A 12c flying in face of reason?

[theRossatron]

andrew said:

60k miles in various 911s
60k miles donkeys and bulls

but the question really is; Have you ever driven a Rover 100?

[andrew]

theRossatron said:

andrew said:

60k miles in various 911s
60k miles donkeys and bulls

but the question really is; Have you ever driven a Rover 100?

hand on heart...








































...yes !

[anonymous-user]

andrew said:

theRossatron said:

andrew said:

60k miles in various 911s
60k miles donkeys and bulls

but the question really is; Have you ever driven a Rover 100?

hand on heart...








































...yes !

So, 300 different cars you claim to have driven equates to an average of one every month over 25 years. Are you a Valet?

[andrew]

bugger, sussed

[Matty3]

Why o why do the usual suspects derail these threads?

[Alfapapatango]

Peasants revolting.
Wanna be could have should have but.... didn’t.
So much easier...

[Kid A]

Can any one say what the discount off list for a used model might be? 10%? 15%? I know it obviously depends on the individual car, but it'd be nice to have some knowledge from those who have recently bought.

[MDL111]

I always like the way the 12C looked, not as overstyled as the cars that followed it.
I can’t help with your decision as haven’t driven one and can’t help on buying advice either. Well apart from, the market is not looking healthy so I would hope to be able to get a good discount off asking (I bought a car c 3 weeks ago in the UK and paid full asking price - so this is more a do as I say as opposed to as I do type situation ...)

[ferdi p]

andrew said:

i'm gping to get lynched here, but wtf
the original mclaren mp4 12c was, hand on heart, amongst the most boring cars ( amongst 300 or so ) that i have ever driven
nice doors and quick though

570 some years later was in a different league

I went from 991GT3 to 12c Spider & (for me) it was a massive step up! I was never bored & enjoyed euro trips & driving it way more.

I've done alot less track days in the past 10yrs so maybe I'd have kept the GT3's if that was a priority. As a road car Mclarens are in a different league imo.

Had 12c & 650s, currently have a 720s.

Boring they are not!

[MKA29]

Matty3 said:

Good for you - IMHO go with your heart (with a warranty!) - I reckon 12c prices have finally bottomed out and with the inevitable rise in the future of more independent Mac specialists (good on you Thorney!) they will only go up in value.

I don't ever see these cars going up in value. For the prices they are now, the performance per £is incredible.... Buy to enjoy

[12pack]

The GT4 is a nice sports car but it’s a Porsche - common.

If you like to drive on the road, the 12C is superior in every way. Spider recommended.

Edited by 12pack on Sunday 26th January 11:11

Edited by Tank.mod on Sunday 26th January 15:25

[CTE]

I`ve had mine for nearly 5 years now and whilst I get it serviced at Birmingham McLaren, I have also used Thorney`s for upgrades and a couple of jobs that needed doing and they were quite reasonable. I do not have a warranty and touch wood, so far am quid's in, but maybe longer term a Thorney warranty might be the way to go?

As has already been said the cars are way more special in all respects than most Porkers and a GT4 would not see which way a 12c went, even on track...and with the right electronic settings made to the suspension, engine etc, they can be very engaging. The later cars are improved, but its not night and day and I too prefer the styling of the 12c and longer term they will suffer far less depreciation than a newer car...and of course if people start buying them the residuals will go up!

I`d get a later car, ideally 2013/4 as they were better put together, but my 2012 car is fine and Mc Birmingham always say it is one of the best they see so I guess it can vary from car to car a bit.

As above get the car checked out before buying, warm it up/down properly before giving it the beans, and enjoy...and why wait?!!

[SRT Hellcat]

what do Thorney charge for their warranty.
I must admit to leaning towards buying a Mclaren.
Just not sure on which model but it would probably be a coupe.

[12pack]

SRT Hellcat said:

what do Thorney charge for their warranty.
I must admit to leaning towards buying a Mclaren.
Just not sure on which model but it would probably be a coupe.

With the top up, the coupe is certainly prettier and a bit more practical. It’s just that for me the spider alleviates my no. 1 issue - that it didn’t sound as good as my V12 Vantage. With the backlight or top down, it does. That muted moan becomes a howling snarl.

Edited by 12pack on Sunday 26th January 15:21

[rootsandculture]

CTE said:

I`ve had mine for nearly 5 years now and whilst I get it serviced at Birmingham McLaren, I have also used Thorney`s for upgrades and a couple of jobs that needed doing and they were quite reasonable. I do not have a warranty and touch wood, so far am quid's in, but maybe longer term a Thorney warranty might be the way to go?

As has already been said the cars are way more special in all respects than most Porkers and a GT4 would not see which way a 12c went, even on track...and with the right electronic settings made to the suspension, engine etc, they can be very engaging. The later cars are improved, but its not night and day and I too prefer the styling of the 12c and longer term they will suffer far less depreciation than a newer car...and of course if people start buying them the residuals will go up!

I`d get a later car, ideally 2013/4 as they were better put together, but my 2012 car is fine and Mc Birmingham always say it is one of the best they see so I guess it can vary from car to car a bit.

As above get the car checked out before buying, warm it up/down properly before giving it the beans, and enjoy...and why wait?!!

Thanks

Do you reckon the saving on warranty at thorney and saving at purchase price in buying not through McLaren ultimately works out cheaper than buying approved, extending that warranty and then selling with full McLaren history?

I’m just thinking that given as the majority of cars on the used market have full McLaren history anyway would it not make sense to stay within it and get better value come sale time?

[speedick]

rootsandculture said:

Last week I was on the precipice of 981 GT4 ownership recently when the contrarian voice inside me, said: ‘don’t buy the universally lauded best sports car on the market that will cost you little to run for a couple of years and will be easy to sell on, live with, track and maintain with a reliable dealer network. Buy a 12c which is likely to be the opposite of all of those things’.

Then spoke with a McLaren dealer who pointed out that I’d be better off going the PCP route on a more recent car than finance in a 12c without a GFV. He also said that I’d probably think something like an 600 LT was a better drive for a weekend toy.

But, I still want a 12c.

Absolutely no sensible reason why. I just think there’s something innately cool about the very subtle styling, elegant proportion and effortless ride that a 12c apparently has. I’m not really a supercar person, quite the opposite, but in my view a 12c at 75k is getting into the ‘interesting choice’ zone and away from ‘flash so and so’ territory. Different strokes for different folks.

So, if anyone could shine a light on a few buying related questions for me I’d be grateful...

- buy now or wait? The dealer I spoke to was fairly open about values being pushed down by depreciation in newer models. Anyone think there’s much to be gained by giving it 6 months?

- are the low mileage cars worth the premium? I’d have thought it would be safer to get something that have a few miles on it, say 25k, than a 10 year old car that’s barely moved. Is this nonsense?

- how far can I expect to push a McLaren dealer on price? I was thinking to ask for 2 year rather than 1 warranty. Imagine it’s a buyers market for these given the deals they’re offering in newer models.

- any specification or options that you’d recommended searching out?

Just in case you've not seen this already, here's a link to the trailer (I paid £6 to watch the full version on Netflix)

https://youtu.be/cWxLGCXwWq0

Well worth a watch I'd say. Turned out to be the tipping point for my buying a 12c last year ..... (so far) best Idea I've had for a very long time, I love it !.

[davek_964]

rootsandculture said:

Thanks

Do you reckon the saving on warranty at thorney and saving at purchase price in buying not through McLaren ultimately works out cheaper than buying approved, extending that warranty and then selling with full McLaren history?

I’m just thinking that given as the majority of cars on the used market have full McLaren history anyway would it not make sense to stay within it and get better value come sale time?

My car has warranty until August 2021, and if I wanted to sell it I'm sure that would help. On the other hand, if I wanted to sell it quickly - I'm sure it would still need to be an absolute bargain.
I think Thorney is going from strength to strength (and deservedly so) so I can see a lot of older cars going that route. I haven't decided what I'll do in 2021 yet (assuming I still own my car then) - £5k a year doesn't sound so bad. But £20k over 4 years sounds bloody insane to me.

[AndyMac4000]

rootsandculture said:

Thanks

Do you reckon the saving on warranty at thorney and saving at purchase price in buying not through McLaren ultimately works out cheaper than buying approved, extending that warranty and then selling with full McLaren history?

I’m just thinking that given as the majority of cars on the used market have full McLaren history anyway would it not make sense to stay within it and get better value come sale time?

I don’t see why you can’t do both.
I plan to send the car to Thorney for its annual warranty inspection/warranty and get any non service work carried it out needs there. But still send it to McLaren for the Annual Service. It helps that for me the dates will be adjacent.

[p-car]

rootsandculture said:

Do you reckon the saving on warranty at thorney and saving at purchase price in buying not through McLaren ultimately works out cheaper than buying approved, extending that warranty and then selling with full McLaren history?

I’m just thinking that given as the majority of cars on the used market have full McLaren history anyway would it not make sense to stay within it and get better value come sale time?

IMHO ANY car over about 5 years old purchased outside of a manufacturers franchised dealer with an independant warrantly will cost you less overall (including resale value delta) than purchasing at inflated franchised dealer prices.

The same franchised dealer will kick you in the bo!!ocks come trade in anyway so you'll likely be trading in at an independent trader or selling privately where buyers tend to be more knowledgeable and where the FMDSH (Full Main Dealer Service History) counts for much less.

Edited by p-car on Monday 27th January 12:10

[p-car]

rootsandculture said:

...
But, I still want a 12c.

Absolutely no sensible reason why. I just think there’s something innately cool about the very subtle styling, elegant proportion and effortless ride that a 12c apparently has. I’m not really a supercar person, quite the opposite, but in my view a 12c at 75k is getting into the ‘interesting choice’ zone and away from ‘flash so and so’ territory. Different strokes for different folks.

So, if anyone could shine a light on a few buying related questions for me I’d be grateful...

- buy now or wait? The dealer I spoke to was fairly open about values being pushed down by depreciation in newer models. Anyone think there’s much to be gained by giving it 6 months?

- are the low mileage cars worth the premium? I’d have thought it would be safer to get something that have a few miles on it, say 25k, than a 10 year old car that’s barely moved. Is this nonsense?

- how far can I expect to push a McLaren dealer on price? I was thinking to ask for 2 year rather than 1 warranty. Imagine it’s a buyers market for these given the deals they’re offering in newer models.

- any specification or options that you’d recommended searching out?

Roots... you are a man after my own heart/taste

As you say the 12C is elegant and somehow for a car capable of 0-100 in 6.1 secs and 207mph (and bright orange in my case) not nearly as ostentatious or "flash" as the Eyetalians or even later Macs As others have said it's an entirely different league to a GT4 or even a GT3!!!

I've had my 2012 12C for 4 years now. It's been a delight to own and drive and has been 100% reliable

To answer some of your questions...

Winter is usually a good time to buy sports cars. They may well continue to depreciate but I'd jump in now.

When I bought mine almost all used McLarens were still retailed through the main deailer network, I got mine from Ascot under the "McLaren Approved" scheme with the manufacturer extended warranty. I didn't need the warranty in the first year, didn't bother renewing it and haven't needed it since.

If I were buying one today I'd have no qualms about buying independently/privately and initially putting a Thorney warranty on it for peace of mind.

Almost all prestige brands are mileage sensitive. However McLaren are more like Porsche than Ferrari where you almost daren't use them!!! I think you're spot on and would look for one that has covered between 2-5K mile annually (16-40K miles) so that it's been regularly used and serviced which tends to bed everything in and chase out any niggles

W.R.T. options everyone loves carbon these days so the more the merrier even if its cosmetic. The carbon interior is very desirable as are carbon front and rear splitter/diffuser and engine covers. Personally I also like the carbon mirror covers.
Depending on body colour the "Stealth Pack" (anthracite wheels/spoiler posts/exhaust tips) can look great.
Most people prefer the leather or alcantara upgrade to the standard "Space Fabric". I think leather works best but I think the Space fabric is superior to alcantara which sooner or later "bobbles" and eventually goes bald (not a McLaren only issue).
The original IRIS entertainment/navigation system isn't great so a car with the IRIS 2 upgrade and reversing camera is more desirable.
There were 4 styles of wheels, not many folks like the standard double 5 spokes, the original Lightweight a.k.a "Penis" wheels look good as do the later V2 Lightweight wheels used on late 12C's (and 650S's) but the 10 spoke Super Lightweight wheels which are similar to P1 wheels are most peoples favourite. I'd avoid diamond cut finishes as just like ALL diamond cut wheels they WILL get alloy worm and you'll have to have them refurbed every few years
The factory sports exhaust is also a desirable option. It's lighter and adds a deeper snarl to the exhaust note.

Good luck, you won't regret it