What,Can and Should Mclaren be Doing About Protecting Resale

[isaldiri]

IMI A said:

I think when I enquired a few years ago with track pack and one off colour it was definitely closer to £300k than £280k for a coupe.

the 720 track pack was only available late 2018. Not sure how you could have asked about one a few years ago.....

[IMI A]

isaldiri said:

IMI A said:

I think when I enquired a few years ago with track pack and one off colour it was definitely closer to £300k than £280k for a coupe.

the 720 track pack was only available late 2018. Not sure how you could have asked about one a few years ago.....

Sorry but to be clear I'm pretty sure track telemetry pack with cameras etc and buckets were an option from day 1. Can't remember re cage

I know that a track pack version was recently tested by 720s hadn't realised it was significantly different

[IMI A]

^^ I mean track pack 720s tested by Chris Harris!

[RSbandit]

A contact I have in the industry reckons McLaren are currently where Aston were 15/20 yrs ago in terms of reliability etc. I recently had a 570S spider for a weekend as a loan car and it blew me away , the engineering in these is at another level but the points raised by the OP are very valid. I want to see McLaren succeed as a company and see myself in one at some point. I would never go down the new route though( just too expensive with big 5 figure hit guaranteed in yr one ) so used is the way forward, at £100k you’re up against fairly unexciting and ubiquitous Porsche’s, R8’s and Vantage’s ( currently have a V12S). As driving tools none of those stand up against a 570S and as for theatre well no dice there either. The V10s and V12s sound better of course but I wasn’t disappointed with the noise of the 570 it does sound pretty fruity when you rev it out. It’s clear the investors want returns now not in 10 yrs time but not sure what effect that will have on the company longer term.

[crimbo]

What's a v12s warranty cost/service by comparison?

[RSbandit]

Inspection and warranty is £2200 but if you renew without it lapsing it’s £1800 I think , the whole inspection thing is a bit of a scam tbh. Servicing about £800 all in.

[RSbandit]

I like the idea of buying from a McLaren dealer as someone else mentioned meaning a two yr warranty comes in at 3.5k (first yr included) which is actually in line with my Aston.

[willy wombat]

I'm sure that I've said this before on another thread but couldn't McLaren copy Porsche etc and introduce an SUV/4x4 into the range. These are Porsche's biggest sellers and if McLaren could do the same it would remove the pressure to churn out so many 2 seaters. Then the 2 seaters could, as has been suggested, only be built to a customer's spec and residuals would surely be much better.

[AndrewD]

willy wombat said:

I'm sure that I've said this before on another thread but couldn't McLaren copy Porsche etc and introduce an SUV/4x4 into the range. These are Porsche's biggest sellers and if McLaren could do the same it would remove the pressure to churn out so many 2 seaters. Then the 2 seaters could, as has been suggested, only be built to a customer's spec and residuals would surely be much better.

I expect they are churning them out to pay investors so it might be difficult to raise more money to develop an SUV?

[MDL111]

willy wombat said:

I'm sure that I've said this before on another thread but couldn't McLaren copy Porsche etc and introduce an SUV/4x4 into the range. These are Porsche's biggest sellers and if McLaren could do the same it would remove the pressure to churn out so many 2 seaters. Then the 2 seaters could, as has been suggested, only be built to a customer's spec and residuals would surely be much better.

I guess they could, but developing one at a halfway decent price point / a volume seller price, might be tough/very expensive without having access to the parts bin than Porsche/Lamborghini can tap into. And if they have to sell it at 200k plus, then they will probably not sell them in the tens of thousands per model cycle/facelift etc

[Juno]

IMI A said:

Here's cheapest good low miles 991 turbo s in UK.

http://www.nineexcellence.com/porsche-sales/sales-...

To save you doing the maths its held circa 67% of its original retail price 5-6 years on which is incredible. Mcl have some way to go to have their ordinary non LT vehicles doing that well. I'm hearing you can buy a virtually brand new 720s for £180k albeit not to your own spec. Thats not far off £100k off list on day 1!

And therein lies the crux of the problem,it may not be your spec but that shouldn't make it a 100k less than a specked car,its panic selling of stock cars to clear the decks. If the stock wasn't sitting there in the first place then the issue would not exist. Make all cars to customer order which would help stabilize things from day one.

How would someone feel if they paid 280k to find out someone else paid 180k?

[Juno]

MDL111 said:

cypriot said:

IMI A said:

Here's cheapest good low miles 991 turbo s in UK.

http://www.nineexcellence.com/porsche-sales/sales-...

To save you doing the maths its held circa 67% of its original retail price 5-6 years on which is incredible. Mcl have some way to go to have their ordinary non LT vehicles doing that well. I'm hearing you can buy a virtually brand new 720s for £180k albeit not to your own spec. Thats not far off £100k off list on day 1!

Rather disingenuous post. You are quoting list price WITH NO OPTIONS for the turbo. So, using your method, a decently specced and relatively low milage 650s, 5 years old is £118k, which is 62% of its retail price. So, not too shabby, right?

The sooner we get back to normality where the majority of sports cars loses about 50 percent of 3-5 years the better imo - then all these discussions as well as the “investment threads” and b.... fights over Porsche GT allocations will be over.

Im not sure the fights over Porsche GT allocation will ever be over

[fridaypassion]

I think overs on the new GT4/3 is a gamble now for the first time in a long time. If the new GT4 is 110k on overs why would you not have a 570?

[RSbandit]

Exactly even a new GT4 is nowhere near the same league as a 570S end of. I thought 720S launch was v strange alright in that you couldn’t spec your own car surely spending that kind of wedge that’s the least you would expect .

[RBT0]

Only pros of GT4 is that is likely to keep value.

But fully agree, who would spend on it if you can access McLaren for same money (well parking the fact that need to choose carefully from the used ones)? Only investors lol.

[Cheib]

Juno said:

Taffy66 said:

Every new McLaren car which enters the production line should only be a personally specced customer order car..There shouldn't be a penny discount available.

Definitely

That would mean cutting production permanently by say 25%...job layoff's etc etc. If they had their time again they probably would have set themselves less aggressive growth/volume targets.

I think the big thing is the warranty and reliability as it's unquantafiable...they are still a very new brand. Think about when all the Korean manufacturers launched in the UK 20 or so years ago....7 year unlimited mileage warranties....so everyone immediately thinks it's a quality product.

By charging so much for a warranty they're making customers think that their cars are unreliable/the chances of a claim are very high.

[RobDown]

willy wombat said:

I'm sure that I've said this before on another thread but couldn't McLaren copy Porsche etc and introduce an SUV/4x4 into the range. These are Porsche's biggest sellers and if McLaren could do the same it would remove the pressure to churn out so many 2 seaters. Then the 2 seaters could, as has been suggested, only be built to a customer's spec and residuals would surely be much better.

I would imagine that one problem with the SUV idea for McLaren is that there cars are designed around a CF tub. Presumably an SUV would require them to start again from scratch? Ie heavy investment?

This is a good thread by the way and I hope McLaren read it and take onboard some of the suggestions

I can’t see them wanting to cut production, albeit limiting launch edition models might be a good idea.

So the answer then seems to be to find a way of increasing demand. I can only speak from my perspective here; but I’m probably McLarens prime target market 40-something already buying a competitors product. What puts me off is the warranty cost and (too many) horror stories from people I know. So if they could introduce longer warranties, support the independent network and generally reduce the risk of a poor ownership experience it would go some way to convincing me to buy one rather than feeling like it’s a gamble ; will I get a good one or a lemon?

But as I said before, kudos to the OP for the thread (we could do with one for every manufacturer) and I hope it leads to a brighter McFuture

[Juno]

RobDown said:

I would imagine that one problem with the SUV idea for McLaren is that there cars are designed around a CF tub. Presumably an SUV would require them to start again from scratch? Ie heavy investment?

This is a good thread by the way and I hope McLaren read it and take onboard some of the suggestions

I can’t see them wanting to cut production, albeit limiting launch edition models might be a good idea.

So the answer then seems to be to find a way of increasing demand. I can only speak from my perspective here; but I’m probably McLarens prime target market 40-something already buying a competitors product. What puts me off is the warranty cost and (too many) horror stories from people I know. So if they could introduce longer warranties, support the independent network and generally reduce the risk of a poor ownership experience it would go some way to convincing me to buy one rather than feeling like it’s a gamble ; will I get a good one or a lemon?

But as I said before, kudos to the OP for the thread (we could do with one for every manufacturer) and I hope it leads to a brighter McFuture

Thanks Rob

Its good to see people being honest and objective.

I personally know Mclarens UK sales manager and could send him a link to this ?

I would like to scratch the itch but but just too many uncertainties for me right now!

Edited by Juno on Sunday 12th May 23:21

[breadvan]

With the lack of dealers and reliability / depreciation worries, buying any McLaren still makes you feel like an early adopter.

As you know, early adopters only make a small percentage of punters and they will soon be exhausted I’m afraid.

It’s time to grow up McLaren.

[Bispal]

I don't think the warranty is an issue, it's comprehensive, its £3.5 - £5k and it gives you peace of mind. The depreciation of these amazing cars is due to McLaren senior management decisions. How to reverse the situation?

1. Stop bringing out a new car every 6 months. We all know its mostly the same engine / same tub. All this does is create a massive depreciation hit. The 12C was introduced in 2011, By 2017, 6 years later, it was 3 generations old. The 991 was also introduced in 2011 and has just, in 2019, ceased production with the speedster. That's almost 8 years production run. F458, 2009 - 2015, 6 years. This is the primary issue, not everyone wants a 3 generations old car (doesn't bother me but most people). Track 25, 18 cars by 2025....

2. Support their older 'heritage' models. McLaren 'appear' to have no interest in their older models, this translates as no faith. They don't even like to accept 12C's as trade ins and if they do their prices are so low that word gets out and this depresses all prices. How many times have you read on here "McLaren offered my £xx for my 12C / 650 / 720 £xxk less than it should be! What impact do McLaren think that has on confidence & residuals?

3. Over pricing new cars. This leads to heavy discounting. I know someone who last week bought a used 720S from a McDealer, he got £30k off without even trying. I have heard tales of big discounts on new cars as well. Just set a realistic price and don't discount.

4. While the warranty isn't an issue the time it takes to fix the cars is. The dealers will take a car in and McLaren dictate the exact time for each issue for a fixed fee. EG, new part, 3 hours for £xxx. If they can't fix that part in 3 hours they are not making money. So they return the car to the customer half fixed. The owner complains and the car goes back, warranty claim re starts and they finish their job. Happened to me quite a few times and this is the most frustrating aspect. Your car can be gone for a whole month for a job that takes a couple of days. They are sorting the corrosion issues and seem to have accepted this as a genuine error. Unlike Ferrari with their awful sticky inferior interior and Porsche with their chocolate 996/997 engines.

These are the main issues for me. McLaren's are cracking cars, I adored my 12C and will get another McLaren when there is some consideration of above points. My own theory is McLaren are trying to get healthy order books for new 'expensive' models so their business appears very investable in preparation for a sale.