An Eruption of Imprudence - Volcano Orange McLaren 570GT
Discussion
samoht said:
I've not yet been up close to a Spider, but I looked into it and I think the answer is 'yes and no'. The rear screen is hard behind the seats in the Spider so you don't have the shelf inside the cabin space. There is however a smaller space under the tonneau cover, available for use when the top is up only:
All variants (incl the 600LTs) have the same front boot.
If we said the 570GT's usable luggage space is 100%, a regular Coupe might be 90-95%, and a Spider maybe 50-60% ? So it's less, but at the same time still relatively practical for a convertible supercar.
Thank you for explaining! Have always loved McLarens and one would be a proper dream car. Plus with the carbon tub almost no stiffness or dynamic ability lost with a drop top which is a big plus!All variants (incl the 600LTs) have the same front boot.
If we said the 570GT's usable luggage space is 100%, a regular Coupe might be 90-95%, and a Spider maybe 50-60% ? So it's less, but at the same time still relatively practical for a convertible supercar.
I recently had to renew the insurance, reminding me I'm just approaching a year with this car.
A bit of a no-news update really, no real excitments or problems since June. I did take it to a family party in summer, and it was fun to give my uncles rides especially as they've always had more of an interest in cars than my own parents. Otherwise it's tended to be used for some "A to A" drives around local B-roads, I've found a couple of decent loops south-east of Cambridge.
Costs for the 12 months were insurance £873, road tax £570, servicing & repairs £1421 as discussed above, and £350 to remove an entirely self-inflicted dent in the front wing (big thanks to Body Poppers who came through when others wouldn't). I've not been counting the petrol, save that it uses less of it than my AMG like for like, making it my 'economy' car
A few weekends ago I got it out for the first time since before Christmas, and found to my alarm that the battery was low, despite it being on a NOCO charger. With the charger connected it did fire up, and after a run all seems to be back to normal. This is good because the battery is lithium, and could be something like three grand to replace(!), although V Engineering do have some alternatives. Anyway I've now ordered a CTEK to eliminate the charger as the issue, otherwise I'll have to ask when it goes to V for MoT in April, it could be the battery management getting confused.
Driving the car for the first time in a couple of months was great, the performance amazes and sometimes scares all over again, the roads were even just about clean enough to generate some grip.
Plans, or should I say vague aspirations, for 2024 are to make a Scandinavian road trip, and to get on track somewhere, ideally a circuit with very little to hit! I won't be pushing it too hard but it'd be lovely to get a bit of a feel for its capabilities.
The roads were pretty muddy when I took it out and grabbed these pics, so the car's not very clean - a job for tomorrow.
A bit of a no-news update really, no real excitments or problems since June. I did take it to a family party in summer, and it was fun to give my uncles rides especially as they've always had more of an interest in cars than my own parents. Otherwise it's tended to be used for some "A to A" drives around local B-roads, I've found a couple of decent loops south-east of Cambridge.
Costs for the 12 months were insurance £873, road tax £570, servicing & repairs £1421 as discussed above, and £350 to remove an entirely self-inflicted dent in the front wing (big thanks to Body Poppers who came through when others wouldn't). I've not been counting the petrol, save that it uses less of it than my AMG like for like, making it my 'economy' car
A few weekends ago I got it out for the first time since before Christmas, and found to my alarm that the battery was low, despite it being on a NOCO charger. With the charger connected it did fire up, and after a run all seems to be back to normal. This is good because the battery is lithium, and could be something like three grand to replace(!), although V Engineering do have some alternatives. Anyway I've now ordered a CTEK to eliminate the charger as the issue, otherwise I'll have to ask when it goes to V for MoT in April, it could be the battery management getting confused.
Driving the car for the first time in a couple of months was great, the performance amazes and sometimes scares all over again, the roads were even just about clean enough to generate some grip.
Plans, or should I say vague aspirations, for 2024 are to make a Scandinavian road trip, and to get on track somewhere, ideally a circuit with very little to hit! I won't be pushing it too hard but it'd be lovely to get a bit of a feel for its capabilities.
The roads were pretty muddy when I took it out and grabbed these pics, so the car's not very clean - a job for tomorrow.
Car went to V Engineering for annual service last week, £530.
The CTEK charger seems to have done the trick as the car's staying on '49 days' battery remaining as it wasn't on the NOCO.
Tomorrow I'm going for my first trackday in this car. I've picked Bedford as it seems to be the least risky track, it's also not too far away. Downloaded TOCA3 to get the track layout into my head.
I've been there once before with the RX-7, as well as about half a dozen other trackdays, but this'll be my first in a car like this.
Steve at V gave me a load of helpful advice for tracking my car, apparently Sport powertrain mode is the noisiest as it adds pops and bangs, so may be worth avoiding at Bedford. When the tyres get to 60-70 degrees then it's time to take a cooldown lap, for both tyres and the expensive brakes. ESC Dynamic is recommended to give a bit more freedom and avoid over-using the rear brakes. Also as I have new pads in (from when I bought the car), they'll need to off-gas so get them hot until they lose bite, then let them cool, then they should be good to work hard thereafter.
It's very helpful and reassuring to get detailed guidance from someone who's clearly been there, done that in these cars.
I'm really keen to see what this car's like on track, road driving feels fabulous but always has to be to some degree contained by an awareness of the inherent uncertainties of the public road. I'll report back how it goes!
The CTEK charger seems to have done the trick as the car's staying on '49 days' battery remaining as it wasn't on the NOCO.
Tomorrow I'm going for my first trackday in this car. I've picked Bedford as it seems to be the least risky track, it's also not too far away. Downloaded TOCA3 to get the track layout into my head.
I've been there once before with the RX-7, as well as about half a dozen other trackdays, but this'll be my first in a car like this.
Steve at V gave me a load of helpful advice for tracking my car, apparently Sport powertrain mode is the noisiest as it adds pops and bangs, so may be worth avoiding at Bedford. When the tyres get to 60-70 degrees then it's time to take a cooldown lap, for both tyres and the expensive brakes. ESC Dynamic is recommended to give a bit more freedom and avoid over-using the rear brakes. Also as I have new pads in (from when I bought the car), they'll need to off-gas so get them hot until they lose bite, then let them cool, then they should be good to work hard thereafter.
It's very helpful and reassuring to get detailed guidance from someone who's clearly been there, done that in these cars.
I'm really keen to see what this car's like on track, road driving feels fabulous but always has to be to some degree contained by an awareness of the inherent uncertainties of the public road. I'll report back how it goes!
Missed your thread previously, but a great read, love both the RX7 and the McLaren.
I’m also a JDM fan after having a few MK4 Supra’s previously, the last one being a built 750rwhp(I actually wanted an RX7 originally but was only around 20 at the time and the Supra was cheaper on insurance).
Can completely understand the nerves of taking the 570 on track, not only are the limits far higher than that of the RX7, but there’s also no ignoring its value in comparison. I had no problem taking my Supra on track, you had to learn it to control it but I had no issue pushing it and didn’t worry too much if it picked up gravel rash or a scuff, I’d be very nervous taking the F355 on track though, but I have my Caterham for my track now.
Kudos for taking the 570 on track and euro trips though, great to see people really using these cars!!
I’m also a JDM fan after having a few MK4 Supra’s previously, the last one being a built 750rwhp(I actually wanted an RX7 originally but was only around 20 at the time and the Supra was cheaper on insurance).
Can completely understand the nerves of taking the 570 on track, not only are the limits far higher than that of the RX7, but there’s also no ignoring its value in comparison. I had no problem taking my Supra on track, you had to learn it to control it but I had no issue pushing it and didn’t worry too much if it picked up gravel rash or a scuff, I’d be very nervous taking the F355 on track though, but I have my Caterham for my track now.
Kudos for taking the 570 on track and euro trips though, great to see people really using these cars!!
Yeah, I was fortunate to buy my RX-7 when values were at their lowest, and paying £4500 for it probably helped me enjoy it to the full on track Tracking the 570 is a little more daunting, and I wasn’t exactly encouraged by Moris (who I’d previously used for trackday insurance on the FD) informing me that they no longer cover McLarens as the resulting claims had become too expensive (!) But ultimately it’s such a great opportunity to drive something like this on track. A colleague mooted the idea of getting on track, so it ended up being four of us.
The first session was honestly tough. I knew neither the car nor the ‘full’ GT layout we were on, the track was busy and I was struggling to judge braking distances. I was also trying to let enough air out of the tyres as they heated up. I was honestly starting to think that it wasn’t worth tracking this car and I’d have enjoyed my old RX-7 more. Then just before lunch I had a 20 minute session with an instructor. Rich was really good, pushing me to brake harder and accelerate more progressively, and with his guidance on braking points and entry speeds it all started to come together. Actually I’d say it was transformative, in the afternoon I started getting to grips with the car and things were starting to flow.
I know this sounds like a statement of the obvious, but the performance envelope is just night and day bigger with this car than what I’m used to. The braking feels like the biggest difference, when you’re really hanging on the seatbelt and the speed is plummeting so rapidly, it’s hard to judge when to release the pedal and turn without either stopping dead or carrying too much speed in. And of course getting the braking right is vital to setting up the whole corner. But following the tuition I was starting to get the hang of it.
The other awesome thing is the ESC Dynamic mode, which lets the car move around and feel like a powerful rwd car, but diplomatically saves you from yourself when you get it wrong, both under power and on lift-off. I actually went out once forgetting to enable Dynamic mode and immediately returned to the pits (you can’t enable it on the move), as with full stability control the car just felt inert and boring under power because it keeps things safe. What’s interesting is that when I tried ESC DYN on the road I genuinely couldn’t feel any difference, but on track it was immediately obvious. The car is quite playful and throttle responsive both on and off throttle, which I love, but the ESC takes the sting out of the rearward weight balance.
My last session of the day was the best, the track was quieter and I was starting to put corners together and getting a flow going. It’s probably the ‘infield’ section, with more corners and shorter straights, which I like the most - a quick squirt of power, dab of brakes and through the next apex, with no 120mph braking zones to try and judge. When you get it right with this car, it feels magical.
In answer to Brett, the car’s on PS4S tyres which do limit its cornering speed, as Steve had advised; some of the other cars there were on more track-specific rubber and could clearly carry more speed. In some ways though I’m fine with this, a bit less grip lets it move around and feel fun and responsive, and if I start getting sucked into laptime I’ll soon need new brakes. As it was I could do ok length stints pushing hard. The tyres definitely have that trackday sheen now, with a thin layer of melted rubber on top of the tread and some gravel pick-up, but no deeper damage.
The car showed a couple of minor “quirks” - on the first run after lunch my A/C stuck on full hot (not merely not cooling, but actively heating the air), but I came in and turned the car off and on again and it sorted itself out. And when driving back I had the message ‘key not found in car’, however the car started and drove fine; that message has also now cleared. But in terms of lapping it was spot on, with no brake fade or any other signs of stress.
My friends from work also had a good day, for two of them it was their first time driving on track, and fun was also had with passenger rides - it’s always more amusing with someone alongside reacting to everything that’s happening! Fortunately all four of us also drove home with cars intact, which not everyone did.
Even I am not brave/foolish/rich enough to make a habit of frequently tracking this car, but having got a feel for it, I’m hoping to go again towards autumn, maybe to Donnington as that has some elevation but (correct me if I’m wrong) also seems to have a fair amount of run-off? It's definitely a higher difficulty level driving this car than the RX-7, but when you start to get to grips with its capabilities, the rewards are correspondingly special.
Tracking the 570 is a little more daunting, and I wasn’t exactly encouraged by Moris (who I’d previously used for trackday insurance on the FD) informing me that they no longer cover McLarens as the resulting claims had become too expensive (!) But ultimately it’s such a great opportunity to drive something like this on track. A colleague mooted the idea of getting on track, so it ended up being four of us.The first session was honestly tough. I knew neither the car nor the ‘full’ GT layout we were on, the track was busy and I was struggling to judge braking distances. I was also trying to let enough air out of the tyres as they heated up. I was honestly starting to think that it wasn’t worth tracking this car and I’d have enjoyed my old RX-7 more. Then just before lunch I had a 20 minute session with an instructor. Rich was really good, pushing me to brake harder and accelerate more progressively, and with his guidance on braking points and entry speeds it all started to come together. Actually I’d say it was transformative, in the afternoon I started getting to grips with the car and things were starting to flow.
I know this sounds like a statement of the obvious, but the performance envelope is just night and day bigger with this car than what I’m used to. The braking feels like the biggest difference, when you’re really hanging on the seatbelt and the speed is plummeting so rapidly, it’s hard to judge when to release the pedal and turn without either stopping dead or carrying too much speed in. And of course getting the braking right is vital to setting up the whole corner. But following the tuition I was starting to get the hang of it.
The other awesome thing is the ESC Dynamic mode, which lets the car move around and feel like a powerful rwd car, but diplomatically saves you from yourself when you get it wrong, both under power and on lift-off. I actually went out once forgetting to enable Dynamic mode and immediately returned to the pits (you can’t enable it on the move), as with full stability control the car just felt inert and boring under power because it keeps things safe. What’s interesting is that when I tried ESC DYN on the road I genuinely couldn’t feel any difference, but on track it was immediately obvious. The car is quite playful and throttle responsive both on and off throttle, which I love, but the ESC takes the sting out of the rearward weight balance.
My last session of the day was the best, the track was quieter and I was starting to put corners together and getting a flow going. It’s probably the ‘infield’ section, with more corners and shorter straights, which I like the most - a quick squirt of power, dab of brakes and through the next apex, with no 120mph braking zones to try and judge. When you get it right with this car, it feels magical.
In answer to Brett, the car’s on PS4S tyres which do limit its cornering speed, as Steve had advised; some of the other cars there were on more track-specific rubber and could clearly carry more speed. In some ways though I’m fine with this, a bit less grip lets it move around and feel fun and responsive, and if I start getting sucked into laptime I’ll soon need new brakes. As it was I could do ok length stints pushing hard. The tyres definitely have that trackday sheen now, with a thin layer of melted rubber on top of the tread and some gravel pick-up, but no deeper damage.
The car showed a couple of minor “quirks” - on the first run after lunch my A/C stuck on full hot (not merely not cooling, but actively heating the air), but I came in and turned the car off and on again and it sorted itself out. And when driving back I had the message ‘key not found in car’, however the car started and drove fine; that message has also now cleared. But in terms of lapping it was spot on, with no brake fade or any other signs of stress.
My friends from work also had a good day, for two of them it was their first time driving on track, and fun was also had with passenger rides - it’s always more amusing with someone alongside reacting to everything that’s happening! Fortunately all four of us also drove home with cars intact, which not everyone did.
Even I am not brave/foolish/rich enough to make a habit of frequently tracking this car, but having got a feel for it, I’m hoping to go again towards autumn, maybe to Donnington as that has some elevation but (correct me if I’m wrong) also seems to have a fair amount of run-off? It's definitely a higher difficulty level driving this car than the RX-7, but when you start to get to grips with its capabilities, the rewards are correspondingly special.
Gassing Station | Readers' Cars | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff