The Heart: A 635 PS V8

The most significant upgrade for the GTS lies just behind the passenger cabin. The M840TE 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 engine was recalibrated to deliver more power and sharper response.

Through revised ignition timing and a new engine management calibration, output was increased by 15 PS over the outgoing GT, bringing the total to 635 PS (626 bhp) at 7,500 rpm. Torque remains a robust 630 Nm (465 lb-ft) available from 5,500 to 6,500 rpm.

While 15 horsepower might seem like a modest gain, it is felt profoundly due to the engine’s willingness to rev and the sheer lack of mass it has to push. Mated to a 7-speed Seamless Shift Gearbox (SSG), the GTS catapults from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in just 3.2 seconds. More impressively, 0 to 200 km/h (124 mph) is dispatched in a mere 8.9 seconds, putting it firmly in the performance territory of dedicated supercars. Top speed is 326 km/h (203 mph).

The new exhaust system is perhaps the most impactful single change. The GT’s exhaust was tuned for refinement — muted, civilized, appropriate for a car that might be driven to the opera. The GTS carries a louder, more characterful exhaust note, particularly when the bypass valve opens in Sport mode. It is not the sharp crack of a 765LT, but it is a genuine V8 rumble that reminds you what sits just behind your right ear.

The Diet: 10 kg Lighter

McLaren’s philosophy revolves around lightness, and even their Grand Tourer must adhere to the rules of the scale. The GTS went on a subtle diet, shedding 10 kg (22 lbs) compared to the GT.

The dry weight now sits at a remarkably low 1,466 kg (3,232 lbs). This is achieved through the inherent lightness of the carbon-fiber MonoCell II-T (Touring) chassis, combined with new, lighter components:

• A recycled carbon-fiber roof panel.
• A new, lighter exhaust system that delivers a slightly more aggressive V8 rumble.
• Optional lightweight forged alloy wheels (“Turbine” design) secured with titanium locking wheel bolts (saving 35% mass over standard steel bolts).

This weight reduction results in a class-leading power-to-weight ratio of 418 PS per ton, significantly better than any of its front-engine competitors.

The MonoCell II-T (Touring) variant of McLaren’s carbon monocoque is specifically adapted for GT use: the structure includes provisions for the glass tailgate over the engine bay and the carefully designed luggage area that sits on top of the powertrain. Despite these additions, the carbon tub’s fundamental efficiency means the GTS remains extraordinarily light relative to the space and performance it provides.

Sharper Dynamics, Intelligent Suspension

A Grand Tourer must ride beautifully, but a McLaren must handle brilliantly. The GTS utilizes McLaren’s Proactive Damping Control suspension system, featuring continuously variable twin-valve hydraulic dampers.

For the GTS, the software controlling this system was recalibrated. In “Comfort” mode, it remains incredibly compliant, absorbing road imperfections with a fluidity that belies its supercar stance. However, switch the Active Dynamics Panel to “Sport” or “Track,” and the dampers stiffen significantly. The steering, which retains McLaren’s signature electro-hydraulic setup (refusing to switch to fully electric steering for the sake of feel), is wonderfully communicative.

To make the car more usable in the city, McLaren also upgraded the nose-lift system. It now raises or lowers the front of the car in just 4 seconds—more than twice as fast as the system on the previous GT—making speed bumps and steep driveways a non-issue.

The speed of the nose-lift system reflects a genuine understanding of the GTS’s use case. Many McLaren owners in urban environments report that managing approach angles to driveways, steep garage ramps, and supermarket speed bumps is one of the practical anxieties of daily supercar use. A 4-second lift and lower means the system can be activated, the obstacle cleared, and the car lowered again with minimal disruption to the flow of urban driving.

Design: Subtle Aggression

Visually, the GTS is sharper and more assertive than the GT. The front bumper was redesigned with larger air intakes to improve cooling to the V8, and the front splitter is more pronounced. The rear fenders feature taller air scoops to feed the engine more efficiently.

Despite the added aggression, the defining feature of the car—its packaging—remains intact. Because the engine and exhaust system are positioned incredibly low in the chassis, McLaren was able to create a massive 420-liter luggage compartment above the engine, accessed via a power-operated glass tailgate. When combined with the 150-liter “frunk” (front trunk), the GTS offers an astonishing 570 liters of total storage space.

This packaging achievement is worth emphasizing in comparison with the competition. A Bentley Continental GT offers approximately 235 liters of trunk space. A Porsche 911 Carrera offers around 264 liters in the front trunk. The GTS, despite being a faster, more dynamically capable machine than either, can carry more than double the Continental’s luggage allocation. The mid-engine layout, counterintuitively, is the superior packaging solution.

Inside, the cabin is swathed in luxury. Soft-grain aniline leather, Alcantara, and machined aluminum trim dominate the space. The seats are designed specifically for long-distance comfort, and the infotainment system was updated with a faster processor for improved responsiveness.

GTS vs. Aston Martin DB12 and Ferrari Roma

The natural competitive context for the McLaren GTS includes Aston Martin’s DB12 (520 bhp, front-engined, 2+2 seating) and Ferrari’s Roma (612 bhp, front-engined, 2+2 seating). Both are genuinely excellent cars that represent the traditional grand tourer formula at its highest development.

The Aston DB12 offers something no McLaren can: back seats. For buyers who occasionally need to carry children or occasional adult passengers, this is a legitimate consideration that the GTS simply cannot address. The DB12 is also, arguably, more traditionally beautiful — its long-bonnet, short-deck proportions are classically GT in a way the mid-engined GTS is not.

The Ferrari Roma is perhaps the most aesthetically striking car in the segment, its bodywork flowing with a compositional confidence that puts it among the most beautiful production cars of the modern era. Ferrari’s reputation for emotional engagement through its powertrain is also relevant: the Roma’s twin-turbo V8 has a character and soundtrack that many drivers prefer to the McLaren’s slightly more workmanlike delivery.

What the GTS returns to these rivals is the only argument that has always mattered for McLaren: it is faster. Significantly faster. In every dynamic metric — acceleration, braking, lateral grip, lap times — the GTS is in a different league from either front-engined competitor. The mid-engine layout simply works better, and McLaren’s carbon-fiber foundation creates a platform that traditional GT manufacturers cannot easily match.

The Ultimate Compromise

The McLaren GTS occupies a unique space in the automotive landscape. It challenges the traditional definition of a Grand Tourer. It proves that you do not need a massive, heavy, front-mounted V12 to cross a continent in comfort. By utilizing a carbon-fiber tub and a mid-mounted V8, the GTS offers 95% of the dynamic thrill of a 750S, but with the practicality required to actually use the car every single day.

It is, in the best possible sense, a compromised McLaren. It is a car that acknowledges that not every mile is a track lap, that some journeys require luggage rather than helmet bags, that a supercar’s owner might occasionally want to arrive somewhere looking presentable rather than disheveled from the sensory onslaught of a 765LT.

But its compromises are minimum, carefully chosen, and never allowed to dilute the essential McLaren experience. It remains light, fast, beautiful to drive, and brutally capable when you ask the question. That balance is the GTS’s defining achievement.