McLaren has recreated its first ever supercar (and it’s not the F1)
Before the F1, there was the M6 GT. McLaren has restored an example of its original roadgoing supercar from the 1970s
Before Ron Dennis, before Gordon Murray, 25 years before the F1, there was desire within McLaren to take the the name to the road. It was the intention of Bruce McLaren himself and he very nearly managed it, with the M6GT. It's a part of the genesis of the supercar, that we explored during issue 346 of evo, our Supercar Eras special. Now McLaren Special Operations has developed a recreation of the road car using a historic race M6 chassis and reference materials.
The bodywork was recreated using recently recovered period moulds and painted in Colnbrook white, a reference to McLaren’s old base close to Heathrow airport. MSO specialists hand-crafted the hidden structural elements required for the Can-Am M6A chassis – originally an open-cockpit car – to underpin the closed-cockpit road car, including the roll hoop, rear frame support structure and internal clam reinforcement.
Under the skin, the restoration uses restored original M6GT suspension, including a recreation of pre-metric system bearings. Craftsmen from the aerospace industry were even drafted in to create period-correct fasteners.
The windscreen is a bespoke item made using scans of an existing car, while the interior – standout in freen – features a solid walnut shifter designed to emulate the original cars. The engine is a period-correct GM small-block V8.
Bruce himself used the first prototype as his personal transport between meetings but a change in Group 4 racing homologation rules and his eventual tragic passing put paid to the project. Just three M6 GTs were made – one prototype and two promotional/show vehicles by McLaren’s original intended production partner, Trojan. This fourth car will be shown in completed form at the 2026 Goodwood Festival of Speed. It will be joined by other historical and current models on display, while McLaren's new hypercar, the W1, will make its debut on the hillclimb.
