Limited-edition McLaren 720S gets hand-painted Gulf Oil livery

The in-house bespoke arm of luxury supercar maker McLaren Automotive, McLaren Special Operations (MSO), has unveiled a bespoke Gulf Oil-liveried McLaren 720S resplendent with the brand’s iconic racing colors.

The project is part of the renewed relationship between McLaren and Gulf. The oil company returned as an official partner for the personalization possibilities available on McLaren’s supercars. 

McLaren first partnered with Gulf in both Formula 1 and Can-Am from 1968 to 1973. The association was revived in the 1990s with the GTC Competition team’s legendary McLaren F1 GTRs, with victory in the 1996 BPR Global Endurance Series, and the GT1 Class at the 24 hours of Le Mans in 1997.

Having reunited again in 2020, this year Gulf became the preferred lubricant supplier to McLaren Automotive, with all cars to be filled with Gulf oil and fuel  for high performance engines.

A limited number of customers will exclusively have the opportunity to have their McLaren supercars hand-painted by MSO in Gulf livery. The 720S seen here is the culmination of a joint project between MSO and Gulf.

The British marque said it worked closely with the oil company to "ensure a perfectly color-matched range of paints in metallic and solid finishes that capture both of their unique identities."

Having tried several iterations to create the perfect finish from AkzoNobel’s exhaustive pallet of premium automotive paint hues, the definitive version alone is the product of 20 days of work by MSO’s craftsmen and women. AkzoNobel is McLaren's paint technology partner. 

In addition to the iconic racing blue and orange colors, MSO has echoed the Gulf solid orange hue on the brake calipers. The interior of this 720S wears matching blue and orange stitching with Gulf logos embroidered on the headrests and painted on the sills.

The famous McLaren steering wheel incorporates a center band to match the exterior stripe in Gulf's solid orange and solid dark blue on the visual carbon fiber spokes.

“McLaren Automotive has firmly established itself as the pioneering supercar company within just 10 years, but the McLaren brand has a remarkable history before this and it is always great to see customers embracing famous liveries on modern McLaren supercars," McLaren CEO Mike Flewitt said.

“The 720S in Gulf colors celebrates two high-performance brands who draw on a deep automotive and racing history that have embarked on a new strategic partnership to excite customers and fans around the world." Flewitt added. 

Meanwhile, Gulf Oil CEO Mike Jones expressed: “McLaren is a brand that shares our future aspirations and our ambition for innovation, and we look forward to developing our relationship further in the years to come.”

The 720S is a mid-engine supercar powered by a twin-turbocharged V8 engine producing up to 720hp and 770Nm of torque. It can accelerate to 100kph from standstill in just 2.9 seconds and has a maximum speed of 341kph.

Its carbon fiber Monocage II chassis contributes to a class-leading lightest dry weight of 1,283 kilograms, while Proactive Chassis Control II suspension and active aerodynamics "help to unleash this sensational performance on both road and track."

Photos from McLaren

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