Making History Feel Like the Future

At the 2026 Monterey Car Week, McLaren Automotive revealed the McL 6GT. The first McLaren car of its kind, its design connects McLaren’s heritage to the present, using the McLaren M6GT – Bruce McLaren’s original but unfulfilled supercar dream – as its inspiration.

While this is just a concept at the moment, a production version of the McL 6GT will be arriving in 2028.

The McL 6GT blends its purity of character with lightweight carbon-fibre construction, V8 internal combustion power, and for the first time in a McLaren since the legendary McLaren F1, an authentic manual transmission sending drive to the rear wheels.

“The McLaren McL 6GT imagines what our inspirational founder had wished to complete but with six additional decades of innovation and passion woven through every element,” says Nick Collins, Chief Executive Officer, McLaren Automotive, “creating a modern icon of driver connection. It is symbolic of the bold, provocative and hugely exciting future that we are preparing to realise.”

McLaren honoured Bruce’s in-period vision for the M6GT when it presented a meticulously assembled one-off of the original at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed. It’s a gorgeous car. The next leap is the McL 6GT which takes this celebration of McLaren’s road car origins to the next level.

The McL 6GT sits exceptionally low and wide with a low nose, echoing the stance of the M6A Can-Am racer upon which the M6GT was based. The body surfacing is clean, with uninterrupted volumes flowing from the low nose to the distinctive Kammback tail.

The McL 6GT bridges the gap between the eras, reimagining its street-car origins with the latest super-lightweight carbon fibre monocoque technology, combined with carbon fibre bodywork.

It doesn’t shirk its Kiwi roots either with a three-dimensional Speedy Kiwi set within its upright. McLaren’s signature has been etched onto the engine bay, and another Speedy Kiwi has been smuggled away onto the fuel cap.

The distinctive ‘Racing Loop’ motif inspired by the M6GT’s original taillights is integrated into the exterior airflow architecture and boxed quilting is reinterpreted for a modern audience, while the new digital instrumentation retains the clarity and emotional appeal of the original. Together, these elements create a cockpit that feels both forward-looking and unmistakably connected to McLaren’s heritage.