By Chris Bruce, Motor1.com
The McLaren 600LT's production only lasts 12 months, but Hennessey now offers
power upgrades for the limited-run, hardcore model for any owners who
want to give their rare machine a big increase in output. In the top
HPE1000 trim, the 3.8-liter twin-turbo V8 makes 1,001 horsepower (746
kilowatts) and 865 pound-feet (1,173 Newton-meters) of torque, rather
than the stock figures of 592 hp (441 kW) and 457 lb-ft (620 Nm).
"I decided to buy my 600LT for the same reason I bought a new Ford GT to give our team a solid benchmark for our Venom F5," company boss John Hennessey told Top Gear.
After driving the McLaren, he decided "it was "asking for is more
power" and had his team get to work on upgrades. Hennessey thinks the
600LT with the HPE1000 could be a performance threat to the McLaren Speedtail hypercar.
To obtain such a significant power upgrade for the 600LT, Hennessey
installs revised turbos, a high-flow wastegate, new exhaust hardware, an
upgraded intercooler, high-flow air filters, and Motec engine
management. Tweaks to the seven-speed gearbox make sure the transmission
is strong enough to handle the extra muscle.
Hennessey claims
that a 600LT with the HPE1000 package can reach 60 miles per hour (96
kilometers per hour) in 2.1 seconds and cover the quarter mile in 9.6
seconds. A stock example of the McLaren hits 60 mph in 2.8 seconds.
Hennessey also offers less powerful tunes for the 600LT. The HPE 800
pack bumps the output to 805 hp (600 kW) and 722 lb-ft (979 Nm). The
company claims it gets to 60 mph in 2.4 seconds and sprints through the
quarter mile in 10.1 seconds.
There's also the HPE 700 version
with 708 hp (528 kW) and 635 lb-ft (861 Nm). Reaching 60 mph requires
2.6 seconds, and a run through the quarter mile takes 10.5 seconds.
Hennessey doesn't offer pricing for these packages. However, owners can afford a 600LT's base price of $240,000, then they probably aren't too worried about spending a little more to boost their new car's performance to hypercar levels.
