Expert opinion
The ‘LT’ badge appended to the end of a McLaren model number technically means ‘Longtail’, but in practice means ‘lightweight special’. A bit like an RS Porsche, though more high-end and exclusive. That said, this is a ‘Sport Series’ McLaren, so it doesn’t get some of the fancy tech you’ll find on the (even more) pricey ‘Super Series’ cars such as the 720S – like the cross-linked dampers or active aero aids.
What’s more, to get the full 100kg weight saving, the car has to forgo air-conditioning or a radio, and come with the cost-option ‘Super-Lightweight Carbon Fibre Racing Seats’ that also saw service in the McLaren Senna. But even without those you get 17kg saved in wheels and tyres, 10kg from lightweight suspension components and a further 12kg shed from the exhaust.
In essence, it’s a reworked and track-focused version of the more daily-friendly 570S (with another 30hp to give it 600hp, as the name implies). While in some ways it might appear to be a bit of a piecemeal development of the stand Sport Series McLaren offering, the 600LT really is more than the sum of its parts: it’s sharper, faster and better tacked down. More ready for the track, in other words.