Legendary designer Frank Stevenson shares his take on the McLaren Solus GT

Frank Stevenson expresses some design issues with the wild-looking supercar

McLaren Solus GT

Frank Stevenson, now 63, is a renowned automotive designer who has worked for companies such as BMW, Mini, Ferrari, Maserati, Fiat, Lancia, Alfa Romeo and McLaren. Some of his most famous designs are Ford Escort RS Cosworth, Ferrari F430, Maserati MC12, Ferrari FXXand McLaren P1 – these are just some of them. So what does one of the world’s biggest designers think about McLaren’s latest Solus GT supercar? The answer to this question may surprise you.

There are quite a few design elements he would like to change

McLaren Solus GT, front view

The Solus GT began life as The Vision Gran Turismo is a racing concept car in the Gran Turismo video game franchise.. It seems that the British company fell in love with its design and decided to put it into production. The final design retains many of the concept elements, but is it worthy of being a halo car? In a recent video, Stevenson tries to answer that question. The first thing we learn from him is what the car’s name actually means – ‘Solus’ translates to moving forward on your own, and he seems to think it’s not quite the right name for the car.

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Starting with the front end, there are quite a few design elements that he would like to change. While Stevenson likes the large vents designed to direct air under the car, he’s not a big fan of the two small struts that support the fenders. He also doesn’t like the wiper design and thinks the car looks like it has a big body with a small head. Moving from the side, he would like to cover the wheels, and at the back he would like to see a new design of taillights.

The Solus GT comes with a V-10 engine

McLaren Solus GT, rear view

McLaren has introduced a new engine in the Solus GT, a naturally aspirated 5.2-liter V-10 that delivers 829 horsepower and 479 lb-ft of torque. And no, it was not sourced from Lamborghini. The engine sends power to the rear wheels through a seven-speed sequential automatic transmission. With a total weight of 2,205 pounds, the Solus GT accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in just 2.5 seconds and can reach a top speed of 200 mph. The Solus GT is limited to just 25 units, each priced at nearly $4 million. As expected, all units have already been sold.

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