A manual gearbox has been missing from McLaren’s road cars for more than three decades. Now the company is finally bringing three pedals back with the new McL 6GT.
The McL 6GT is currently a concept, but it previews a production model due in 2028. A V8 sends power to the rear wheels through a six-speed manual gearbox, making this the first manual McLaren road car since the legendary F1 arrived in 1992.
That connection is hard to ignore, though McLaren is not pitching the new car as an F1 successor. Its real inspiration goes back even further to Bruce McLaren’s M6GT, an experimental road car created from the company’s Can-Am racing programme in the late 1960s.
You can see plenty of that influence in the design. The McL 6GT has a low nose, vertically arranged headlights and a Kamm-style tail, giving it a cleaner look than many modern supercars. Carbon fibre is used for both the monocoque and bodywork, keeping McLaren’s familiar lightweight construction beneath the retro-inspired shape.
Inside, the manual shifter becomes one of the cabin’s main focal points. Parts of its metal linkage are left exposed, reinforcing the more mechanical feel McLaren is aiming for. On top of that, hydraulic steering and more traditional controls carry the same idea through the rest of the driving experience.
Performance figures are still being kept quiet, so there is no confirmed power output or acceleration time yet. What McLaren has made clear is that the production McL 6GT will sit outside its regular portfolio as a new, highly exclusive type of supercar.
It may not be another F1, but a V8, rear-wheel drive and a genuine manual gearbox give the McL 6GT something no new McLaren has offered in decades. For drivers who have missed that more mechanical side of the brand, that alone makes it a very interesting return.