When a carmaker with McLaren’s racing DNA creates a model for one market alone, the gesture carries weight. Japan has long held a special place in the brand’s history, both for the loyalty of its customers and for the success of its cars on Japanese circuits. The new 750S JC96 brings that story full circle. Limited to sixty one cars and offered only in Japan, it pays tribute to the McLaren F1 GTR that secured the All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship in 1996.
The reference is precise. That year, the number sixty one car driven by John Nielsen and David Brabham sealed the title for Team Goh. Its Tiger Stripe livery of Rocket Pink and Tarmac Grey remains one of the most memorable designs of the GT era. The JC96 does not mimic it outright but draws from it. Painted details on the splitter, wing endplates, and mirrors come in Memphis Red, Titanium Silver, Ice White, or Graphite Grey. Four cars will go further, receiving a full hand painted homage from McLaren Special Operations.
The coupé version of the JC96 stays closest to the look of the original racer. The MSO High Downforce Kit reshapes its profile with a dual element front splitter, a raised rear wing with endplates, and a reworked underbody. The new fifteen spoke forged wheel, drawn from the later Longtail cars, enhances the stance and underlines its track focus.
The Spider offers the same technical treatment with a different character. This is the first open McLaren fitted with the High Downforce Kit, a combination that balances precision with the immediacy of driving under an open sky. It makes the tribute more versatile, equally at home on track or on the winding roads of Japan.
Inside, the details are restrained but purposeful. Alcantara dominates in either Carbon Black, Bright Red contrast, or Dove Grey. Gold finished pedals and switches, inspired by the F1 GTR, provide focal points, while embroidered JC96 logos and a dedication plaque anchor the car’s identity. McLaren’s personalization program allows each buyer to go further, from painted key fobs to bespoke interior patterns that reinterpret the Tiger Stripe theme.
Performance remains that of the 750S, McLaren’s lightest and sharpest series production supercar. Its twin turbo V8 sits within the carbon structure and delivers the immediacy expected of the brand. The result is a car already regarded as a benchmark, now wrapped in a story that belongs to one market alone.
McLaren calls the JC96 a love letter to Japan, and the phrase is apt. For collectors, it will be a rare piece tied not only to a racing season nearly three decades past but also to the enduring bond between the marque and a country that has always valued individuality in its cars. It is as much about history as ownership, and in that respect, a fitting tribute.
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