Aston-Fighting McLaren GT Focuses on Comfort, Starts at $210K

Aston-Fighting McLaren GT Focuses on Comfort, Starts at $210K

Published: May 16, 2019 | By: American Luxury Staff

McLaren’s latest is a walk on the less wild side.

The automaker’s penchant for expressing the outer extremities of the envelope isn’t exactly in abeyance. But the 2020 GT does push a few traditional buttons, marking a detour from the iconoclastic inspiration of the McLaren design cues that have made the cars instant classics, and the automaker the true enfant terrible in the industry. Perhaps the young company is gunning for a less brashly youthful appeal in order to hook the buyer who would otherwise be smitten with that effortless, artful Aston savoir faire.

Whatever the reason or reasons, they quickly fall by the wayside when one gets a gander at the GT. McLaren does the lovely lines of a traditional British grand tourer, and the look comes off very well.

The GT still bears certain McLaren design hallmarks, thank goodness—the position of the cabin is the mid-engine giveaway, and the long epilogue taper to the rear captures the gracefulness of the company’s design sense. The nose suggests brevity to some degree, but the effect is subtle, and overall the proportions are arrestingly charming. There’s plenty of storage space for touring essentials, of course, and a panoramic ceiling to give the cabin a potent feeling of liberation.

As a tourer, the GT is more oriented to comfort than super-performance. It rides higher, and features Proactive Damping to keep the ride smooth in the absence of ideal driving conditions. In the GT context, the 4L V8 produces 612 HP, but is designed to perform better at more…ordinary speeds.

The cabin follows suit, as expected, doing the luxe thing in McLaren style, with soft accents and seats that look gloriously comfortable; it’s designed for longer sessions on the road. This is the newest McLaren model, so it comes as no surprise that the onboard tech is as up-to-date as possible, with a 12.3” touchscreen at its heart.

Deliveries are slated to begin in late 2019. Pricing starts at $210K.

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