650S crashed into a tree on its first outing! :(
Discussion
Surely cars like this Mclaren are pretty much ALL bought by enthusiasts.
Why on earth would you spend more than £200,000 on a car if you weren't into cars?
I can accept they might not be getting up at the crack of dawn to watch a Welsh Rally stage in the rain or comparing the relative merits of understeer and oversteer but I think it's a misconception that people who buy these cars aren't into cars.
Of course they want to be looked at but if the car is their means of doing so, as far as I'm concerned they are car people.
Why on earth would you spend more than £200,000 on a car if you weren't into cars?
I can accept they might not be getting up at the crack of dawn to watch a Welsh Rally stage in the rain or comparing the relative merits of understeer and oversteer but I think it's a misconception that people who buy these cars aren't into cars.
Of course they want to be looked at but if the car is their means of doing so, as far as I'm concerned they are car people.
br d said:
croyde said:
Durzel said:
croyde said:
It ires me that these enthusiast cars are so expensive that they are mainly bought by t
ts that just want to show off how much money they have, rather than by people who enjoy driving and have some skill/common sense.
You're extrapolating a hell of a lot from one photo/story, no?ts that just want to show off how much money they have, rather than by people who enjoy driving and have some skill/common sense.
Must be my coming off anti depressants.Normal service will return.........hopefully
TheJimi said:
To be fair, while I wouldn't have put it quite as strongly as Croyde did, I do wonder what proportion of such cars do actually end up in the hands of genuine enthusiasts.
I can only go by personal experience Jim but over the years and a few different Supercar marques I have met many owners at meets and the like and can't think of anyone who has obviously just bought the car to look good. A 650S with decent options is well north of 200K and not cheap to run, I think you need to be into more than just image to take that road. Of course that isn't to say there aren't some about who only want to look good, a large proportion of the Sloane Street gang would probably fall into that category.
No idea what's happened with this bloke and his accident, the suggestion that he might have let somebody behind the wheel he shouldn't have done seems reasonable.
Regarding your point about new owners needing some experience I'm a bit torn on. I do feel that if you've passed your test and are insured then you've covered all the legal ground so why not? I don't particularly want to see another layer of bureaucracy.
However you are certainly right that these cars are a world away from "normal" driving experience, I worked up over many years so know what to expect in a new Supercar but if you just got in it and floored it something like a 650S is going to completely blow your mind if you haven't driven anything like that before.
So my answer is yes and no.
croyde said:
Thanks Br d. Only joshing Must be my coming off anti depressants.
Normal service will return.........hopefully
No offence meant. Must be my coming off anti depressants.Normal service will return.........hopefully
I haven't done anti-depressants but I've experience of differing predniselone dosages and that certainly makes me come across as weird! I really shouldn't post when I'm on a down cycle.
Good luck.
br d said:
TheJimi said:
To be fair, while I wouldn't have put it quite as strongly as Croyde did, I do wonder what proportion of such cars do actually end up in the hands of genuine enthusiasts.
I can only go by personal experience Jim but over the years and a few different Supercar marques I have met many owners at meets and the like and can't think of anyone who has obviously just bought the car to look good. A 650S with decent options is well north of 200K and not cheap to run, I think you need to be into more than just image to take that road. Of course that isn't to say there aren't some about who only want to look good, a large proportion of the Sloane Street gang would probably fall into that category.
No idea what's happened with this bloke and his accident, the suggestion that he might have let somebody behind the wheel he shouldn't have done seems reasonable.
Regarding your point about new owners needing some experience I'm a bit torn on. I do feel that if you've passed your test and are insured then you've covered all the legal ground so why not? I don't particularly want to see another layer of bureaucracy.
However you are certainly right that these cars are a world away from "normal" driving experience, I worked up over many years so know what to expect in a new Supercar but if you just got in it and floored it something like a 650S is going to completely blow your mind if you haven't driven anything like that before.
So my answer is yes and no.
Like or not, such cars are status symbols, and a proportion of them will be purchased as such. My musing is exactly what proportion...
As for the skills thing, again, just another musing. I don't think I'd seriously want another layer of legislation but equally, it IS a bit mental the level of performance that can be accessed with the only barrier to entry being financial one.
J4CKO said:
TheJimi said:
Have to admit, I do sometimes think that after a certain power to weight threshold, there should be a competency test of sorts before one is allowed to purchase and drive.
Ditto bikes and I mean beyond the standard direct access stuff.
I'm a dyed in the wool petrolhead and libertarian, but it *is* kinda ludicrous that anyone with a licence can drive any level of performance car.
Yeah, I dont think a lot can comprehend how ridiculously fast these kind of cars are, I think most will be enthusiasts who have gone through the ranks and incrementally got to the utter mentalness that is something like this McLaren but say your average lottery winner, the ones that dont go kerr-azy and buy a new Fiesta, say going from a Diesel hatch like a Megane or Golf wont know what has hit them, even serial petrolheads used to fairly quick stuff will need to get dialled in to something like that.Ditto bikes and I mean beyond the standard direct access stuff.
I'm a dyed in the wool petrolhead and libertarian, but it *is* kinda ludicrous that anyone with a licence can drive any level of performance car.
Add in how low they are, the fact they are mid engined etc, even though they have ESP and all that, physics still applies, where a quick prod on the accelerator at 30 in your diesel golf for 3 sec gets you to what, 45, in the Mclaren, you are doing 100 or therabouts.
So yes, I agree, having 200 grand is not enough qualification to be unleashed with no experience in something like this, not saying that is what happened, even the best, experienced drivers get it wrong but that is unlikely.
Actually, was there a wedding nearby ?
I was at a PR event for Lotus with <sorry name drop alert> Bruno Senna a few years back and we were talking about his 997 GT2RS; his opinion was that they shouldn't sell them to non-racing drivers as he couldn't imagine it being anything other than dangerous to someone that doesn't have a high level of car control to rely on if it starts to go wrong.
Personally I think it's verging on irresponsible and all it will take is one or two high profile accidents to cause serious ructions in the industry. I would consider mandatory driver training courses for the first few owners as an absolute minimum, if only for the manufacturer's to cover their arses.
Starfighter said:
Should be an interesting insurance claim. I assume that the RK will be asked for the name of the driver or have to take responsibility themselves.
If you can afford a £215k car you can also probably afford to fit the repair bill yourself... so might not actually claim.But I'm sure he will inform his insurance company of the incident nether the less, so they can still put up his premium.
Thankyou4calling said:
Surely cars like this Mclaren are pretty much ALL bought by enthusiasts.
Why on earth would you spend more than £200,000 on a car if you weren't into cars?
I can accept they might not be getting up at the crack of dawn to watch a Welsh Rally stage in the rain or comparing the relative merits of understeer and oversteer but I think it's a misconception that people who buy these cars aren't into cars.
Of course they want to be looked at but if the car is their means of doing so, as far as I'm concerned they are car people.
It may be the circles I mix in but I know plenty of people with these sort of cars and can confirm that I know precisely zero who don't have at least a strong interest in cars. They're not always the die hard, statistic quoting, winter tyre enthusiast, bi-monthly oil change anoraks you find at your average owners club get together but they're petrolheads nonetheless. Why on earth would you spend more than £200,000 on a car if you weren't into cars?
I can accept they might not be getting up at the crack of dawn to watch a Welsh Rally stage in the rain or comparing the relative merits of understeer and oversteer but I think it's a misconception that people who buy these cars aren't into cars.
Of course they want to be looked at but if the car is their means of doing so, as far as I'm concerned they are car people.
In my experience at that end of the market you're more likely to find the poser group in the luxury brands like Rolls Royce or Bentley, but still not a high proportion I'd say.
Thankyou4calling said:
Surely cars like this Mclaren are pretty much ALL bought by enthusiasts.
Why on earth would you spend more than £200,000 on a car if you weren't into cars?
Same reason someone would pay £50k on a watch, yet not be a horologistWhy on earth would you spend more than £200,000 on a car if you weren't into cars?
..... or £1M on a seven bedroom house for their 2.4 children
...... or £500k on a boat but not be a marine biologist.
The Wookie said:
It may be the circles I mix in but I know plenty of people with these sort of cars and can confirm that I know precisely zero who don't have at least a strong interest in cars. They're not always the die hard, statistic quoting, winter tyre enthusiast, bi-monthly oil change anoraks you find at your average owners club get together but they're petrolheads nonetheless.
In my experience at that end of the market you're more likely to find the poser group in the luxury brands like Rolls Royce or Bentley, but still not a high proportion I'd say.
Yes I agree.In my experience at that end of the market you're more likely to find the poser group in the luxury brands like Rolls Royce or Bentley, but still not a high proportion I'd say.
I read that people who are fortunate enough to own a Mclaren F1 only buy them as an investment. I don't agree. I accept many, for various reasons aren't driven much but that doesn't mean the owner isn't seriously into cars. I have a number of very expensive watches but I wear a Bulova quartz each day, mostly I just enjoy the watches in their box. It doesn't mean i'm not a watch enthusiast.
There are only about 50 or 60 F1's in the world, I'd wager 90% of the owners are crazy about cars, the fact they don't use the F1 may well be because they have 20 other cars and limitations on their time and location we can't understand.
The investment and "Look at me" will be well down the list of purchasing decisions I think.
Thankyou4calling said:
Yes I agree.
I read that people who are fortunate enough to own a Mclaren F1 only buy them as an investment. I don't agree. I accept many, for various reasons aren't driven much but that doesn't mean the owner isn't seriously into cars. I have a number of very expensive watches but I wear a Bulova quartz each day, mostly I just enjoy the watches in their box. It doesn't mean i'm not a watch enthusiast.
There are only about 50 or 60 F1's in the world, I'd wager 90% of the owners are crazy about cars, the fact they don't use the F1 may well be because they have 20 other cars and limitations on their time and location we can't understand.
The investment and "Look at me" will be well down the list of purchasing decisions I think. Also this was a Mclaren 650s, most wouldn't know what it is, its not like an Aventador or 488 where people swoon at the name.
I read that people who are fortunate enough to own a Mclaren F1 only buy them as an investment. I don't agree. I accept many, for various reasons aren't driven much but that doesn't mean the owner isn't seriously into cars. I have a number of very expensive watches but I wear a Bulova quartz each day, mostly I just enjoy the watches in their box. It doesn't mean i'm not a watch enthusiast.
There are only about 50 or 60 F1's in the world, I'd wager 90% of the owners are crazy about cars, the fact they don't use the F1 may well be because they have 20 other cars and limitations on their time and location we can't understand.
The investment and "Look at me" will be well down the list of purchasing decisions I think. Also this was a Mclaren 650s, most wouldn't know what it is, its not like an Aventador or 488 where people swoon at the name.
Axionknight said:
Fonzey said:
Axionknight said:
Imagine being so blind drunk that you don't remember accepting delivery of a car, going out for a drive, binning it and then fleeing the scene, 
ps: The very particular accents in that film are delivered in perfect tone and manner; his Barbie-esque wife, especially, is iconic in her depiction of a Long Island (pronounced "lawn-guy-lind") version of chav / wide boy spouse.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff