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McLaren 675LT JVCKenwood concept debuts at CES with all-digital cockpit

The McLaren 675LT is a hardcore version of the 650S, fitted with goodies like massive center-exit exhausts and serious aerodynamic elements. It’s a car built purely for performance, but that didn’t stop McLaren from adding a pinch more technology.

Debuting at the 2016 Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the McLaren 675LT JVCKenwood concept features an interior full of gear from the electronics company it’s named after. JVCKenwood’s Caroptronics system gives the 675LT an all-digital cockpit, while somehow making the interior even more minimalist and spartan than before.

Front and center is a head-up display that replaces the stock gauge cluster. McLaren claims this helps improve driver concentration because it displays information more efficiently, and because the driver doesn’t have to look down to see that information. A digital display also replaces the rear-view mirror, and gets images from three cameras that take the place of conventional external mirrors.

To incorporate all of that hardware, McLaren’s designers actually removed the center console, as well as the air conditioning system. That left just a flat expanse of dashboard with no displays, buttons, or switches whatsoever. All of the necessary controls are located on the steering wheel, which was borrowed from the insane McLaren P1 GTR track car. Designers livened up the stark, mostly black interior with orange (McLaren’s corporate color) and grey trim.

The exterior is almost completely unchanged, save for camera pods in place of the stock side mirrors, and silver stripes with “Kenwood” callouts. At first glance, the 675LT may look similar to the 650S it’s based on, but the LT is substantially different. Aerodynamic tweaks include an air brake that’s 50 percent larger and made from carbon fiber, plus a carbon fiber splitter, side sills, and revised side air intakes designed to generate more downforce.

There are no apparent mechanical changes to the 675LT JVCKenwood concept, not that any were necessary. The car packs a tweaked version of the 3.8-liter twin-turbocharged V8 used in other McLaren models, this time with 666 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque. That will get the 675LT from 0 to 62 mph in 2.9 seconds, and on to a top speed of 205 mph, according to McLaren.

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Stephen Edelstein
Stephen is a freelance automotive journalist covering all things cars. He likes anything with four wheels, from classic cars…
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