01 July 2022
In 2020, McLaren launched a limited-edition Supercar, the Sabre, and McLaren only built 15.
The McLaren Sabre was an 824hp hypercar exclusively for the United States.
The Sabre was related to the McLaren Senna, which produced 789hp against the Sabre’s 824hp.
On reflection, it seemed an odd time to launch a Supercar, given the timing coinciding with the pandemic.
Despite the pandemic, all 15 were pre-sold and interestingly, the customers were involved in the development process, being encouraged to drive the prototypes and provide feedback to McLaren Special Operations.
The car itself is not electrified and relies upon the twin-turbo V8, 4.0 litre, which has served McLaren well. The Sabre was capable of 218mph. It was capable of 60 mph in 2.6 seconds and reached a quarter of a mile in 9.9 seconds.
Neil Underwood, MSO’s global sales manager, said. ‘Customers wanted the car to look like it arrived from space. I think we delivered.’
The Sabre is the widest car McLaren has built. Because it was for the US, McLaren was not required to consider other countries’ regulations.
Although built on a McLaren chassis, 70% of Sabre’s parts were unique.
Customers’ development involvement is something most McLaren buyers will never experience. But most McLaren buyers aren’t spending £3.28 million on a machine that looks like it fell to Earth from another galaxy.