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The MSO ‘Albert’ Speedtail

The legendary McLaren F1 test mules from back in 1992 were built at Woking in England, inside premises on Albert Drive, to commemorate that special event, McLaren Beverly Hills commissioned a rather special McLaren Speedtail from MSO, McLaren Special Operations to be inspired by those first F1 testing prototype vehicles … meet the bespoke ‘Albert’ Speedtail.

McLaren Special Operations (MSO) recently unveiled the ‘Albert’ Speedtail, as mentioned above a very special, bespoke commission by McLaren Beverly Hills, the North American McLaren retailer, this car is one of the final vehicles in the 106-car Speedtail production run, and apart from taking inspiration from the 1992 F1 test mules, this specific car is also an homage to the very first Speedtail attribute testing vehicle made back in 2018.

The original McLaren MVY02 Speedtail prototype vehicle was in fact christened ‘Albert’ as a tribute to its three-seat predecessor, the legendary McLaren F1, it is noteworthy that the ‘Albert’ prototype vehicle was the first Speedtail to see actual road use, at that time with front panels from a 720S as a disguise, but already with the three-seat, central driving position fitted so McLaren could test the driver ergonomics, general visibility, and figure out the optimum rear-view camera positions.

This new ‘Albert’ Speedtail homage ordered by McLaren Beverly Hills took inspiration from the camouflage wrap used on the road-going prototype that had a simple two-meter vinyl body wrap with design lines printed to represent the optimized airflow over the car, taking this into real paint by MSO took 12 weeks to complete.

The ‘aero lines’ became one of the most complex paint themes ever completed by MSO, using Magnesium Silver, the exact color used on the F1 road car when she was shown at the 1992 Monaco Grand Prix, in a combination with Ueno Grey, taken from the F1 GTR that won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1995, taking both shades into a design based on the 2018 vinyl ‘cameo’ wrap.

‘”As one of the very last Speedtails to be built at the McLaren Production Centre, it was very important to us at McLaren Beverly Hills that ‘Albert’ honors the brand’s rich heritage, particularly paying tribute to the icon that is the McLaren F1. We worked alongside MSO through every stage, including concept ideation, to produce a truly bespoke and beautifully detailed car that celebrates the innovation and design excellence behind the fastest McLaren road car to date. We are fortunate to have been able to procure ‘Albert’ for one of our top clients and are absolutely thrilled with the finished result.”’ Parris Mullins, McLaren Beverly Hills

The new ‘Albert’ was built in the McLaren Production Centre (MPC) with a 1K gloss visual carbon fiber body. Due to the incredibly complex and detailed nature of the paintwork design, the MSO team completed test panels first to understand process feasibility and worked alongside the visualizer team to refine renders. In total, ‘Albert’ would require a 12-week post-build modification at MSO’s facility to reach completion; this included two week’s masking, six week’s painting, and the remaining time to dry and reassemble the vehicle after spraying.

In the end, they printed their initial renders in full scale before masking it all out on the actual car, after the car was built, including the wheels, this was the only way they could be sure it all aligned well over the entire car, during the two-week masking process the MSO specialist paint technicians used almost two kilometers of fine line-out tape to complete the airflow design layout.

“The name ‘Albert’ has a special resonance with MSO, as we are the custodians of the McLaren F1 and are based at the Albert Drive premises that McLaren Cars occupied in the 1990s. The Speedtail experience has been an exciting journey for our customers, from visualising their imaginations to realising these inspirations and sharing their delight when unveiling the finished product. ‘Albert’ brings this project to a conclusion and we are thrilled to finish on a high note.” Ansar Ali, Managing Director, McLaren Special Operations

The McLaren Speedtail is the fastest road car from Woking to date, it’s the third model in the McLaren Ultimate Series, a three-seat hypercar with 1,070 hp from a hybrid powertrain that’s capable of reaching a 402 km/h (250 mph) top speed, this amazing looking ‘Albert’ Speedtail will be shown at Sunset GT, a luxury cars and coffee event hosted by O’Gara Beverly Hills on Sunday 8^th August 2021 in Sunset Plaza, Los Angeles, USA.

August 5, 2021 / Comments Off

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One-off McLaren 765LT

Buying a McLaren sports car is the dream of many aspiring car enthusiasts, a dream that comes true for some, but there are still clients out there that won’t settle for a factory original car with some standard options, even if you’re talking about a McLaren 765LT, which in itself is already a limited edition model and the final chapter in the ‘Longtail’ story for McLaren, with 755 bhp from the 4.0-Liter twin-turbocharged V8 M840T engine, this is McLaren’s most powerful model to date.

With only 765 units, each with an MSRP of $358,000 before options, the McLaren 765LT is already sold-out when you read this, by the summer of 2021 all of the cars will have been delivered to their lucky, and usually fortunate owners, as McLaren states over 25% of the production for this model was ordered with major personalization from MSO, the McLaren Special Operations department, and rest assured, this will raise the original $358,000 list price considerably, I wouldn’t be surprised if some of these high-spec McLaren 765LT would come at a price well over $500,000.

And the one we are presenting here might be among those ‘half a million dollar’ units, this car is a showcase of what MSO can create for the more discerning client, with a color-shifting paint called MSO Cerberus Pearl that shows hues of blue, purple, gold, and orange depending on the angle of view and the light … a truly amazing looking paint for sure that has previously been seen on the McLaren Senna and the McLaren P1.

The McLaren 765LT is about 80 kg lighter than the 720S, and this has been achieved by using a lot of carbon fiber parts, and to emphasize the lightweight design of this LT, the customer of this MSO custom opted to have all the visible carbon fiber on his car finished in high gloss, this includes the front splitter, the rear bumper, the side skirts, as well as the mirror housings and the large air intakes.

This specific McLaren 765LT was also ordered with the extremely expensive, functional roof scoop, naturally also finished in clear carbon fiber, while the car rolls on glossy black, 10-spoke ultra-light wheels covering orange brake calipers that match the interior trim inside this one-off 765LT.

On the inside, the carbon fiber craze continues, but this time with a satin finish to avoid glare when driving in bright sunlight, while the door panels, speaker rings, and seatbelts come in bespoke McLaren Orange as a reminder of McLaren’s racing legacy, the 765LT is part of the Longtail story that started with the McLaren F1 GTR race car in the 1990s, this 765LT also comes with the MSO titanium harness bar behind the seats and track-inspired six-point harness for the driver and passenger.

The future of McLaren and sports and hypercars, in general, is full electrification, Lamborghini has recently released a statement that in a matter of two or three years all their models will be hybrids, and after 2025 we will even see an all-electric Raging Bull, McLaren has already taken that route with their new Artura, the first McLaren to use the McLaren Carbon Lightweight Architecture (MCLA) to spearhead the brand’s electrified future.

June 4, 2021 / Comments Off

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MSO means bespoke in McLaren language

MSO, short for McLaren Special Operations, takes care of special requests and bespoke options on new McLaren sportscars ordered by customers worldwide, and we find a stunning trio of the now sold-out McLaren 765LT that was just delivered to their owners in Poland that all come with MSO options, considerably raising their base MSRP of €402,500 when these customers placed their order shortly after the global launch last year to make sure they could take delivery ahead of the 2021 summer track day season.

These three McLaren 765LT MSO come in some truly impressive shades, Volcano Yellow, Volcano Orange, and Paris Blue, the blue car adds multiple MSO options, includes the MSO Clubsport Pro Pack (consisting of Super-Lightweight Carbon Fibre Racing Seats, Track Brake Upgrade, and MSO Defined Satin Finish Carbon Fibre Air Vents). The Paris Blue 765LT is also the only one from this trio to come with the MSO Black Pack (front splitter, rear bumper, rear diffuser, air intakes, side skirts, and door mirror casings are all finished in black). Probably the nicest option on the exterior is the clear carbon fiber front hood and rear wing among others.

“Providing the tools to our customers to design, develop and create their own unique interpretation of the McLaren 765LT, MSO is able to make our customers realize their vision of the perfect McLaren.”

Bastian Luehmann, Market Director – Central Europe

The McLaren 765LT is 80kg lighter compared to the already lightweight 720, among others thanks to special carbon fiber aerodynamics that are made by the McLaren Composites Technology Centre in the Sheffield area, a first for McLaren, and let’s not forget where the ‘LT’ stands for: ‘Longtail’, the 765LT comes with an active rear wing that allows this 1,229 kg car to reach 100 km/h in less than three seconds … 200 km/h is reached in 7 seconds, thanks to 765PS and 800 Nm.

March 22, 2021 / Comments Off

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MSO Has a Special McLaren GT for Pebble Beach and It’s Gorgeous

As You Might Expect, This Is a Beautiful Machine

On August 18 at Pebble Beach, McLaren will reveal a special MSO version of the GT. The car will feature special exterior and interior colors and accents. This will set it apart from other GTs that will be made. The GT is coming later this year with a price tag north of $200,000. You can bet this special edition will go for more money than that. It’s a super special GT and will be one of the eye-catching cars at Pebble Beach this year.

The exterior of the MSO GT will feature a new bespoke paint called MSO Defined Flux Silver and Satin Graphite paint as the contrast color. This contrasting color will appear on the door skirts, front splitter, wing mirrors, rear bumper, and rear diffuser. The car will also feature Satin Graphite Iron brake calipers and what MSO calls the Bight Pack, which is chrome trim around the windows, polished titanium exhaust tips, and gloss black wheels.

Inside, the car gets Geoform Stitching on the seatbacks, sun visor, door cards, and armrest. The stitching pattern is inspired by the canopy design of the British Museum. There’s Satin Graphite Leather in various spots in the interior, and otherwise, most of the cabin features Flux White Leather. The MSO logo appears at various spots on the car including the headrests and doorsills.

Mechanically, the car hasn’t been altered it will still get the 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 engine that produces 612 hp. That engine is good enough to make this gorgeous car sprint from a standstill to 60 mph in just 3.1 seconds. This car should be one of the more important models at Pebble Beach this year.

August 14, 2019 / Comments Off

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McLaren 600LT Spider By MSO

You’re looking at McLaren Special Operations’ latest handiwork. The crafty customization folks turned to the McLaren 600LT Spider and asked themselves how an already gorgeous-looking ride can look even more dashing.

MSO decided to wrap the entire vehicle in a ridiculously posh Dove Gray coating. The scene-stealer, however, are the Napier Green accents throughout, which add a bright contrast to the car’s luxuriously dreary paint job.

You’ll find them nearly everywhere. On the sides, the brake calipers, and even on the tips of the aerodynamic components, including the front splitter and rear diffuser’s ribs. There’s more green inside, including some on the seats and a strip on the steering wheel, too.

Don’t mistake it for being just green, by the way. MSO used a special technique to apply the color, putting the shade onto a light, flexible film before affixing it to the panel. This isn’t the first time the company has used this method. It’s the same one it applied on the 720S GT3 and 570S GT4. It all comes together with the retractable roof, which features MSO Bespoke’s Carbon Black Shade.

Not to be overlooked are the carbon fiber pieces, which are featured on the front fender louvers and elsewhere. 10-spoke forged wheels with a gloss-black finish keep the ride propped up.

Inside, there’s more carbon fiber on the door inserts and sides of the center tunnel. There’s also a nice little touch here: a 600LT emblem on the accelerator pedal.

Underneath is a 3.8-liter twin-turbo V8 engine with 592 ponies and a torque of 457 pound-feet. The engine outputs goes through a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox, and you’ll be hitting zero to 60 in just 2.8 seconds.

VISIT MSO HERE

Photos courtesy of McLaren Special Operations

March 5, 2019 / Comments Off

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The ghoulish McLaren 600LT Spider by MSO lurks in the night

McLaren will use anything as an excuse to show off the customization prowess of its McLaren Special Operations (MSO) division. In the past, it has released bespoke cars to celebrate Le Mans, fashion designers, various historic racing achievements and Canada. With its recent creation, McLaren is using the 2019 Geneva Motor Show to display what a 600LT Spider could look like with a few special touches.

According to McLaren, about half of all 600LT Coupe buyers use MSO in some form or another, so it assumed fans and customers would like to see similar treatment on the open-top Spider version. McLaren has shown MSO projects regularly at Geneva, and with overall demand and production ramping up, it wasn’t about to stop in 2019.

This show car is meant to be somewhat of an ode to the 600LT’s predecessor, the 675LT, and uses Napier Green as the accent color, an original paint from the 675LT. The main body color is called Dove Grey and gives the car an under-the-radar smoky look.

To apply the Napier Green — which outlines several aero pieces, appears on the brake calipers, and stripes across the side of the body — McLaren used a method previously only done on race cars. As it did with the 720S GT3 and 570S GT4, McLaren applied the paint by compressing it into a “light and flexible film.”

No supercar is complete these days without splashes of carbon fiber, and the MSO 600LT adheres to the trend. The exposed carbon fiber aero kit and the door scoops were given a satin finish to contrast the gloss black wheels.

The interior has several optional features, as well. It has carbon fiber racing seats that were first developed for the McLaren Senna, with 600LT embroidered into the headrests. It also features an Alcantara headliner and steering wheel, as well as green contrasting elements all over the place. More carbon fiber was applied to the door inserts, the tunnel sides, the gear select housing and the infotainment surround.

The 600LT by MSO is not one of McLaren’s most outrageous works, nor does it have a specific theme for its debut, but it will surely draw plenty of attention in Geneva. Since driving one, we’ve spent most of our time daydreaming about what it’d be like to craft our own.

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February 23, 2019 / Comments Off

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MSO Creates Unique McLaren P1 GTR to Celebrate to Ayrton Senna

McLaren have taken the covers off of a brand new McLaren P1 GTR. Although the production run for the P1 came to an end years ago, McLaren have been convinced by one lucky individual to produce one last model, given the chassis designation 12. This particular P1 is very special. It has been designed to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Ayrton Senna’s first Formula 1 championship victory!

The bespoke McLaren P1 GTR is finished in the colours of Ayrton’s Marlboro sponsored McLaren MP4/4. It uses MSO’s McLaren Rocket Red and Anniversary White paint finish. The cigarette branding is gone, replaced by a barcode design. The car features further liveries including the Brazilian flag and Senna’s recognisable helmet design.

Ayrton Senna McLaren P1 GTR MSO

The owner, with the blessing of the Senna family, has named the bespoke P1 ‘Beco’, a reference to the family’s nickname for the legendary racing drive. The project has been three years in the making at an undisclosed cost.

What makes this P1 GTR so special are the unique touches applied to the aerodynamics. The car features new front dive planes, a wider front splitter and a rear a Gurney flap. New barge boards offer better channel airflow along the sides of the car and new endplates feature for the rear wing. A secondary wing element has also been added, the sum of these changes means that this P1 GTR generates 800 kg of downforce as against the 600 kg generated by standard GTR’s.

Other custom touches include lightweight racing seats lifted directly from the McLaren Senna, a 24ct gold heatshield, Lexan rear cover and modified engine bay shrouds. The McLaren press release also hints at increased power from the electric part of the hybrid drivetrain.

December 21, 2018 / Comments Off

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We spec a McLaren Senna supercar with MSO

A rarely considered similarity between hypercars: poor or nonexistent configurators. The Ferrari LaFerrari configurator let you choose between three colors. Bugatti once let you change the colors and wheels on the Chiron, but no more. McLaren didn’t bother with a configurator for the P1. Only the digital playground built for the Porsche 918 Spyder bucked the trend. That’s likely because as soon as an MSRP requires two commas, shoppers become “clients,” and clients deserve hosts in Hermès to help them navigate the party. No supercar better demonstrates this trend than the McLaren Senna. And, it just so happens, McLaren invited Autoblog to Beverly hills to roleplay as one of the 15 LA-area residents who bought Sennas. I’d be assisted in the act by two MSO Bespoke Liaison Managers – Katie Newell and Emily Monk – who were on an international jaunt shepherding actual buyers through the process.

MSO doesn’t send the duo on global tour dates for every offering, only the limited, special ones. When I asked what the personal service accomplishes, McLaren said, “The benefit of working directly with a MSO Bespoke Liaison Manager to spec your car is that they are deeply familiar with the ins and outs of the vehicle, and understand how different fit, finishes and options will interact together. They also understand what is feasible from an engineering, manufacturing and paint perspective given the years of experience they have building P1, 720S, etc.” Boiled down, that means institutional knowledge, and they also know when to propose curbing your egregious enthusiasms. There will be no whale penis leather here, thank you, now let’s move on.

Ultimately, a configurator is a configurator – the mechanics of selection and dialogue boxes apply equally to cars, dress shirts, and pizza. The difference with the Senna is in having oh-so-many-more dialogue boxes, as well as two Ye Olde Worlde assistants, champagne, and petits-fours. And this comes before one casts about for unique electives. I heard a client from a previous car sent half a hair dryer to be color-matched – just the kind of fantastic eccentricity I expect from the word “bespoke”.

An MSO briefcase on the table in front of me provided abundant starting points: exterior paint swatches, carbon fiber colors, stitch types and thread colors, laser-etched accelerator pedals, different finishes for the rather large key, a sample of the 24-carat gold engine bay heat shield. The configurator explodes the magnitude of choice, presenting 15 menus, each commanding a multitude of possibilities for component particulars such as exterior paint, stripe patterns, wheel lock nut color, aero blade finish, and rear wing end plate color. After that come 21 “Yes/No” options for items such as a fire extinguisher, MSO Push-to-Drink system, parking sensors, and floor mats. McLaren said the process usually takes about 1.5 hours, yet that must represent an average of extremes; analysis paralysis is real, so you either go in knowing what you want, or you spend four hours making love to six different shades of periwinkle.

I normally buy black cars with black interiors, a routine I’d have been happy to maintain with the high-tech Erector Set Senna. I’m not alone: of the 11 Sennas seen on the road as of writing, ten of them wore dark, solid colors.

But where’s the client roleplay in that? I swung for deep left, asking if I could get an ochre-like exterior paint. The configurator didn’t have that, but naturally I could have ordered it. I then requested the red carbon fiber body, but the screen made the red look purple, and I wasn’t ready to put my name on a purple Senna. I ended up with Silica White, offset by one of the five available stripe patterns in Amazon Colorstream, a lustrous, chromatic turquoise-y hue that changes with the light. Emily told me she didn’t think anyone had specced stripes in a Colorstream finish, which I took as configurator victory. Wheel lock nuts in Amazon Colourstream secured Graphite Grey Ultra-Lightweight nine-spoke alloys, with Fistral Blue brake calipers behind.

Except for the McLaren Orange three-point seatbelt and six-point harness, I held back on the inside. Even on the giant screen, the cabin appeared so intimate, and there were so many trim pieces available to color, that the aesthetic could quickly veer into Skittles. That meant Carbon Black Alcantara throughout with clear satin carbon fiber accents. Clear Gorilla Glass for door uppers and lowers and the rear bulkhead, and door struts in Amazon Colorstream, would forestall any dungeon sensations. I opted for the Super-Lightweight Carbon Fiber Race Seats, in the Touring size for my American hips. And I splurged on an adjustable passenger seat, because of course. I chose the Owner’s Manual and System Language in U.K. English, because I’m posh. I said yes to every other option, like air conditioning and the seven-speaker Bowers & Wilkins audio, because fantasy configurator money never runs out.

Including all of my questions, the process took just over an hour. If I were a real client, though, I know I’d still be there, stuck in protracted philosophical debates as to which of the 12 tints of black best expressed my élan. My advice to any future clients: even if you know what you want, bring lunch.

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May 8, 2018 / Comments Off

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Like dragons? The 2018 McLaren 570GT Cabbeen Collection is for you!

McLaren must be doing good business with its McLaren Special Operations (MSO) special edition supercars because it has just released another, and like with the Canada Commission, this one takes its inspiration from a specific country, namely China. It’s called the 2018 McLaren 570GT Cabbeen Collection, and was developed in conjunction with a Chinese fashion designer simply referred to as Mr. Cabbeen. We suspect that it received the name “collection” because of the connection to fashion, despite the special edition being just one model.

The 570GT Cabbeen Collection is instantly recognizable by its black paint scheme with gold wheels, gold brake calipers and gold dragons painted in the intake scallops. It does revive memories of the garish Jeep Wrangler Dragon Edition, but the McLaren is admittedly much more tasteful. It also boasts some fine craftsmanship, since the dragons are hand painted.

Inside, the theme continues with gold dragons embroidered into the center tunnel and the cargo area. They are done in an embroidery style specific to China known as Chao, and they were put in by the Director of the Professional Embroidery Committee of China’s Arts and Crafts Institute (now that’s a job – Ed.). This is all a far cry from cheap stickers and color-coordinated stitching.

Unlike the McLaren 570S Spider Canada Commission, the 570GT Cabbeen Collection will be available globally. But if you want one, speak up quickly, because only five will be built. Pricing was not revealed, but expect something well into the six figures.

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April 25, 2018 / Comments Off

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McLaren’s MSO makes this 720S supercar even more super

McLaren has brought a special edition of its already stunning and supremely quick 720S supercar to this year’s Geneva Motor Show. Designed by McLaren Special Operations, this one-of-a-kind creation is finished in “Atlantic Blue” paint and comes with a tastefully understated “Saddle Tan” leather interior with contrasting grey stitching.

To drive the point home that this car is unique, McLaren’s press release offers the gentle reminder that “even the floor mats are bespoke.” So, don’t expect to find suitably stylish replacements at your local NAPA auto parts store, ladies and gentlemen.

McLaren’s MSO branch is basically the British automaker’s tailor-made service for its range of performance cars. Oftentimes the creations are true one-offs, entirely commissioned by well-heeled clientele who want their car to stand out from the masses. Not that McLaren creations are exactly clogging up parking lots, but, hey, if you have it then why not flaunt it?

MSO does occasionally build a limited series of vehicles, like the 10 race-inspired 570S sports cars finished in paint jobs similar to the liveries of McLaren F1 GTR race cars from the 1990s.

If you have to ask the price, well, then you probably shouldn’t be shopping for customized McLarens.
The standard McLaren 720S starts at approximately $288,000, putting it right in the middle of the company’s lineup. Considering the owner of the Geneva Motor Show car didn’t specify gold-flake fenders, or an interior constructed out of platinum-plated Lego blocks, it’s safe to assume this car doesn’t streak too ridiculously far into the fiscal stratosphere.

Engine power remains the same. The twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V8 nestled in the carbon fiber chassis produces 710 horsepower and 568 pound-feet of torque. Punch the gas pedal, and the 720S needs less than 3.0 seconds to sprint from 0 to 60 miles per hour. The top speed is 212 mph.

And did we mention how incredibly fast all this feels in real life? In our review of this ballistic British supercar, Mike Austin summed up just how rapid your first impression will be. “The 720S is so fast that there’s no warming up to it. Almost immediately you’re driving at speeds that, in pretty much any other car would mean imminent calamity.”

He also praised the fact that getting the most out of the 720S demands attention and skill, not just a heavy right foot. “In our world of point-and-shoot supercars,” he summarized, “McLaren made the 720S a true driver’s car.”

So the car is special. And the one at Geneva? Just a little more special.

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March 7, 2018 / Comments Off

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