McLaren 720S review: a supercar that treats Bahrain's speed bumps as the real enemy
4/5MotorsSouq Editorial Team
Buy a 720S in Bahrain with your eyes open: there is no McLaren dealer here, so servicing means a planned trip to Kuwait, the UAE or Saudi Arabia, and the car's low nose makes every unmarked speed bump a genuine hazard on local roads. None of that changes what the car is — one of the most rewarding mid-engined supercars of its generation, with a ride that is unexpectedly liveable for what it is. It rewards an owner who treats it as a weekend car and plans logistics like one.
Pros
- 720 PS twin-turbo V8 with genuine top-end drama and a chassis that makes it feel manageable
- Surprisingly liveable ride quality on the softest suspension setting
- Cooling system engineered for track use shrugs off Bahrain's summer heat
- Healthy cross-border GCC resale for well-documented, low-mileage cars
Cons
- No McLaren dealer or authorised workshop anywhere in Bahrain
- Very low ground clearance is a genuine risk on unmarked local speed bumps
- Routine servicing means planning a trip to Kuwait, the UAE or Saudi Arabia
- Stationary traffic draws more attention than most owners want in a car this low
The numbers still land: 720 PS from a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8, 0-100 km/h in under three seconds, and a carbon-fibre monocoque that keeps the whole car under 1,500 kg. What separates the 720S from a lot of supercars in this price bracket is that it does not punish you for driving it gently — the ride on the softest setting is genuinely usable, and visibility out of the dihedral doors is better than the styling suggests.
The Bahrain-specific problems
None of that solves the two issues that actually matter here. First, ground clearance: at roughly 107 mm unladen, the 720S's front splitter is at genuine risk from Bahrain's aggressive, inconsistently marked speed bumps, and even careful owners report scrapes on ordinary residential streets. Second, there is no McLaren dealer or authorised workshop in the country — the nearest are in Kuwait, the UAE and Saudi Arabia, which means routine servicing, software updates and anything beyond basic detailing require planning a trip or shipping the car.
Summer heat is more manageable than the clearance issue: the cooling system is engineered for far hotter track conditions than a Manama traffic jam, and the cabin air conditioning copes with 45°C days without drama, though sitting in stationary traffic in a car this low and this loud draws more attention than most owners want.
Who this actually suits
The 720S belongs to a buyer who already owns a daily car, treats this as a weekend and causeway-run machine, and is realistic about the logistics of regional servicing. Resale within the GCC is healthy for well-documented, low-mileage cars, since buyers across the region shop across borders for exactly this model. As a driving experience it remains excellent; as a Bahrain ownership proposition, it demands more planning than the badge lets on.