If a supercar maker throws a bash on your doorstep, it'd be rude not to go.
TETBURY: These leafy lanes are used to the odd Aston Martin wafting by, the brand being one of Prince Charles' favourites. But Gloucestershire's ears were attuned to an even racier sound when McLaren threw its now annual roadshow bash at Calcot Spa: this was the coming out party for the all-new 720S and a topless version of the 570S.
More than cars, McLaren churns out surreal facts, all of which point to a maker that builds aspiration before anything else. Let's talk money. McLaren (overall value: £2.4bn) builds carbon fibre race cars, used fairly equally between track and road. It's hard to think of any auto brand more credible in that pursuit and the brand's bank balance reflects this. Profit last year? £800m.
An appreciative global audience has driven sales in 2015 from 1,654 models up to 3,286 last year. To produce more than the maker's self-imposed limit of 5,000 global sales a year would necessitate turning the Woking factory into a round-the-clock op. Frankly, with two eight-hour shifts already flat out, that's never going to happen. Stare for too long at the 720S and you might imagine an oligarch sitting in company HQ giggling hysterically about ambitions for world domination; the reality is McLaren hates the idea of its badge on every street corner.
Self-reliant and self-funding, the brand's staunch independence (all its models are home-grown with no filched bits from other brands) spells an integrity that has led to four years of profit (just seven years post-start-up). And the order books? Basically, it's a queue-lover's paradise; should you want more than a travel bag, it'll be spring 2018 before you can place an order.
That self-reliance spells the creation of a new McLaren factory between Rotherham and Sheffield, where carbon-fibre tubs will be built, so ensuring the maker has an in-house stream of this crucial component for future models. For the future itself, McLaren has already declared its goal to produce pure EVs, but for the road there we have a panoply of mouth-watering choices, from Sports through Super all the way to Ultimate Series. In that top niche, we can expect a name to be put on the code project BP23 a hybrid model that will echo the legendary F1 thanks to a three-seat driver-in-middle layout. With more than 1,000bhp, it'll cost £1.6m (plus vat) but the production run of just 106 is already three times over-subscribed.
I consoled myself with the keys to the new 720S. Comparatively sedate, the new Super Series option replaces the 650S with a 4.0 litre V8 sitting in a new one-piece carbon fibre tub and superstructure. Against the former model's 3.8, stroke is up by 3.6mm, (the bore is unchanged) and new conrods, pistons, crankshaft and twin-scroll turbochargers season the 710bhp mix. Most drivers would think of 7.8 seconds as respectable in the 0-100kph/62mph stakes; the 720S, given 720PS and 1,283kg overall, needs this much time to reach 200kph, searing on to a top speed of 212mph. I'd offer some notes on how it drives, but with much of my journey spent stuck behind tractors and trucks (apart from the odd point-and-squirt moment of ballistic overtaking), I concentrated instead on the warm feeling gained by returning it intact. After all, no one wants to use a £218,000 car for trimming hedges.
Also, not to be eclipsed by the 720S, McLaren used this roadshow to reveal the Spider version of the 570S, from £164,750 Now featuring a drop-down rear window as well as a power-fold roof, so you listen to the exhaust and engine even more clearly, this car feels just as light and sensuous as its hard-topped sibling. Both newcomers bring a sensation of speed and fluidity that make it hard to believe this is road-ready kit. You might think a brief to build models that please track and road users alike has to spell compromise. McLaren's engineers clearly disagree. No wonder they keep throwing parties.