2 02 1 M C L A R E N S A B R E ~ BY T R AV I S O K U L S K I
PLAN 15 FROM OUTER SPACE
McLaren asks its top customers what they want, and out pops the Senna-based Sabre.
You won’t confuse the Sabre for any other McLaren. McLaren
Special Operations (MSO) made sure of it. Only 15 will be made, each with an exacting set of requirements from McLaren’s most valued U.S. customers. “Sabre was designed with a brief to be a show car for the road,” says Neil Underwood, MSO’s global sales manager. “Customers wanted the car to look like it arrived from space. I think we delivered.” While the Sabre is based on the Senna and shares that car’s greenhouse, more than 70 percent of its parts are unique to it. Underneath, a number of suspension changes make the Sabre more compliant, a nod to its road-first intent. The 4.0-liter V-8 makes 824 horsepower and has new cylinder heads and revised mapping. Aero changes mean the Sabre has one-third the downforce of the Senna. MSO says the Sabre’s 218-mph top speed makes it the fastest two-seat McLaren road car ever built.
We drove one at Lime Rock Park, a 1.5-mile-long set of corners that leaves little room for mistakes. On the short straight, the Sabre nudges 155 mph before we hit the brakes. A little nervous under heavy braking, it’s more old-school than scary, a car that demands your full attention. The acceleration is mind altering. Dipping into full throttle for the first time rearranges scenery quicker than the brain can process. The exhaust provides a unique tone that at road speeds is characterful, burbling and cracking, and on the track is a more distinctive higher-pitched wail than other McLarens. The electrohydraulic steering is the best out there—direct, chattery, and communicative. Softer than the Senna, the Sabre exhibits a playfulness while cornering that the Senna lacks. Even aggressive inputs don’t give unexpected or unwelcome reactions. The interior of this particular bespoke car has a number of personalized touches, like crowns in the different-colored seats and a blue tint to the carbon. The co-owners requested that the F1 team sign the center console. So last year MSO shipped it to the Turkish Grand Prix, where drivers Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz autographed it (before the latter jumped ship to Ferrari). These buyers also needed cupholders to fit Venti drinks from Starbucks. McLaren made it happen. Even though only 15 Sabres will ever exist, McLaren built prototypes and did thousands of miles of testing. MSO’s clients were involved from the beginning, even providing feedback from early testing stages. Participation in this process is something most McLaren buyers will never experience. But most McLaren buyers aren’t spending what we’re guessing is $4 million—we felt it was impolite to ask—on a tailor-made hypercar that looks like it fell to Earth from another galaxy.
the numbers Powertrain: 824-hp twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8, 7-speed dual-clutch automatic Base (C/D guess) ............................. $4,000,000 Performance (C/D est) • 60 mph ....................................................... 2.6 sec • 1/4-Mile ...................................................... 9.9 sec • Top Speed ............................................... 218 mph EPA Fuel Economy • Comb/City/Hwy ......................... 18/15/22 mpg
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THE RUNDOWN
PHOTOG RAPHY BY DW BU RNETT ~ DEc EmBER 2021 ~ cAR AND D RIVE R
