McLaren Ascot - experiences?
Discussion
I guess the non name / shame rules will prevent some feedback, so please feel free to PM me if you want to say things that are likely to get deleted.......
As I've mentioned on another thread, I am beginning to look seriously at McLarens, and if the offer they make on my 360 isn't too insulting it may happen sooner rather than later. However :
My local McLaren dealer is Ascot, and that's where the car I'm interested in is. But one of the "negatives" that gets raised with the brand is the dealer backup. I found the salesman on Saturday very pleasant to deal with - but then, I'm aware that being nice to people when they're planning to spend £100k+ (or £200k+ for people with deeper pockets than me!) is part of the job.
What I'm interested in is : How are they once you've actually got a car?
If your car had problems, how well did they look after you / how quickly was it fixed / did you get a courtesy car? Etc. etc.
Since I usually have older cars, I'm used to indy's - and I get to choose the best from a wide bunch. Clearly that's not so easy with McLaren, so I want to know what to expect.
As I've mentioned on another thread, I am beginning to look seriously at McLarens, and if the offer they make on my 360 isn't too insulting it may happen sooner rather than later. However :
My local McLaren dealer is Ascot, and that's where the car I'm interested in is. But one of the "negatives" that gets raised with the brand is the dealer backup. I found the salesman on Saturday very pleasant to deal with - but then, I'm aware that being nice to people when they're planning to spend £100k+ (or £200k+ for people with deeper pockets than me!) is part of the job.
What I'm interested in is : How are they once you've actually got a car?
If your car had problems, how well did they look after you / how quickly was it fixed / did you get a courtesy car? Etc. etc.
Since I usually have older cars, I'm used to indy's - and I get to choose the best from a wide bunch. Clearly that's not so easy with McLaren, so I want to know what to expect.
Having spent some time with them on a Le Mans trip and having known one guy (now on the Mclaren side) for 13+ years I’d have no hesitation in dealing with them. They clearly know of the views of aftercare and service that are around and are going out of their way to correct this with staffing levels and training I believe.
I can't speak highly enough of them. I dealt with Chris and Phil down there and they were excellent with me from the second I walked on to the premises. I would honestly a very large reason for me buying the car was down to them, as mentioned preivously, I turned up on a whim with no expectations to buy a McLaren and in a large part, their input was a huge factor in me deciding to buy. I've had no issues with them at all, after sales care has been top notch and I have referred a couple foother people their way all who have received the same high standards and quality of service.
I wasn't even aware there were previous issues until after I had dealt with them and done the deal but all I can say is my experiences have been nothing but first class and I think out of all the cars I've bought from dealers, they were easily the best
I wasn't even aware there were previous issues until after I had dealt with them and done the deal but all I can say is my experiences have been nothing but first class and I think out of all the cars I've bought from dealers, they were easily the best
davek_964 said:
I guess the non name / shame rules will prevent some feedback, so please feel free to PM me if you want to say things that are likely to get deleted.......
As I've mentioned on another thread, I am beginning to look seriously at McLarens, and if the offer they make on my 360 isn't too insulting it may happen sooner rather than later. However :
My local McLaren dealer is Ascot, and that's where the car I'm interested in is. But one of the "negatives" that gets raised with the brand is the dealer backup. I found the salesman on Saturday very pleasant to deal with - but then, I'm aware that being nice to people when they're planning to spend £100k+ (or £200k+ for people with deeper pockets than me!) is part of the job.
What I'm interested in is : How are they once you've actually got a car?
If your car had problems, how well did they look after you / how quickly was it fixed / did you get a courtesy car? Etc. etc.
Since I usually have older cars, I'm used to indy's - and I get to choose the best from a wide bunch. Clearly that's not so easy with McLaren, so I want to know what to expect.
After McLondon, I believe McAscot were the 2nd McLaren dealership in the UK. As McLaren has grown faster than the dealer network can cope with, and without an approved independent network to take up the slack on older models, it is inevitable that service will suffer. I do sympathise with the dealer network in general, and those earlier dealerships such as Ascot.As I've mentioned on another thread, I am beginning to look seriously at McLarens, and if the offer they make on my 360 isn't too insulting it may happen sooner rather than later. However :
My local McLaren dealer is Ascot, and that's where the car I'm interested in is. But one of the "negatives" that gets raised with the brand is the dealer backup. I found the salesman on Saturday very pleasant to deal with - but then, I'm aware that being nice to people when they're planning to spend £100k+ (or £200k+ for people with deeper pockets than me!) is part of the job.
What I'm interested in is : How are they once you've actually got a car?
If your car had problems, how well did they look after you / how quickly was it fixed / did you get a courtesy car? Etc. etc.
Since I usually have older cars, I'm used to indy's - and I get to choose the best from a wide bunch. Clearly that's not so easy with McLaren, so I want to know what to expect.
I do know of several McLaren owners in the MOC UK who have had historical issues with Ascot, but it is refreshing to see the above comments by David W and Obafemi09. As the dealer network continues to grow, such as the recent opening of McLaren New Forest, it will help to take the pressure off those dealerships struggling with workload.
There are 4 recurring issues I hear about service – dealer wide, not just Ascot
1) Lack of equivalent Loan / Courtesy vehicles. If you spend £100K to £250K on a vehicle, you don’t expect to be given a lesser vehicle, or be left to take the train home without a loan car. This becomes even more of an issue when a newly purchased car is returned for a fault repair / snagging.
2) Lack of good old-fashioned customer service skills. Pick the phone up and communicate, on time, every time.
3) Lead times for appointments and time at dealership are unusually long
4) No independent network to service and maintain older models. If this were to happen, it would make a massive positive difference to the McLaren owning experience. I hope McLaren introduce an approved network of independent servicing agents ASAP.
Back to Ascot, if you don’t receive a satisfactory experience, there are now others to choose from in the South East. Most will collect and deliver FOC.
Strikes me that most of the existing MCL dealerships are owned by one of the larger dealership groups - eg Jardine (Ascot), Parks (Glasgow), Sytners (Birmingham ... I think ?). etc etc.
Methinks this is so that they can deal with MCL's "In Group" - thus enabling them to field MCL PX deals from elsewhere in their network "in group" and also point customers who are decided on a MCL at their own(ed) dealership. To them the first dealership they open gets them all the benefit ... and the 2nd would therefore have to stand on its own 2 feet financially.
Apart from the above, what this means that to us punters the dealerships are generally well run by experienced "industry" people who will very often have experience / training from other Marques / Dealerships. Generally good news, but I suspect people don't buy a MCL in the same way that they might say a BMW or a Jag for instance.
The downside is that there are'nt that many dealerships out there yet and chances are you will be faced with a fair commute for servicing etc if you live outside the big cities. Of course, not having any "indies" (other than JT of course) compounds this problem further.
As a Nottingham lad I'm faced with my nearest dealer being Birmingham. I reckon the 160 mile round trip for service will cost me at least £300 one way or another - hence I'm looking into contract transport or race trailer hire if collection / delivery is not forthcoming.
Methinks this is so that they can deal with MCL's "In Group" - thus enabling them to field MCL PX deals from elsewhere in their network "in group" and also point customers who are decided on a MCL at their own(ed) dealership. To them the first dealership they open gets them all the benefit ... and the 2nd would therefore have to stand on its own 2 feet financially.
Apart from the above, what this means that to us punters the dealerships are generally well run by experienced "industry" people who will very often have experience / training from other Marques / Dealerships. Generally good news, but I suspect people don't buy a MCL in the same way that they might say a BMW or a Jag for instance.
The downside is that there are'nt that many dealerships out there yet and chances are you will be faced with a fair commute for servicing etc if you live outside the big cities. Of course, not having any "indies" (other than JT of course) compounds this problem further.
As a Nottingham lad I'm faced with my nearest dealer being Birmingham. I reckon the 160 mile round trip for service will cost me at least £300 one way or another - hence I'm looking into contract transport or race trailer hire if collection / delivery is not forthcoming.
In that respect, I'm lucky. McLaren Ascot isn't too far away - and although I said I was sick of using the trains, Ascot is actually one of the few places on a direct line from my home town.
By the way - is there any way of seeing all the cars at all McLaren dealers? Ascot and London are the same group so if I go to the group site, I can see cars at both dealerships. But I had to look separately at Glasgow, Birmingham etc
By the way - is there any way of seeing all the cars at all McLaren dealers? Ascot and London are the same group so if I go to the group site, I can see cars at both dealerships. But I had to look separately at Glasgow, Birmingham etc
davek_964 said:
In that respect, I'm lucky. McLaren Ascot isn't too far away - and although I said I was sick of using the trains, Ascot is actually one of the few places on a direct line from my home town.
By the way - is there any way of seeing all the cars at all McLaren dealers? Ascot and London are the same group so if I go to the group site, I can see cars at both dealerships. But I had to look separately at Glasgow, Birmingham etc
If you go to the main site below, click on "pre-owned" at the top you can then search by all models - click all the models and I think it'll show cars at all dealers.By the way - is there any way of seeing all the cars at all McLaren dealers? Ascot and London are the same group so if I go to the group site, I can see cars at both dealerships. But I had to look separately at Glasgow, Birmingham etc
https://cars.mclaren.com/
davek_964 said:
Thanks - should have guessed that.
Leeds one one looks like it ticks lots of my boxes, although it's black. Love black cars usually, but....
Hi DavekLeeds one one looks like it ticks lots of my boxes, although it's black. Love black cars usually, but....
They have had that one a while. Mark at leeds sent me all the details about that car.
Not got a fantastic spec but still a really nice car.
Get in touch with him and he shall send you a video and spec and also keep you in mind if something comes up throughout their other branches; really helpful guy to deal with.
Thanks.
The options thing is confusing - I thought the orange one I saw at Ascot was quite well spec'd but I've realised they have repeated the same options multiple times in the description, and in fact it seems to lack some of the options on other cars. I do like it though.
Need to decide what's important to me I guess.
The options thing is confusing - I thought the orange one I saw at Ascot was quite well spec'd but I've realised they have repeated the same options multiple times in the description, and in fact it seems to lack some of the options on other cars. I do like it though.
Need to decide what's important to me I guess.
davek_964 said:
Thanks.
The options thing is confusing - I thought the orange one I saw at Ascot was quite well spec'd but I've realised they have repeated the same options multiple times in the description, and in fact it seems to lack some of the options on other cars. I do like it though.
Need to decide what's important to me I guess.
Whilst it is a buyers market, there are only ever just over 20 or so 650 spiders for sale at anytime so trying to tick all the boxes is tricky.The options thing is confusing - I thought the orange one I saw at Ascot was quite well spec'd but I've realised they have repeated the same options multiple times in the description, and in fact it seems to lack some of the options on other cars. I do like it though.
Need to decide what's important to me I guess.
I wanted a specific colour ( volcano orange ), all the carbon exterior and interior bits if possible, lift, upgraded meriden, full alcantara but strangely not a sports exhaust.
Lastly, it had to have at least 3 months of the bullet proof McLaren warranty so it could be transferred to me so i could use if required and extend when the time comes.
Between buying into half of the crap written on here by non owners putting me off and the right car just not coming up, it took a wee while.
When it finally did come up, i had to compromise on mileage and exhaust, although to be fair higher mileage doesn't bother me...its the cars with low mileage / use i always avoid as they can be problematic. A car with decent miles has been used so its not been a problem and any issues should of arisen and been sorted. The sports exhaust is fantastic and not boomy etc as i feared.
I would also recomend sourcing Alcantara heated, electrically adjustable seats over sports carbons for comfort reasons.
I am delighted with the car.
Remember, a 650 is superseries and feels like a time machine when you give it the beans...its crazy to think it matches or beats most of them amazing McLaren F1 figures, but in a super comfy car that's as easy and refreshing to drive as a mini....your gonna love it.
Orange is my favoured colour too, and heated memory seats are a must have. As is sports exhaust and lift.
The rest I'm not so bothered about - but would prefer Alcantara.
The yellow car at London looks very good to me - newer, very low mileage, alcantara and carbon exterior which is a nice contrast. I do like yellow cars, even if it isn't my first choice - I will be seeing and driving that on Wednesday.
The rest I'm not so bothered about - but would prefer Alcantara.
The yellow car at London looks very good to me - newer, very low mileage, alcantara and carbon exterior which is a nice contrast. I do like yellow cars, even if it isn't my first choice - I will be seeing and driving that on Wednesday.
355spiderguy said:
Lastly, it had to have at least 3 months of the bullet proof McLaren warranty so it could be transferred to me so i could use if required and extend when the time comes.
In addition to the warranty, there is also your statutory right under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 to fall back on if the vehicle suffers a serious fault within 6 months from point of sale. In essence, if the selling dealer is not able to fix it on the first attempt, you can reject the car and claim your money back, or get a replacement. There's finer detail involved, such as deduction for useage to take into account. davek_964 said:
I guess the non name / shame rules will prevent some feedback, so please feel free to PM me if you want to say things that are likely to get deleted.......
There is a lot of info on Ascot on MOC. Obviously I can't share it here, but do note the comments from MAC 720 above.MAC 720S said:
In addition to the warranty, there is also your statutory right under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 to fall back on if the vehicle suffers a serious fault within 6 months from point of sale. In essence, if the selling dealer is not able to fix it on the first attempt, you can reject the car and claim your money back, or get a replacement. There's finer detail involved, such as deduction for useage to take into account.
Great point mick.davek_964 said:
Orange is my favoured colour too, and heated memory seats are a must have. As is sports exhaust and lift.
The rest I'm not so bothered about - but would prefer Alcantara.
The yellow car at London looks very good to me - newer, very low mileage, alcantara and carbon exterior which is a nice contrast. I do like yellow cars, even if it isn't my first choice - I will be seeing and driving that on Wednesday.
Somebody posted somewhere on here before lift wasn't important...i beg to differ.The rest I'm not so bothered about - but would prefer Alcantara.
The yellow car at London looks very good to me - newer, very low mileage, alcantara and carbon exterior which is a nice contrast. I do like yellow cars, even if it isn't my first choice - I will be seeing and driving that on Wednesday.
I would say on a high % of journeys i have used it for one reason or another...you only hear that carbon fibre scratching on a speed bump once and see the replacement costs to realise how important it is..
355spiderguy said:
Somebody posted somewhere on here before lift wasn't important...i beg to differ.
I would say on a high % of journeys i have used it for one reason or another...you only hear that carbon fibre scratching on a speed bump once and see the replacement costs to realise how important it is..
I wouldn't have a McLaren without one. TBH, they should be a standard fit, not an optional extra. Just a money grabbing exercise. It's like selling a car without wheels. I would say on a high % of journeys i have used it for one reason or another...you only hear that carbon fibre scratching on a speed bump once and see the replacement costs to realise how important it is..
MAC 720S said:
355spiderguy said:
Somebody posted somewhere on here before lift wasn't important...i beg to differ.
I would say on a high % of journeys i have used it for one reason or another...you only hear that carbon fibre scratching on a speed bump once and see the replacement costs to realise how important it is..
I wouldn't have a McLaren without one. TBH, they should be a standard fit, not an optional extra. Just a money grabbing exercise. It's like selling a car without wheels. I would say on a high % of journeys i have used it for one reason or another...you only hear that carbon fibre scratching on a speed bump once and see the replacement costs to realise how important it is..
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