India’s Spice King Buys Kerala’s First McLaren GTS Supercar
Dr. Viju Jacob is a wealthy businessman from Kerala. He is the chairman of Synthite Industries. As his business deals with spices and is one of the world’s largest spice-extracting firms, he is often referred to as the “Spice King.” Like most rich businessmen around the world, Viju Jacob also has a collection of expensive cars, and he recently added one more vehicle to his garage. He has become the owner of Kerala’s first McLaren GTS sports car.
The images have been shared by Modz Own Kerala on their Instagram page. In the post, we see Dr. Viju Jacob along with his family members taking delivery of their new sports car. McLaren officially entered the Indian market a couple of years ago and is offering its entire model lineup to customers. At the moment, McLaren has only one dealership in India, located in Mumbai.
The car purchased by Viju Jacob is finished in an orange shade, and from the images, it appears that the interiors are all black, possibly with carbon fibre elements. The exact details of the cabin are not available at the moment.
The GTS is the updated version of the GT and is the entry-level sports car from the brand. By entry-level, we do not mean that the GTS is underpowered or a regular car by any means. The McLaren GTS is powered by a 4.0-litre twin-turbo petrol engine that generates 611 bhp and 630 Nm of peak torque. The engine is mated to a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission, and it can sprint from 0–100 kmph in just 3.2 seconds. The top speed of the GTS is 326 kmph.
McLaren offers the GTS in the Indian market at Rs 4.50 crore, ex-showroom. Just like most sports cars, a host of customisation options are available with McLaren. The brand is also offering a pre-configured add-on pack for the GT or GTS at Rs 29.77 lakh. We are not sure if Mr. Jacob opted for any customisations or add-on packs for his new car.
As mentioned above, this is not the first time Dr. Viju Jacob has purchased an expensive car. Here is a quick look at some of the other vehicles in his collection.
Last year, Viju Jacob became the proud owner of a brand-new Ferrari Roma supercar. The car costs over Rs 3 crore and is powered by a 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8 engine. It produces 612 bhp and 760 Nm of peak torque.
Last year, he bought a Land Rover Defender 110 finished in gloss black with red accents. He opted for the 3.0-litre diesel variant of the SUV. The Defender is a legendary off-roader, known for its ability to offer luxury features without compromising on off-road capability.
A week before buying the Land Rover Defender, he took delivery of his all-new BMW M4 Competition. It is finished in a stunning Isle of Man Green Metallic shade and features a green exterior with orange-coloured interiors. The car is powered by a 3.0-litre twin-turbocharged straight-six petrol engine that generates 530 PS and 650 Nm of peak torque.
Another SUV in his collection is a 3.0-litre V6 diesel Range Rover Sport that produces around 255 bhp and 600 Nm of peak torque.
Dr. Jacob also owns a BMW M340i sedan. This high-performance version of the BMW 3 Series features a turbocharged inline-six engine that makes 382 bhp and 500 Nm of torque. It can accelerate from 0 to 100 kmph in just 4.4 seconds. He has taken delivery of this sedan in a white shade.
It appears that he is a big-time BMW enthusiast. Apart from the recently purchased M4, he also owns a BMW M2 Competition.
In addition to the cars mentioned above, he also owns vehicles such as the BMW 7 Series, BMW XM, Porsche Panamera, Mercedes-Benz E-Class, Mercedes-Benz G-Wagen, Rolls-Royce Cullinan Series II, Maybach GLS 600, and more.