RE: Driven: McLaren MP4-12C

[SonnyM]

davislove said:

anyone know when the uk road tests are likely, far more informative

See here:

http://www.topgear.com/uk/tv-show

[CraigyMc]

sjr-997 said:

I will let you know how it drives tomorrow morning

How did you get on?

[sjr-997]

It is unlikely I will be able to buy one of the first 1000 cars as they have all been sold, but I will definately be buying a macca as soon as I am able. I have never been in anything road legal that delivered that level of power in such a controlled way. (aston's, porsche's, caterhams, m3, rs4, i've driven and owned lots of very quick cars) it just goes to show that in this country we do still have a level of engineering and design brilliance which is the best in the world. what didn't I like...well being picky, the steering wheel is too big, and too high for me (I'm 5ft 6) that's about it really. don't believe what the journo's say. in the right colour combo, this IS as good looking as the 458, but I don't car. from an engineering perspective it is just superb ! Ferrari really need to be worried. By the way, those rumours about Maclaren dis-assembling some 458's. Untrue. Liking the Cayman S. Totally untrue. The passenger car division some way of 'getting back' at Ferrari. Untrue. What I would ask you to do, is genuinely aspire to own one of these cars by working hard to afford one, admire the engineering and design that's gone into it, and admire and congratulate the many, many, hours those guys have spent developing it, and stop buying magazines and newspapers written by wallies that pretend to make you an armchair expert.

[Scuffers]

sjr-997 said:

admire the engineering and design that's gone into it, and admire and congratulate the many, many, hours those guys have spent developing it, and stop buying magazines and newspapers written by wallies that pretend to make you an armchair expert.

well said...

can you add to your review please? really like to hear a first hand experience from a non Juno's perspective...

[flemke]

sjr-997 said:

By the way, those rumours about Maclaren dis-assembling some 458's. Untrue.

They did, however, entirely legally manage to get one of the very first 458s off the production line and scrutinise it from top to toe. Ferrari soon found out about this and were quite bent out of shape.

[sjr-997]

what do you want to know ?

[Scuffers]

sjr-997 said:

what do you want to know ?

well, for starters, would/could you treat it like an everyday road car?

[sjr-997]

yes, definately. that's what i'll be using it for. apart from it being wide. (i think it is a bit wider than my aston) it has better visibility (especially front visibility) and rear is really very good. the mirrors are very well positioned. The visibility at the front is like a very large Elise, but the screen seems to be going lower down than an elise - nice and wide and you can see right into the corners - it would be easy to park forwards into a car park. i like the door opening gadget, neat. cabin space is not crampt at all. in fact very roomy and great head room (though i'm not tall). I was expecting Elise (very familiar with your driver/passenger!) not at all. I could imagine doing many miles in it. lots of stowage space behind seats (certainly enough for a laptop and overnight bags) the only thing that i noticed in terms of ride (and yes, it is very, very smooth indeed for a car like this) - it bottomed out a few times (not alarmingly, just a gentle scrape from somewhere at the front at v slow speed) but i've done that a few times in a 997GT3 as well (at high speed :-) not sure why it did that. i know people sometimes don't like DSG type gearboxes, but i've never been in a car where i didn't hear or feel three changes (at between 10 and 40mph) - brakes are just out of this world (steel ones) - i wish my aston stopped like that and it has great brakes. not a noisy car at all. just right for me. you can keep your sports exhaust thanks. it sounded great on acceleration. ok, so it doesn't sound a ferrari, but i never thought i'd say this, but i prefer it to the v8 of my aston. i thought i might have come to the end of my time when it came to buying nice cars in the last few years, but i've just found something to really aspire to ! it really is something very special.

[Rich_W]

Question.

You mentioned parking. With the car being wider than you expected and the doors opening upwards. Does that rule out multi-storeys (assuming you can find one secure enough) or even houses with slightly smaller garages?

[sjr-997]

i wish i had had time to get a tape measure - as i am thinking the same thing. it won't fit in my garage! the doors open upwards of course, and the doors themselves are wide as they open upwards and outwards. the upper corner of the door will stand just short of 2 Metres from the ground. or to put it another way, you wont be able to open the doors inside a 'normal' garage or car park space. i'm not sure i'd be that worried about where i left it. that might sound strange, but i genuinely dont think it will attract undesirable attention. just one very contraversial point...i've been thinking about the price. i think if they sold it for more like £120k rather than £168 ish, they would have such a great price point and quality combination they would attract porsche and many aston owners. the problem with the price is although it makes it exclusive, (which is of course what they want/need) they can only compete with lambo and ferrari. i think its worth the price they are asking, and they have to make a profit, but if only they could find some way to get nearer £120k, they would really win a lot more customers. i don't think there is anything at £120k that could get close to be honest. lets face facts though, they wont struggle to sell them worldwide.

[waremark]

Is there a boot as well as the luggage space behind the seats?

[sjr-997]

i have to admit i don't know for certain. i suspect that there is no more storage space than what was behind the seats.

[Lazerblue]

sjr Thank you for the great write up.

On the subject of luggage space, found this

http://www.evo.co.uk/features/features/241483/mcla...

"The F1’s central driving position also provides inspiration for the cabin, with controls either side of the driver. Stowage is generous, too. There’s a huge boot in the front (unlike the F1), and room behind the passenger seat for squashy bags. ‘There’s no wasted space,’ says Sheriff, ‘or we’d have made the car smaller".

Thinking that this could be a practical daily driver, is putting evil thoughts in my head about selling one of my houses and dipping into ISA money

Though, the big elephant's in the room are running costs and reliability. That and telling clients I'm upping my mileage rate to £5.00/mile.

[Lazerblue]

Johnny Foreigner seems to like it too...


Quatroroute - Italy http://translate.google.com/translate?tl=en-us&amp...


Omni Auto - Italy http://translate.google.com/translate?tl=en-us&amp...


AutoScout24 - Germany http://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c...


Auto.de - Germany http://translate.googleusercontent.com/translate_c...


Auto Bild - Germany http://translate.google.co.uk/translate?hl=en&...fficial%26tbs%3Dqdr:w%26prmd%3Divns


Irish Times - http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/motors/2011/02...



And finally another British review with short video, for all except Liverpool fans...

The Sun - http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/motors/ken_gi...

[Harry Monk]

sjr-997 said:

stop buying magazines and newspapers written by wallies that pretend to make you an armchair expert.

The same wallies who know whether the thing has a boot or not?

[Davey S2]

flemke said:

sjr-997 said:

By the way, those rumours about Maclaren dis-assembling some 458's. Untrue.

They did, however, entirely legally manage to get one of the very first 458s off the production line and scrutinise it from top to toe. Ferrari soon found out about this and were quite bent out of shape.

I would have loved to be a fly on the wall when they found out.

[Lazerblue]

Davey S2 said:

I would have loved to be a fly on the wall when they found out.

Luca's not happy with the boss at Maranello Sales.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDdY39kMCZo

[Asterix]

Davey S2 said:

flemke said:

sjr-997 said:

By the way, those rumours about Maclaren dis-assembling some 458's. Untrue.

They did, however, entirely legally manage to get one of the very first 458s off the production line and scrutinise it from top to toe. Ferrari soon found out about this and were quite bent out of shape.

I would have loved to be a fly on the wall when they found out.

I await the spoof video taken from 'Downfall' to be posted on YouTube shortly.

[Mr Whippy]

Asterix said:

I await the spoof video taken from 'Downfall' to be posted on YouTube shortly.

[J-P]

Davey S2 said:

J-P said:

Davey S2 said:

Whats the competition apart from Porsche?

What Porsche is that? GT2RS is in same ball park (price wise) but all sold out - all other Porsches that aren't special editions are at least £40k cheaper, so not competing against the MP12, I'd suggest, and the new hybrid V8 thingy will be at least twice as much as the MP12, so I think it's fair to say that Porsche isn't the competition.

Was this actually a serious question? Or a joke? As the pricing point for the MP12 shows that Mclaren thinks it's main competition is the 458.

Did you read all of my post? I'm not talking about the McLaren or 458. I was talking about competition for a new Lotus Esprit priced in the £100 - £125K bracket.

A well specced Turbo or Turbo S falls within that price bracket but theres not a lot else out there.

My point was its pointless in Lotus trying to target the McLaren of Ferrari because they just cant compete. Further down the market however they stand a good chance against the likes of the Turbo.

Sorry, no