McLaren Success
06-03-2017, 06:21 PM
#1051
I just got home from spending 4 days in France with the McLaren F1 club. Got to drive P1, 720S and F1.
I might be one of the few guys on the board here to drive all 3 and owned/own a 675LT/650/12c/p1...
675LT is super stiff and super low and super loud. The transmission programming is amazing. There is a noise and violence present that no porsche other than a CGT can duplicate. The lightweight is apparent with every stab of a pedal. I had been telling everyone that it is my ultimate car- the best and most impressive road car I have ever driven. That's a strong enough statement that I don't need to belabor the point.
The P1 is more dramatic, more extroverted visually and insanely powerful. It folds the horizon into your windshield and no car other than a veyron SS (1200hp version) compares to the warp speed effect above 140mph. It never relents. But on track it has more inertia than the 675 and needs a more delicate and forward looking approach due to higher terminal velocities. The aero advantage on track is prodigious- at buttonwillow, you can go flat from bus stop to phil hill in the dry. At Willow Springs you enter T8 on power at 145-150mph. On street tires.
The 720S:
I turned it on, put it in manual mode, selected Sport/ Sport, and flogged the beans off it for 12 miles on some wide open country roads. It was low on gas so I was limited. There is no car I have ever driven that you can just pound on an uneven and unfamiliar road at 140mph that I have ever driven. The extra torque from the 4.0L vs 3.8 at 4500 rpm is noticeable and it still has that ridiculous top end rip from the 675LT. Because of the suspension compliance and that little bit of extra ground clearance...you can push it harder with less fear of scraping and blasting the chin spoiler. It has the same sensation of lightness of the 675 but the steering is lighter- more like the weight of a 993RS/ GT2 (i forget if the TT had the same sensation) but overall the noise POINTS and the gas pedal explodes the car forward. It is violent. But I am talking full on go to jail or crash the car type speeds. I made zero attempt to pull from 5th gear at 30mph. It was flagrant and dangerous but like I mentioned on the MrJWW and other "semi-press" vids: this car needs a wide road to push it. No guardrails.
The steering wheel is lively in your hands, like the 911R. The power delivery is savage but the noise and alacrity of the 675LT is turned down from 11 to 8.5. The transmission snaps and rips through gears like the LT. It is more civilized for daily use. There will be nothing hanging with it on canyon drives or track days. It's another "3 cars in one" type of car: Long Road Trips, Canyon/Track, Daily Use possible due to the comfort and compliance on road.
I might be one of the few guys on the board here to drive all 3 and owned/own a 675LT/650/12c/p1...
675LT is super stiff and super low and super loud. The transmission programming is amazing. There is a noise and violence present that no porsche other than a CGT can duplicate. The lightweight is apparent with every stab of a pedal. I had been telling everyone that it is my ultimate car- the best and most impressive road car I have ever driven. That's a strong enough statement that I don't need to belabor the point.
The P1 is more dramatic, more extroverted visually and insanely powerful. It folds the horizon into your windshield and no car other than a veyron SS (1200hp version) compares to the warp speed effect above 140mph. It never relents. But on track it has more inertia than the 675 and needs a more delicate and forward looking approach due to higher terminal velocities. The aero advantage on track is prodigious- at buttonwillow, you can go flat from bus stop to phil hill in the dry. At Willow Springs you enter T8 on power at 145-150mph. On street tires.
The 720S:
I turned it on, put it in manual mode, selected Sport/ Sport, and flogged the beans off it for 12 miles on some wide open country roads. It was low on gas so I was limited. There is no car I have ever driven that you can just pound on an uneven and unfamiliar road at 140mph that I have ever driven. The extra torque from the 4.0L vs 3.8 at 4500 rpm is noticeable and it still has that ridiculous top end rip from the 675LT. Because of the suspension compliance and that little bit of extra ground clearance...you can push it harder with less fear of scraping and blasting the chin spoiler. It has the same sensation of lightness of the 675 but the steering is lighter- more like the weight of a 993RS/ GT2 (i forget if the TT had the same sensation) but overall the noise POINTS and the gas pedal explodes the car forward. It is violent. But I am talking full on go to jail or crash the car type speeds. I made zero attempt to pull from 5th gear at 30mph. It was flagrant and dangerous but like I mentioned on the MrJWW and other "semi-press" vids: this car needs a wide road to push it. No guardrails.
The steering wheel is lively in your hands, like the 911R. The power delivery is savage but the noise and alacrity of the 675LT is turned down from 11 to 8.5. The transmission snaps and rips through gears like the LT. It is more civilized for daily use. There will be nothing hanging with it on canyon drives or track days. It's another "3 cars in one" type of car: Long Road Trips, Canyon/Track, Daily Use possible due to the comfort and compliance on road.
seriously considering the 720 to replace both my cars....Pretty much everything is fast out there nowadays....big question is how is the drive emotionally?
06-03-2017, 09:57 PM
#1052
Rennlist Member
As long as you don't get a 720 with electrical gremlins. Of course these cars are awesome when they work. Roll the dice with your $300+k and hope you get a good one.
I've been without my McLaren for a month now. McLaren doesn't even talk to me or give me updates. Nothing.
I've been without my McLaren for a month now. McLaren doesn't even talk to me or give me updates. Nothing.
06-03-2017, 10:13 PM
#1053
Race Director
Cj, everything you wrote above would have been compelling had you not also written "f1".. I couldn't read anything else as I was skimming looking for info on that. Holy grail. Start a thread and go into every nook and cranny description. Thanks
06-04-2017, 01:12 AM
#1054
Platinum Dealership
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Originally Posted by CAlexio
Cj, everything you wrote above would have been compelling had you not also written "f1".. I couldn't read anything else as I was skimming looking for info on that. Holy grail. Start a thread and go into every nook and cranny description. Thanks
06-04-2017, 01:13 AM
#1055
Platinum Dealership
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Originally Posted by kyrocks
As long as you don't get a 720 with electrical gremlins. Of course these cars are awesome when they work. Roll the dice with your $300+k and hope you get a good one.
I've been without my McLaren for a month now. McLaren doesn't even talk to me or give me updates. Nothing.
I've been without my McLaren for a month now. McLaren doesn't even talk to me or give me updates. Nothing.
06-05-2017, 06:48 AM
#1056
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You can probably make the meme better but I just imagined your computer screen had a huge 300pt font sized word "F1" in bold red covering up entire CJ's post.
06-05-2017, 10:15 AM
#1057
Race Director
Originally Posted by chaosoul
You can probably make the meme better but I just imagined your computer screen had a huge 300pt font sized word "F1" in bold red covering up entire CJ's post.
06-05-2017, 11:46 AM
#1058
Three Wheelin'
For a new and upcoming exotic car brand, the dealership and McLaren NA should be bending over backwards to keep the customers happy. The client should not have to go out of his way to contact the dealership/McLaren NA himself. The 570s is a very tempting car an used it is only slightly more than an optioned GT3. The main thing keeping many from getting one is the reliability and dealership service quality.
06-05-2017, 03:26 PM
#1059
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You are a true enthusiast. You should complain to McLaren you should get an allocation for one of the 106 allocations for McLaren F1 successor. There are so much hype, and people who buy it to collect, or as an investment. Not everyone can have hundreds of millions of dollars, not everyone can buy 1 new McLaren per year, not everyone would want to pay 5 million ADM market price, so what does that leave us the McLaren F1 enthusiasts that just want to drive? These car are meant to be driven, on the track, and not collect dust. There is obviously more demand than 106 McLaren F1, McLaren should build more to demand, easiest fix, build as many cars to fulfill all the demands. Couple million per car, that is leaving a lot of money on the table. Gosh, what about us enthusiasts?
06-05-2017, 04:25 PM
#1060
Rennlist Member
My interest in getting a 570S has been growing over the last few month to the point where I recently decided I would pull the trigger.
After looking at the price of a new one (euro 230+K) vs the price of a <12 month old used car (euro 170K), I decided to look for a low mileage used one and let the first owner take the enormous depreciation hit.
I drew up a list of must have options (white, orange calipers, front lift, sports exhaust, camera, etc) and went on the hunt. But here's my problem.
I have now driven 3 cars that largely met my requirements but ALL had electrical problems on the test drive. The first one threw an engine fault, the second the dashboard could not be reconfigured ignoring all efforts to change it, and on the third one the reversing camera would not work. I am scheduled to drive a fourth one on Wednesday but I am now reconsidering my decision considering the issues I have faced just on simple test drives. Makes me think these cars were dumped by their previous owners, and one was an ex-Mclaren factory car.
Now I know that this experience may not align with others on this forum but 3 fails out of 3 cars is not good for my perception of the level of reliability I will get from the brand.
After looking at the price of a new one (euro 230+K) vs the price of a <12 month old used car (euro 170K), I decided to look for a low mileage used one and let the first owner take the enormous depreciation hit.
I drew up a list of must have options (white, orange calipers, front lift, sports exhaust, camera, etc) and went on the hunt. But here's my problem.
I have now driven 3 cars that largely met my requirements but ALL had electrical problems on the test drive. The first one threw an engine fault, the second the dashboard could not be reconfigured ignoring all efforts to change it, and on the third one the reversing camera would not work. I am scheduled to drive a fourth one on Wednesday but I am now reconsidering my decision considering the issues I have faced just on simple test drives. Makes me think these cars were dumped by their previous owners, and one was an ex-Mclaren factory car.
Now I know that this experience may not align with others on this forum but 3 fails out of 3 cars is not good for my perception of the level of reliability I will get from the brand.
Late last week I inspected another low mileage 570S...and guess what....more electrical problems.
Hopped in car, turned the systems on (not the engine) and the ventilation fans kicked in. The sales rep said, that was normal, it will stop in moment. 5 minutes later after trying all manner of things (hopping out, closing doors, locking car, etc) the fans were still going. The rep then said "I don't understand it. Its never done this before". After around 10mins they magically stopped of their own accord. Didn't even make it of the showroom.
So that's 4 fails out of 4 cars. I am now convinced the previous owners dumped these cars because of electrical faults. It's a pity because I really like the 570 but am not going to risk the heartache.
06-05-2017, 04:31 PM
#1061
Ok, that's it. I'm out.
Late last week I inspected another low mileage 570S...and guess what....more electrical problems.
Hopped in car, turned the systems on (not the engine) and the ventilation fans kicked in. The sales rep said, that was normal, it will stop in moment. 5 minutes later after trying all manner of things (hopping out, closing doors, locking car, etc) the fans were still going. The rep then said "I don't understand it. Its never done this before". After around 10mins they magically stopped of their own accord. Didn't even make it of the showroom.
So that's 4 fails out of 4 cars. I am now convinced the previous owners dumped these cars because of electrical faults. It's a pity because I really like the 570 but am not going to risk the heartache.
Late last week I inspected another low mileage 570S...and guess what....more electrical problems.
Hopped in car, turned the systems on (not the engine) and the ventilation fans kicked in. The sales rep said, that was normal, it will stop in moment. 5 minutes later after trying all manner of things (hopping out, closing doors, locking car, etc) the fans were still going. The rep then said "I don't understand it. Its never done this before". After around 10mins they magically stopped of their own accord. Didn't even make it of the showroom.
So that's 4 fails out of 4 cars. I am now convinced the previous owners dumped these cars because of electrical faults. It's a pity because I really like the 570 but am not going to risk the heartache.
06-05-2017, 08:28 PM
#1063
Rennlist Member
With all due respect to the current McLineup, here's what I took away from your post:
Don't leave us hanging bud! We want to hear about the F1!!
Don't leave us hanging bud! We want to hear about the F1!!