McLaren reveals the 570GT

The press announcement for the new McLaren 570GT is filled with foreign words and phrases — things like "practical", "comfortable", luxurious" and "relaxing". It's quite confusing, but as car writers, it is our job to decipher the indecipherable. The 570GT, I discerned after a brief OED consultation, appears to be some sort of practical, comfortable, luxurious and relaxing McLaren. Imagine that.

This is the third model in the British carmaker's entry level Sport Series, joining the very serious 570S and the less-so 540C, and with its kinder, gentler demeanor, it brings along a clever new trick: a boot. The car eschews its stablemates' notchback roofline for a sweeping glass-topped fastback, and the result, with petite engine-lid vents and a modest fixed rear spoiler, is undeniably lovely. Moreover, McLaren opted for a side-opening rear hatch, à la the reasonably attractive Jaguar E-Type coupé. This carbon fibre-framed glass panel opens on the appropriate kerbside for right- or left-hand-drive specification and reveals space enough for a weekend's luggage for two Beautiful People or one Ugly Person and a case of very nice Romanée-Conti. The cargo compartment — McLaren prefers the term "Touring Deck" — is lined with leather and grippy stripes to keep the Louis Vuittons where they belong. (There's also a front boot that seems perfectly sized for the 30-volume Complete Works of Wilkie Collins.)