McLaren GT - Test Drive
Discussion
I thought I would do a littlle write up after having a good drive of the new McLaren GT this week. My 540C was in for a service and took the chance to try out the GT, in stunning papaya spark. Most of this review will just be as a direct comparison to my 540C.
I must admit when I first saw the colour, it looked very flat. The weather was dull, and there was no pop to the paint at all. However under sunlight, there is a lovely flake through it which really looks the business.
IMG_20200811_110713 by justinking1986, on Flickr
Looks -
Looks are obviously subjective, so I guess this is actually quiet irrelevant. My thoughts on the GT are, it looks superb from the drivers door backwards, and especially the rear 3/4, but the front bumper looks a bit slab sided to me and doesnt seem to flow aswell with the car and certainly not with the rear of the car. It is a good looking car, but I don't think it sits quite right and I can't quite put my finger onto why. The back end for me, is the best part. The front end apparently has better ground clearance than the Audi A4. Thats possibly why I think it looks a bit odd. The bumper is certainly less raked than the 540. Interesting comparing a couple of similar pictures -
IMG_20200811_114800 by justinking1986, on Flickr
DSC_2986 by justinking1986, on Flickr
DJI_0330 by justinking1986, on Flickr
540C by justinking1986, on Flickr
Interior -
So I've always been a huge fan of alcantara/suede, and usually prefer it over leather. I wanted my 540C with the alcantara but the interior in the GT really was lovely. It definitely feels a lot more spacious and luxurious than mine. The new seats are very comfy, and can see what McLaren have done here. It would be very easy to spend a lot of time in these seats. The actual interior space felt bigger aswell. I'm not sure if it actually is, or if it was just the panoramic roof playing tricks.
There are some lovely interior touches aswell, such as the aluminium (?) paddles, vent controls, and the IRIS is significantly better. Much easier to use, more detailed and even the DAB works well. A huge step forward. The ambient lighting doesn't really do it for me, although I didn't drive at night so maybe didnt get to fully appreciate it.. The rear storage is a lot bigger obviously. The front boot taking an airport suitcase and the read with soft bags, there is a lot of luggage capacity.
The main display is actually a bit busy for my liking, there is a lot of information on it compared to the 540C, even just looking for the time took longer to find than it should. Simpler the better for me, I also prefer the reverse camera display being on the IRIS screen, rather than the dashboard. I found when reversing my arms were blocking the image. Seems a backwards step IMO.
Front nose lift is now just a button on the right stock, rather than a toggle on the left stock. Simple change but it is much slicker to use.
IMG_20200811_102226 by justinking1986, on Flickr
IMG_20200811_102627 by justinking1986, on Flickr
IMG_20200811_102657 by justinking1986, on Flickr
IMG_20200811_102711 by justinking1986, on Flickr
IMG_20200811_140241 by justinking1986, on Flickr
I did have an interesting 5 minutes with it half way through the drive... A quick stop start of the engine sorted it. No issues, but a bit of a worry initially
IMG_20200811_133411 by justinking1986, on Flickr
Driving -
DJI_0316 by justinking1986, on Flickr
The GT feels quite a bit bigger on the road than the 540C, I'm not sure if that is down to the interior feeling more spacious or whether it really is much bigger. I'll need to dig out the dimensions. It also 'feels' heavier. I had a good chat with Lee at McGlasgow about it and it really isn't much heavier, its just the dampening making you think so. It has a more softer edge to it, compared to mine, and makes it quite relaxing to drive.
Noise - my god. What a noise. I absolutely love the noise it makes. The active exhaust which I believe is new to the GT, comes on in Sport and Track mode. It has a wonderful gutteral, snorting V8 noise. Much more induction, wooshing and hissing. I wish my 540C sounded this good. It actually reminded my of brothers old V8 Mustang, deep burbling noise when accelerating. Lovely.
Power - I think its probably very evenly matched with the 540C. It feels torquier, but also heavier. It is much less pointer, but I found myself riding the wave of torque much more than revving it out. It is alarmingly easy to pedal quickly across a country lane. Considering it was my first drive in one, I felt straight at home (to be expected I guess) and really had a great spirited drive in it. I preferred driving this, the additional torque is superb. The 720S must be an animal.
DJI_0324 by justinking1986, on Flickr
DJI_0321 by justinking1986, on Flickr
Braking is much more progressive. Although powerful and certainly stop the car, they have a lot less initial bite than mine which I was surprised at. This ca was on 4k miles, and mine is on 10k. I would have thought the opposite. But I guess that was the whole point.
Conclusion - So overall I thought it was a bloody brilliant car. I can really see why McLaren built it. Its still exciting, but has a softer edge to it which might suit some. If I can make a comparison, the 540C feels more like a Lotus Exige, and the GT is like the Evora. The DNA is still there, just more refined. I am not quite convinced on the looks. The front end just doesn't look quite right to me, but that really is a minor complaint. Well worth trying if anyone is looking to buy a McLaren of some sort. Had this been out 3 years ago, it's possibly the one I would have went for.
I must admit when I first saw the colour, it looked very flat. The weather was dull, and there was no pop to the paint at all. However under sunlight, there is a lovely flake through it which really looks the business.
IMG_20200811_110713 by justinking1986, on FlickrLooks -
Looks are obviously subjective, so I guess this is actually quiet irrelevant. My thoughts on the GT are, it looks superb from the drivers door backwards, and especially the rear 3/4, but the front bumper looks a bit slab sided to me and doesnt seem to flow aswell with the car and certainly not with the rear of the car. It is a good looking car, but I don't think it sits quite right and I can't quite put my finger onto why. The back end for me, is the best part. The front end apparently has better ground clearance than the Audi A4. Thats possibly why I think it looks a bit odd. The bumper is certainly less raked than the 540. Interesting comparing a couple of similar pictures -
IMG_20200811_114800 by justinking1986, on FlickrDSC_2986 by justinking1986, on FlickrDJI_0330 by justinking1986, on Flickr540C by justinking1986, on FlickrInterior -
So I've always been a huge fan of alcantara/suede, and usually prefer it over leather. I wanted my 540C with the alcantara but the interior in the GT really was lovely. It definitely feels a lot more spacious and luxurious than mine. The new seats are very comfy, and can see what McLaren have done here. It would be very easy to spend a lot of time in these seats. The actual interior space felt bigger aswell. I'm not sure if it actually is, or if it was just the panoramic roof playing tricks.
There are some lovely interior touches aswell, such as the aluminium (?) paddles, vent controls, and the IRIS is significantly better. Much easier to use, more detailed and even the DAB works well. A huge step forward. The ambient lighting doesn't really do it for me, although I didn't drive at night so maybe didnt get to fully appreciate it.. The rear storage is a lot bigger obviously. The front boot taking an airport suitcase and the read with soft bags, there is a lot of luggage capacity.
The main display is actually a bit busy for my liking, there is a lot of information on it compared to the 540C, even just looking for the time took longer to find than it should. Simpler the better for me, I also prefer the reverse camera display being on the IRIS screen, rather than the dashboard. I found when reversing my arms were blocking the image. Seems a backwards step IMO.
Front nose lift is now just a button on the right stock, rather than a toggle on the left stock. Simple change but it is much slicker to use.
IMG_20200811_102226 by justinking1986, on FlickrIMG_20200811_102627 by justinking1986, on FlickrIMG_20200811_102657 by justinking1986, on FlickrIMG_20200811_102711 by justinking1986, on FlickrIMG_20200811_140241 by justinking1986, on FlickrI did have an interesting 5 minutes with it half way through the drive... A quick stop start of the engine sorted it. No issues, but a bit of a worry initially
IMG_20200811_133411 by justinking1986, on FlickrDriving -
DJI_0316 by justinking1986, on FlickrThe GT feels quite a bit bigger on the road than the 540C, I'm not sure if that is down to the interior feeling more spacious or whether it really is much bigger. I'll need to dig out the dimensions. It also 'feels' heavier. I had a good chat with Lee at McGlasgow about it and it really isn't much heavier, its just the dampening making you think so. It has a more softer edge to it, compared to mine, and makes it quite relaxing to drive.
Noise - my god. What a noise. I absolutely love the noise it makes. The active exhaust which I believe is new to the GT, comes on in Sport and Track mode. It has a wonderful gutteral, snorting V8 noise. Much more induction, wooshing and hissing. I wish my 540C sounded this good. It actually reminded my of brothers old V8 Mustang, deep burbling noise when accelerating. Lovely.
Power - I think its probably very evenly matched with the 540C. It feels torquier, but also heavier. It is much less pointer, but I found myself riding the wave of torque much more than revving it out. It is alarmingly easy to pedal quickly across a country lane. Considering it was my first drive in one, I felt straight at home (to be expected I guess) and really had a great spirited drive in it. I preferred driving this, the additional torque is superb. The 720S must be an animal.
DJI_0324 by justinking1986, on FlickrDJI_0321 by justinking1986, on FlickrBraking is much more progressive. Although powerful and certainly stop the car, they have a lot less initial bite than mine which I was surprised at. This ca was on 4k miles, and mine is on 10k. I would have thought the opposite. But I guess that was the whole point.
Conclusion - So overall I thought it was a bloody brilliant car. I can really see why McLaren built it. Its still exciting, but has a softer edge to it which might suit some. If I can make a comparison, the 540C feels more like a Lotus Exige, and the GT is like the Evora. The DNA is still there, just more refined. I am not quite convinced on the looks. The front end just doesn't look quite right to me, but that really is a minor complaint. Well worth trying if anyone is looking to buy a McLaren of some sort. Had this been out 3 years ago, it's possibly the one I would have went for.
650spider said:
Did you ask Lee about numbers?!
Or is it a spider next?
Mines goes in next week; loaner being dropped off but when speaking to them this morning they have a napier 600LT spider just in, or either coming in along with a 620R in Volcano Orange, so really looking forward to seeing them when I go to collect mines.
He mentioned numbers to buy but its not what I'd be wanting to change for. Great car, but just not for me. The Napier LT was there, and it looks superb! Or is it a spider next?
Mines goes in next week; loaner being dropped off but when speaking to them this morning they have a napier 600LT spider just in, or either coming in along with a 620R in Volcano Orange, so really looking forward to seeing them when I go to collect mines.
Interesting comments on the 570S vs V8V.
I must admit, I had a lot of confidence in throwing the GT through bends and along a back road. It is very smooth, and rides very well IMO. Where I thought it struggled ever so slightly against the 540, would be in a tight, quick corner. The suspension is clearly a bit softer, which actually gave the feeling of more weight transfer from side to side, as the car rolled slightly more. I dare say there would be next to nothing in it between the two on a country lane, but the slightly better body control or flatter cornering in the 540C gave me a bit more confidence.
On the straights and bumps, I actually think the GT was slightly better. The higher nose actually gives a lot of confidence when approaching a dip that you are not going to bottom out.
I must admit, I had a lot of confidence in throwing the GT through bends and along a back road. It is very smooth, and rides very well IMO. Where I thought it struggled ever so slightly against the 540, would be in a tight, quick corner. The suspension is clearly a bit softer, which actually gave the feeling of more weight transfer from side to side, as the car rolled slightly more. I dare say there would be next to nothing in it between the two on a country lane, but the slightly better body control or flatter cornering in the 540C gave me a bit more confidence.
On the straights and bumps, I actually think the GT was slightly better. The higher nose actually gives a lot of confidence when approaching a dip that you are not going to bottom out.
^Which colour did you go for? Get some pics up 
Your review pretty much echos my thoughts on how it drives
The more I reflect on the GT test drive, the more I see the point of it. I really was a brilliant car. The front end looks just don't quite work for me but I think that may be due to me being so used to the front of the 540C (being more raked, and lower).
The GT interior is definitely better, and I loved the sound of it. I think it may well have been the one I'd have gone for if it was available back when I bought mine.
Your review pretty much echos my thoughts on how it drivesThe more I reflect on the GT test drive, the more I see the point of it. I really was a brilliant car. The front end looks just don't quite work for me but I think that may be due to me being so used to the front of the 540C (being more raked, and lower).
The GT interior is definitely better, and I loved the sound of it. I think it may well have been the one I'd have gone for if it was available back when I bought mine.
39sl said:
Couldn’t resist posting this picture taken yesterday ... little stop, just off the A82 eastbound after a fantastic week in and around western Scotland
I've not driven that style of GT, but can't help but think the back end of it looks superb with the hatch cover. Lovely colour! Gassing Station | McLaren | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff