F90 M5 Competition into a McLaren
Discussion
Afternoon Folks,
I had been looking for a 570s for a few weeks prior to the lockdown, and just before it was announced I left a deposit for one.
Currently running a 2019 F90 M5 Competition and have recently bought a Ford Ranger Wildtrak (please don't flame me!) for lugging the kids stuff around and getting manky etc. so decided I could swap the BMW for something a bit more special. Now, given the situation of not being able to trade.....mixed with the boredom.....I started to google how the cars would fare against one another.
Which led me to this site which, against what I would consider true, seems to suggest the BMW pretty much lives with the 570S and will be provide better pick up in-gear acceleration:
https://fastestlaps.com/models/bmw-m5-f90-competit...
https://fastestlaps.com/models/mclaren-570s
Don't see how that is feasible given the McLaren's better power to weight ratio.
Regardless, the wait has given me time to question whether I am making the right decision- please reassure me I am!
(also, the 570s is apparently wider than the M5, which is blooming impressive if so! They look so much smaller in the pictures)
I had been looking for a 570s for a few weeks prior to the lockdown, and just before it was announced I left a deposit for one.
Currently running a 2019 F90 M5 Competition and have recently bought a Ford Ranger Wildtrak (please don't flame me!) for lugging the kids stuff around and getting manky etc. so decided I could swap the BMW for something a bit more special. Now, given the situation of not being able to trade.....mixed with the boredom.....I started to google how the cars would fare against one another.
Which led me to this site which, against what I would consider true, seems to suggest the BMW pretty much lives with the 570S and will be provide better pick up in-gear acceleration:
https://fastestlaps.com/models/bmw-m5-f90-competit...
https://fastestlaps.com/models/mclaren-570s
Don't see how that is feasible given the McLaren's better power to weight ratio.
Regardless, the wait has given me time to question whether I am making the right decision- please reassure me I am!
(also, the 570s is apparently wider than the M5, which is blooming impressive if so! They look so much smaller in the pictures)
Ok, not a Mclaren but I own both a F90M5 Comp and a 488 Spider. Regardless of what any performance stats say, the cars are about as far apart to drive as you could imagine. Complete chalk and cheese. The steering feel, the reduced overall weight and most importantly the lower CG all add in to the equation. As a daily snotter the M5 is undoubtedly a better, quieter and less intense experience but I’m sure the Mc is preferable as a weekend toy. To answer your question though on straight line pace, the Ferrari feels significantly quicker than my M5 and I would expect the Mc to be much the same.
garystoybox said:
Ok, not a Mclaren but I own both a F90M5 Comp and a 488 Spider. Regardless of what any performance stats say, the cars are about as far apart to drive as you could imagine. Complete chalk and cheese. The steering feel, the reduced overall weight and most importantly the lower CG all add in to the equation. As a daily snotter the M5 is undoubtedly a better, quieter and less intense experience but I’m sure the Mc is preferable as a weekend toy. To answer your question though on straight line pace, the Ferrari feels significantly quicker than my M5 and I would expect the Mc to be much the same.
Gary has got it completely right. I have both a M5C and a McLaren (720). On paper the M5 is a quick car, but it never feels that fast compared to something lighter and more ‘connected’. The Mclaren feels significantly quicker on the straight stuff and as soon as you throw some bends in the mix the McLaren really shines. Until a couple of months ago I owned an F90 M5 Competition (recently swapped the M5 for a Panamera) and one of three McLaren; a 2018 570S, then a 2017 720S and a couple of weeks ago, back to a brand new 570S.
As has been correctly noted above by other posters, even if the performance stats suggest the M5 can stay with the McLaren, and in a straight line I have no doubt it will (at least until you get above 120mph), there is simply no comparison between the two cars. They are just so different they cannot be objectively compared but in brief, the M5 feels like a fast version of a normal car and the McLaren feels like the supercar that it is.
A few reasons;
The McLarens' lack of weight and the consequential benefits on agility make it feel exceptionally responsive, and the M5 like a barge. I'm not suggesting the M5 is a barge normally, but by direct comparison with a McLaren, it absolutely is.
The steering feel is probably one of the biggest differences. The M5's is OK, but not special even by the standards of other large saloons, whereas the McLaren's steering as about as good as steering gets, period.
Ride quality. It's almost laughable how much better the McLaren rides compared the BMW (any BMW!).
Seating position. Probably just about perfect in the McLaren whereas the M5 is almost SUV-like, and with that comes all the subjective dynamic compromises that brings.
Power delivery. Although the performance may seem similar, how the deliver that power is very different. The McLaren is more laggy, no doubt so the M5 will almost certainly get a jump on it. But where the M5 stays pretty linear to the rev limit, and is largely uneventful and slightly artificial towards the top end, the McLaren revs like an old-skool N/A. OK, maybe a slight exaggeration but in comparison to the M5 the McLarens power builds and builds really satisfyingly one its way to a higher rev limit.
I guess it all comes down to what you want.
If your main goal is straight line speed then, after an M5, I'd give up. You'll not find much, anywhere, that'll give you a performance benefit over a current M5, at least not one that you can genuinely 'feel' on the road. It's got over 600bhp and it's competitive on weight so you'll need something like a 720S (or similar) to materially beat it, and even then I can tell you from experience, you can't actually USE that extra performance on the road. The M5 is already too fast.
If you want something that feels like a supercar, is far more feelsome and visceral in how it drives and has a sense of occasion that's on a different stratosphere, then a McLaren should provide a lot of satisfaction.
Hope that helps. Here's some gratuitous pictures of the steeds I talk about. No comparison really is there?
As has been correctly noted above by other posters, even if the performance stats suggest the M5 can stay with the McLaren, and in a straight line I have no doubt it will (at least until you get above 120mph), there is simply no comparison between the two cars. They are just so different they cannot be objectively compared but in brief, the M5 feels like a fast version of a normal car and the McLaren feels like the supercar that it is.
A few reasons;
The McLarens' lack of weight and the consequential benefits on agility make it feel exceptionally responsive, and the M5 like a barge. I'm not suggesting the M5 is a barge normally, but by direct comparison with a McLaren, it absolutely is.
The steering feel is probably one of the biggest differences. The M5's is OK, but not special even by the standards of other large saloons, whereas the McLaren's steering as about as good as steering gets, period.
Ride quality. It's almost laughable how much better the McLaren rides compared the BMW (any BMW!).
Seating position. Probably just about perfect in the McLaren whereas the M5 is almost SUV-like, and with that comes all the subjective dynamic compromises that brings.
Power delivery. Although the performance may seem similar, how the deliver that power is very different. The McLaren is more laggy, no doubt so the M5 will almost certainly get a jump on it. But where the M5 stays pretty linear to the rev limit, and is largely uneventful and slightly artificial towards the top end, the McLaren revs like an old-skool N/A. OK, maybe a slight exaggeration but in comparison to the M5 the McLarens power builds and builds really satisfyingly one its way to a higher rev limit.
I guess it all comes down to what you want.
If your main goal is straight line speed then, after an M5, I'd give up. You'll not find much, anywhere, that'll give you a performance benefit over a current M5, at least not one that you can genuinely 'feel' on the road. It's got over 600bhp and it's competitive on weight so you'll need something like a 720S (or similar) to materially beat it, and even then I can tell you from experience, you can't actually USE that extra performance on the road. The M5 is already too fast.
If you want something that feels like a supercar, is far more feelsome and visceral in how it drives and has a sense of occasion that's on a different stratosphere, then a McLaren should provide a lot of satisfaction.
Hope that helps. Here's some gratuitous pictures of the steeds I talk about. No comparison really is there?
Palmball said:
Until a couple of months ago I owned an F90 M5 Competition (recently swapped the M5 for a Panamera) and one of three McLaren; a 2018 570S, then a 2017 720S and a couple of weeks ago, back to a brand new 570S.
As has been correctly noted above by other posters, even if the performance stats suggest the M5 can stay with the McLaren, and in a straight line I have no doubt it will (at least until you get above 120mph), there is simply no comparison between the two cars. They are just so different they cannot be objectively compared but in brief, the M5 feels like a fast version of a normal car and the McLaren feels like the supercar that it is.
A few reasons;
The McLarens' lack of weight and the consequential benefits on agility make it feel exceptionally responsive, and the M5 like a barge. I'm not suggesting the M5 is a barge normally, but by direct comparison with a McLaren, it absolutely is.
The steering feel is probably one of the biggest differences. The M5's is OK, but not special even by the standards of other large saloons, whereas the McLaren's steering as about as good as steering gets, period.
Ride quality. It's almost laughable how much better the McLaren rides compared the BMW (any BMW!).
Seating position. Probably just about perfect in the McLaren whereas the M5 is almost SUV-like, and with that comes all the subjective dynamic compromises that brings.
Power delivery. Although the performance may seem similar, how the deliver that power is very different. The McLaren is more laggy, no doubt so the M5 will almost certainly get a jump on it. But where the M5 stays pretty linear to the rev limit, and is largely uneventful and slightly artificial towards the top end, the McLaren revs like an old-skool N/A. OK, maybe a slight exaggeration but in comparison to the M5 the McLarens power builds and builds really satisfyingly one its way to a higher rev limit.
I guess it all comes down to what you want.
If your main goal is straight line speed then, after an M5, I'd give up. You'll not find much, anywhere, that'll give you a performance benefit over a current M5, at least not one that you can genuinely 'feel' on the road. It's got over 600bhp and it's competitive on weight so you'll need something like a 720S (or similar) to materially beat it, and even then I can tell you from experience, you can't actually USE that extra performance on the road. The M5 is already too fast.
If you want something that feels like a supercar, is far more feelsome and visceral in how it drives and has a sense of occasion that's on a different stratosphere, then a McLaren should provide a lot of satisfaction.
Hope that helps. Here's some gratuitous pictures of the steeds I talk about. No comparison really is there?
Your post has cheered me up no end - much appreciated As has been correctly noted above by other posters, even if the performance stats suggest the M5 can stay with the McLaren, and in a straight line I have no doubt it will (at least until you get above 120mph), there is simply no comparison between the two cars. They are just so different they cannot be objectively compared but in brief, the M5 feels like a fast version of a normal car and the McLaren feels like the supercar that it is.
A few reasons;
The McLarens' lack of weight and the consequential benefits on agility make it feel exceptionally responsive, and the M5 like a barge. I'm not suggesting the M5 is a barge normally, but by direct comparison with a McLaren, it absolutely is.
The steering feel is probably one of the biggest differences. The M5's is OK, but not special even by the standards of other large saloons, whereas the McLaren's steering as about as good as steering gets, period.
Ride quality. It's almost laughable how much better the McLaren rides compared the BMW (any BMW!).
Seating position. Probably just about perfect in the McLaren whereas the M5 is almost SUV-like, and with that comes all the subjective dynamic compromises that brings.
Power delivery. Although the performance may seem similar, how the deliver that power is very different. The McLaren is more laggy, no doubt so the M5 will almost certainly get a jump on it. But where the M5 stays pretty linear to the rev limit, and is largely uneventful and slightly artificial towards the top end, the McLaren revs like an old-skool N/A. OK, maybe a slight exaggeration but in comparison to the M5 the McLarens power builds and builds really satisfyingly one its way to a higher rev limit.
I guess it all comes down to what you want.
If your main goal is straight line speed then, after an M5, I'd give up. You'll not find much, anywhere, that'll give you a performance benefit over a current M5, at least not one that you can genuinely 'feel' on the road. It's got over 600bhp and it's competitive on weight so you'll need something like a 720S (or similar) to materially beat it, and even then I can tell you from experience, you can't actually USE that extra performance on the road. The M5 is already too fast.
If you want something that feels like a supercar, is far more feelsome and visceral in how it drives and has a sense of occasion that's on a different stratosphere, then a McLaren should provide a lot of satisfaction.
Hope that helps. Here's some gratuitous pictures of the steeds I talk about. No comparison really is there?
RSbandit said:
Nice writeup interested to hear why you switched back to a 570s after having a 720S? I had a C7 RS6 for a time and whilst undoubtedly rapid in a straight line my 570s is a totally different proposition as a driving tool.
Couple of reasons really; - Firstly, I got a bit nervous on 720S prices and decided to get out before I lost too much money. I got a decent offer for it, much to my surprise, so I think I made the right call; the car is still for sale for less than I was paid for it. It'll make a great buy (it's the best spec'd 720S I have ever seen, by some margin) and heck, I might buy it back if it keeps dropping!
- Secondly, I actually found the 570S more 'fun'. Hard to describe but on the public road, the 570S is very (very!) feelsome and it has a lot of natural movement built into the chassis set-up. The 720S was just so pinned down and ridiculous in the level of capability, you can't hope to use its' outrageous capabilities on the road. If that sounds like I'm saying the 720S is almost 'too good', that is my intention. But in being like that, it was also not as much fun as the 570S.
BUT....when the opportunity arises to get back into a 720S with some of the market nervousness reduced, I will get back into one. Despite the 'fun' statement above, I can't help myself really.
I hadn't actually intended to get back into a McLaren so quickly because I had bought another R8 after the 720S, my sixth one and what seems to be my default go-to safe zone!
However, the dealer who sold me the 720S offered me this brand new 570S at the most ridiculous price which meant it was such a cheap and risk free option for 18 months. 570S production stopped last year so it was one of the last stock cars lying around. Whilst people will claim there are warehouses full of cars that need selling....I can safely say that after calling nearly every dealer to see what they had, this is categorically not the case.
On the C7 RS6, that's what I had before the M5 and must say, I hands-down preferred it to the M5. The M5 was objectively the better car in most areas (bar practicality and refinement) but I'd take the Audi as a daily driver road car every day of the year. Whilst it's not as dynamic, it's also not trying to be something it's not so it (rightly IMO) focuses on refinement and daily usability.
Interesting points is your old 720S the one for sale at Redline? I think that car looks really fantastic love the colour...it is indeed true that any of the cars discussed are way too fast and powerful for road use. I had a V10 plus R8 Gen 1 also and it's v hard not to like them the engine really is a masterpiece but any Mclaren is more special for sure.
Thanks guys, this is exactly what I was thinking when I made the decision to change! And haven't stopped watching YouTube videos etc since I paid the deposit.
Just this bloody wait for being able to get the car is driving me mad.
Really good feedback regarding 720s vs 570s and how they are on the road aswell so glad that conversation was sparked
I keep hoping that car retailers can put some social distancing operations in place that allow them to deliver vehicles.....maybe wishful thinking though!
Just this bloody wait for being able to get the car is driving me mad.
Really good feedback regarding 720s vs 570s and how they are on the road aswell so glad that conversation was sparked
I keep hoping that car retailers can put some social distancing operations in place that allow them to deliver vehicles.....maybe wishful thinking though!
OP, FWIW I have a 650s and a Tesla MS P100D daily driver. Absolutely nothing launches like the AWD EV - and I suspect the launch is also a big part of the “similarity” of your fastestlaps numbers.
But after that - and especially dynamically as other have said - its just no comparison. I figure you should subtract about 0.5 sec just for the difference in the AWD launch. So unless you are planning on going to a (short) drag strip exclusively - go for the 570s.
But after that - and especially dynamically as other have said - its just no comparison. I figure you should subtract about 0.5 sec just for the difference in the AWD launch. So unless you are planning on going to a (short) drag strip exclusively - go for the 570s.
Well, not all Teslas do but I have the big daddy...here’s a video. I have exactly these two cars....except for the colors.
https://youtu.be/Wbr3hHy28AA
https://youtu.be/Wbr3hHy28AA
Edited by 12pack on Tuesday 14th April 19:06
davek_964 said:
What I find really odd is that some of my other colleagues behave as if I therefore bought the wrong car, and should have bought a Tesla. Makes no sense at all.
Yes Tesla fanatics are the worst; most of them actually know nothing about performance cars or driving. The launch from a start has them comparing to real performance cars - idiots.I appreciate my Mac as the real performance car on track and road, but appreciate the Tesla as the consummate daily driver - smooth, quiet spacious, efficient and effortlessly powerful. I must confess I had to go for a Mac after I had the Tesla as my previous performance car did feel a tad lazy after getting used to that acceleration.
Edited by 12pack on Tuesday 14th April 22:03
RSbandit said:
Interesting points is your old 720S the one for sale at Redline? I think that car looks really fantastic love the colour...it is indeed true that any of the cars discussed are way too fast and powerful for road use. I had a V10 plus R8 Gen 1 also and it's v hard not to like them the engine really is a masterpiece but any Mclaren is more special for sure.
Yes it is, and it will be killing them selling it even for the advertised price. I got very lucky. I do a decent amount of business with them so hope they don't hold it against me.Saros is a mixed bag really. It looks fantastic in the right light when it has a blue tinge (it is officially Saros Blue) and it has a ridiculous level of pearl'ness to it. It's an MSO paint so it a fairly pricey option (£7k I believe). Only problem is, it looks a bit plain grey on a dull British day and a 720S is a car that deserves a wild colour. That's where my new Papaya Spark 570S comes in; it's a glorious combination of McLaren Orange with a layer of Volcano Yellow over the top.
Palmball said:
RSbandit said:
Interesting points is your old 720S the one for sale at Redline? I think that car looks really fantastic love the colour...it is indeed true that any of the cars discussed are way too fast and powerful for road use. I had a V10 plus R8 Gen 1 also and it's v hard not to like them the engine really is a masterpiece but any Mclaren is more special for sure.
Yes it is, and it will be killing them selling it even for the advertised price. I got very lucky. I do a decent amount of business with them so hope they don't hold it against me.Saros is a mixed bag really. It looks fantastic in the right light when it has a blue tinge (it is officially Saros Blue) and it has a ridiculous level of pearl'ness to it. It's an MSO paint so it a fairly pricey option (£7k I believe). Only problem is, it looks a bit plain grey on a dull British day and a 720S is a car that deserves a wild colour. That's where my new Papaya Spark 570S comes in; it's a glorious combination of McLaren Orange with a layer of Volcano Yellow over the top.
Palmball said:
Yes it is, and it will be killing them selling it even for the advertised price. I got very lucky. I do a decent amount of business with them so hope they don't hold it against me.
Saros is a mixed bag really. It looks fantastic in the right light when it has a blue tinge (it is officially Saros Blue) and it has a ridiculous level of pearl'ness to it. It's an MSO paint so it a fairly pricey option (£7k I believe). Only problem is, it looks a bit plain grey on a dull British day and a 720S is a car that deserves a wild colour. That's where my new Papaya Spark 570S comes in; it's a glorious combination of McLaren Orange with a layer of Volcano Yellow over the top.
I think the Mantis green is another lovely Saros is a mixed bag really. It looks fantastic in the right light when it has a blue tinge (it is officially Saros Blue) and it has a ridiculous level of pearl'ness to it. It's an MSO paint so it a fairly pricey option (£7k I believe). Only problem is, it looks a bit plain grey on a dull British day and a 720S is a car that deserves a wild colour. That's where my new Papaya Spark 570S comes in; it's a glorious combination of McLaren Orange with a layer of Volcano Yellow over the top.
colour especially in the sunshine. I see you took your blue 570 to the Ring? How was it around there..I was meant to go in April but everything got cancelled due to Covid but have a double trackday lined up for July also so hope that'll go ahead.
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