McLaren 750S vs Ferrari 296 GTB | Who makes the better supercar?

This Ferrari 296 GTB makes 819 brake horsepower. The McLaren behind us, the 750S, makes 740 brake horsepower. So in theory we should be disappearing off into the distance but as you can probably see the McLaren's right there in our rear view mirror. Now weight has a big part to play in that. Ferrari costs 1,470 kilos for this car. That's drive without fluids, without a driver. McLaren costs 1,277 kilos. So it's almost 200 kilos lighter than McLaren. And the reason for that is these cars take very different approaches to how they're built and the powertrains they use. So the Ferrari uses aluminium construction. It also takes a leap into the future with a 3-litre twin-turbo V6 plug-in hybrid powertrain. And that's key to this car's performance but it's also key to its weight. But we know this car is brilliant. It makes 819 brake horsepower, 546 pound-foot of torque. Get to 0-62 in 2.9 seconds. Go all the way on to 206 miles an hour and all in a beautiful mid-engined rear-wheel drive Italian supercar. Now the McLaren takes quite a different path. It uses McLaren's carbon-fibre monocage. So a carbon-fibre tub is the core of that car back there. And it uses a 4-litre twin-turbo V8. So more of an old-school sort of choice really. Still there. 4-litre twin-turbo V8 and that helps save that 200 kilos and puts it back in contention. So if I just run those figures through my head, that flips it back in the McLaren's favour actually. 579 brake horsepower per tonne for the McLaren versus 557 for the Ferrari. So that's game on. So you get none of that hybrid stuff with the McLaren. Saves 200 kilos almost and is the newer car in this test. Let's go and park the Ferrari up and see what the deal is with this new McLaren 750S. So if you're an existing 720S owner you might be relieved to see how similar this car looks to its predecessor. If you're thinking of buying a 750S then you might have hoped for a bit more visual differentiation. So what is going on here? Well apparently this front bumper is new. These eye socket intake things here, they're a bit narrower. These alloy wheels, I think they look absolutely fantastic. These are standard across the range and they're also 13.8 kilos lighter than before. So a huge difference in unsprung weight. At the back we've got a larger rear spoiler. We've also apparently got a new rear bumper. A few bits of venting, bits and pieces like that but fundamentally this is a very similar design. So if you speak to the engineers they'll tell you that 30% of parts are either new or changed for the 750S and it's worth reiterating what a huge step forward this car was when it came out. It is a while ago now in 2017 but it was a huge step forward and the engineers they want to make this car lighter, more powerful, more thrilling to drive, more engaging to drive which is hard enough but they want to do that while preserving this car's comfort and its usability that marked it out from the start. So that's pretty easy to say but it's a much harder thing to execute. So what is actually going on here? The 750S evolves the four litre twin turbocharged V8 from the 720S with power increased to 740 brake horsepower and 590 pound foot of torque. That's up from 710 brake horsepower and 568 pound foot of torque. It gets McLaren's triple layer head gasket, pistons from the 765 long tail and a tried and tested method of adding more fuel and upping the boost pressure. There's also a new stainless steel exhaust inspired by the McLaren P1. The seven speed dual clutch gearbox has a new shift map and there's the 15% shorter final drive ratio from the 765 long tail. Springs are 3% softer at the front, 4% stiffer at the rear because the track is six millimetres wider. There's revised geometry and proactive chassis control with its hydraulically interlinked dampers is updated too. We've also got a new faster steering rack with a new electro hydraulic pump. The brakes have also been revised with a new brake booster and vacuum pump and our car is uprated with the Senna monoblock calipers and carbon ceramic discs. The idea really again is just to make this car more visceral to drive so we've got a bit more downforce, 30 kilos less weight, more visceral, more engaging to drive without affecting that daily usability. So let's see how successful they've been. Sitting here is a reminder of what a fantastic environment this is in this car. It's really kind of got a real kind of functional feel, not in a dreary way but in a really kind of serious motorsport focused sort of way. Really nice Alcantara steering wheel, the seats sit you really nice and low down so these are the optional ones obviously but your backside is really low to the ground, feet dead ahead so the driving position is perfect, the visibility is absolutely perfect and behind as well for reversing but the difference is here we've got some different interface for adjusting the powertrain and handling modes and one difference you might notice is if you've been in a 720s the control panel used to be here for adjusting the dynamics. It was like trying to arm a nuclear warhead previously with a button to make it active and then go for the handling and powertrain. It's still on those kind of lines but the interface is borrowed from the Artura on these pods at the back here so McLaren wants to keep this steering wheel nice and pure which I appreciate that and I think this interface is better. They are hidden away behind here but effectively we're pushing buttons here on this side for the powertrain so if I click it to the left that goes up in aggressiveness and then on this side is for the handling and it's the opposite so turn it right towards the centre and you go up in aggressiveness there. Now the engineers I was speaking to were saying all the difference really in this car comes from sport mode so let's put it into sport mode and see how this car feels. So first thing I noticed in this car after driving the 720s previously is the steering actually and it's got more weight to it so the springs are very slightly stiffer at the front. We've got a wider front track as well and I think those things just combine to give this a bit of extra heft. Now I don't think that actually does anything to improve things in this car. It's a bit of a take it or leave it but the steering itself is still, this car's boosty, the steering itself is lovely, hydraulically assisted oh my god! Hydraulically assisted, lovely tingle, a lot of feel and you know a real McLaren trademark and really keys you into what this car is doing. The other thing is the brake pedal you notice I said they've been upgraded the pedal has got a cleaner feel to it than the 720s it always was a bit soft previously so that's very very welcome. It still actually takes a little bit to modulate that once you push into it it's not as bitey as I would like but it's definitely better. Now the interesting thing in the handling mode in sport which is where all the difference comes from in this chassis is I think on this road I would sooner have it in the comfort setting so that benefit of trading up to the 750s I'm not sure I kind of want it that firm so I'm going to take this out of sport and put it back into comfort. Now the other difference is the powertrain of course in sports and I think that is a really worthwhile difference on this car so it gives the engine more it gives it more kind of character more and more volume as well more than anything still has that kind of gruff industrial McLaren sort of sound check which you know I think has come to be a really important part of this car's character. The big thing though I think are the gear shifts in this car they were maybe a little bit soft before they were maybe a little bit soft before in this car you can probably hear them really especially on the downshifts combined with that stiffer kind of firmer brake pedal does give this car a kind of a stronger sort of mechanical precision and you just feel as you're as you're braking and downshifting it feels a lot more connected. We are on PZero Corsa tyres here it's 10 degrees so they are the surface is very slightly damp as well so a bit marginal for these conditions really and you need to get some temperature into them and combined with the character of this engine you know it's quite a boosty engine or a very boosty engine so there's not an awful lot going on below 3000 then it starts to boost and then you're kind of then it sort of spikes so it's a very it's a very dramatic sort of engine it's very engaging it's not very progressive it there's that lag there's then the boost and then there's a real kind of hitter power and my god it's a very very fast exciting car but you do have to watch the way that boost kicks in with the grip at the back it's really quite traction limited so you have to watch that we've got the short to final drive a little bit of extra power as well and you do feel the difference you know the 720s was already a pretty bonkers car a very very fast car a car that already struggled for traction somewhat so once you get this turned on you get this tyre switched on it's much much better but just those first few corners you definitely got my god this thing is vicious just went a little bit light over a crest there and just lights up the rear tyres like that one thing that helps here is the variable drip control so you can turn the esc the stability control to dynamic and then decide how much you want to let the car slip before it intervenes and if you put it in one of its most liberal settings actually it's very very effective and very confidence inspiring and a nice tool to allow you to understand how this car works without having to take a big breath and turn everything off straight away this is a hell of a lot of car for that you know the way the body control the way it soaks up this surface and breathes with it in comfort mode it's a very very complete car the front end maybe doesn't key in to the the turns quite as well as i'd want but honestly it's a it's a very very high benchmark for the mclaren wow that is really something for the ferrari to beat so just before we drive the quick refresher on this car it came out in 2022 and it's the first use of this new three litre twin turbo v6 engine so 120 degree v so nice and low down turbos are mounted hot between that v as well so in the middle of that v and we've got an eight speed dual clutch transmission back there and integrated within that we've got the e-motor for extra power and a 7.4 kilowatt hour battery nestled down here at the back somewhere behind the v6 is a dual clutch gearbox with eight gear ratios as well as an axial flux e-motor while there's a 7.4 kilowatt hour battery behind the passenger compartment the engine makes 654 brake horsepower with another 164 from the e-motor add all that together and you get 819 brake horsepower and 546 pound foot of torque that's pretty much identical to the v12 in the 812 competizione plus you can drive on nothing but electricity at up to 80 miles an hour and for 16 miles at a time the wheelbase is 50 millimeters shorter than the f8 tributo for extra agility and this one's got the assetto fiorano package an option with uprated springs and non-adjustable dampers plus a few lightweight extras including a polycarbonate engine cover and carbon fiber interior door casings it reduces weight by over 12 kilos now the version of the assetto fiorano pack we've got is the extended version that's £25,920 but that is just the tip of the iceberg here so these forged 20 inch alloy wheels are £4,608 payton and baby blue £2,400 and it's £960 for these titanium wheel nuts aluminium brake calipers £1,296 adaptive lights £1,920 £1,574 carbon fiber intake cover £3,072 engine cover in carbon £4,512 rear diffuser in carbon £6,700 air diffuser £3,072 ceramic exhaust pipes £960 under door cover £4,896 £1,056 packs and door glass £2,880 racing stripe a humongous £14,400 now add it all together and those exterior options come to £80,246 and that is the price of a new bmw m3 carbon race seats £5,760 four-point harnesses £2,688 coloured alcantara details carbon car key carbon instrument cluster carbon fiber tunnel trim carbon trunk upper zone leather alcantara floor mats carbon dash inserts prancing horse headrests advanced front driving camera carbon steering wheel with leds racing seat lifter whatever that means color on request leather headliner and finally the surround view the total cost for all interior options is £37,361 so the price of £241,560 goes up to £359,227 with options i suppose you want to know all the mclaren options as well baby blue paint that is £8,200 a bonnet that is carbon fiber painted £7,100 front wings with louvres painted rear bumper in body color with a carbon fiber lower headlights around these gloss finished carbon fiber intakes exterior details carbon fiber pack underbody carbon fiber pack upper structure carbon fiber pack active rear spoiler in a gloss finish the track brake upgrade brake calipers in orange titanium locking wheel nuts £960 front vehicle lift £2,200 the total exterior options are £79,340 so we've got this whole performance interior upgrade that's £6,900 black alcantara steering wheel £520 paddles and steering wheel details in satin carbon fiber super lightweight carbon fiber racing seats and finally 360 degree park assist total interior options £20,420 add it all together and it takes this car's price from £243,500 to £343,260 so immediately this is a very different environment to the mclaren the steering wheel is absolutely covered in buttons we've got our different drive train modes here between you know full e-mode where you can waft around 80 miles an hour up to 60 miles in e-mode all the way through to qualify mode where you know the battery is just fully deployed to give you the maximum performance possible it also feels extremely different to drive god this thing is fast this powertrain is incredible actually the way you know there's some lag a lot of lag in the in the mclaren makes it quite exciting but it's also you know it sort of this is always on it's always ready and you know even though it's a v6 it very much feels like a an authentic ferrari powertrain just pulls instantly revs right out so it's just it's just the best of everything really you've got a naturally aspirated sort of response you've got that turbo torque that's always kicking you can hear the whistle from the turbos and you've it's it's absolutely fantastic brake pedal feels much firmer than the mclaren as well better kind of response in that very kind of instantaneous gear shifts everything snappy and this steering very different it's more of a synthetic feel than the mclaren but it's faster there's less kickback it's a real kind of surgical precision here to this car ferrari's mid-engine v8s have always felt super agile but this definitely takes it up a notch as as crazy as that feels you know it's like those f16 video onboards if you've ever seen those and the fighter jet just pivots on its axis and and twists around that's that's what it feels like here it's just biting at the front in a way the mclaren doesn't quite do and it's playful and responsive and malleable in a way that the mclaren can't quite match yeah when this wet what we got now we got wet weather it's 11 degrees still so uh yeah it's definitely uh it's definitely play time in this thing i think that one thing that's interesting as well versus the the mclaren ferrari when it's in ct off mode is it does give you some slack it does let you play with the car but it still cuts in maybe earlier than i i would then in the wear it's maybe a bit too much so the mclaren actually really impressive in how it allows you to kind of balance that that need to play with the car a little bit more that desire to play with the car a bit more versus you know keeping it in check but the agility the way this car just kind of pivots around you and it grips but when you want it to play it's really playful as well it is a really incredible package that that unbelievably moves it on from those previous models like the 488 gtb and the f8 tributo and we've got the assetto fiorano pack as i mentioned before and i've driven this car on this suspension setup before so around the peak district and it often fell on smaller roads just a little bit too bumpy for me made me wonder that was the right choice but here on these roads it's actually really really good it's a really nice blend i really like it and i think i'd be tempted actually now to expect this just as it is i really don't feel the weight in this car the extra weight versus the mclaren i think that's incredibly impressive and you know the idea that this isn't a ferrari engine it's just ridiculous you know it's so cheerful and i really like actually that you've got that hybrid capability that you can just when you're in traffic we just turn it all the way off to pure electric mode now different display on the dash we can drive home we can leave home in the morning without annoying people and you know sitting in traffic i personally i find it quite tiresome just have a really loud engine going so i think it adds to the experience and it certainly adds performance what an amazing car the ferrari really does set a high bar for the mclaren 750s to clear but this test shows just how evenly matched they are the mclaren unbelievably moves the game on from the sublime 720s particularly the absolute fury of its v8 performance it's more incisive gear shifts and improved brake feel and it does all that while maintaining surprisingly supple suspension nimble handling balance and gorgeously delicate steering i've always loved the 750s front end doesn't bite with quite the authority of the ferrari and the rear end can be a handful when the boost kicks hard but there's real anger and engagement waiting to be exploited for those lucky enough to get the keys hard as it is to compute the 296 takes a pronounced step over ferrari's phenomenal v8 mid-engine models from the zap of its plug-in hybrid powertrain to the reactivity and outright capability of its chassis drive it and you'd never guess it weighs almost 200 kilos more than the mclaren and perhaps even more impressive is how it combines its thrilling driving dynamics with real usability and the feel-good factor of slipping through town emissions free and burning significantly less fuel the ferrari 296 gtb doesn't monster the mclaren 750s but it does narrowly beat it to the top spot in this test