Boasting more power than advertised, dyno tests have revealed, the McLaren 720S sits in a superior league in terms of performance. As a result, it has knocked out quite a few ultra-agile opponents, and that list is getting longer pretty much with each passing day.
But how does it compare to the new-generation Chevrolet Corvette? Funny you should ask (let's pretend you did, shall we?), as the two met at the Orlando Speed World Dragway, apparently not long ago, for a good-old quarter-mile battle from a standing start.
When the lights turned green, the driver of the 720S released the brake pedal and floored it, reacting quicker than the person holding the wheel of the C8. Thus, the Macca crossed the finish line first, posting 9.6 seconds, with a 127+ mph (204+ kph) exit speed, almost two seconds faster than its rival, which was clocked at 116+ mph (~187 kph) at the end of the run.
The video embedded at the bottom of the page is definitely worth watching, as it basically shows the difference between sports and super models, yet we should note that the full-blown exotic appears to have been tuned. Still, even without any outside intervention, it needs 2.9 seconds from rest to 62 mph (100 kph), and it is a 10-second car down the quarter-mile. Its twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 officially pumps out 710 bhp and 568 lb-ft (770 Nm) of torque, enabling a top speed of 212 mph (341 kph).
With the optional performance exhaust system installed, the mid-engine ‘Vette has 495 bhp and 470 lb-ft (637 Nm) available via the right pedal. The 6.2-liter V8 engine rockets it to 60 mph (97 kph) in less than 3 seconds and up to 194 mph (312 kph). On a good day, and with a skilled driver at the helm, it can complete the quarter-mile in less than 11 seconds.
After a series of unfortunate events put an end to Cristian's dream of entering a custom built & tuned old-school Dacia into a rally competition, he moved on to drive press cars and write for a living. He's worked for several automotive online journals and now he's back at autoevolution after his first tour in the mid-2000s. Full profile
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