Discussion
Griffith4ever said:
TBCTBC said:
I keep on looking at them but prices are on the high side vs Autotrader but I guess you are paying for a fully inspected, warrantied and top condition car.
[...]
I think owners set the price though and it will be interesting to see if sales pick up in the Spring.
Yeah - I'm starting to think along the lines of "just buy the car you really really want" and less about the actual cost. We are talking about £85k vs £98k which in the grand scheme of things.....[...]
I think owners set the price though and it will be interesting to see if sales pick up in the Spring.
They are very shrewdly cornering and setting the market for these cars, whether that is good or bad is another debate, but they know that many buyers at this level and car age are largely aspirational, probaby stretching themselves a bit, and paying a slight premium for peace of mind will make the ownership experience a lot more relaxing.
Griffith4ever said:
Yeah - I'm starting to think along the lines of "just buy the car you really really want" and less about the actual cost. We are talking about £85k vs £98k which in the grand scheme of things.....
This one has caugth my eye: https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202309222...
When your budget is £85k, another £13k is actually a big, unaffordable jump. Everyone, bar the multi-millionaries will have a limit no matter what man maths you se This one has caugth my eye: https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202309222...
That looks nice but 600 miles average PA? No thanks.
Griffith4ever said:
Not feeling it for the one I had in mind. I'm now eying one at Thorney's.
Anyone got the factory sports exhaust on the 650s and can confirm what people say that it's a "must"? I have to say my R8 sounds lovely on full chat but I've always felt it could do with a little extra, but not too much. I suspect the turbos strangle the 650s sound on a stock system.
The factory exhaust is indeed louder (I have one on my 650s) but I understand it doesn't actually change the tonal quality of the sound.Anyone got the factory sports exhaust on the 650s and can confirm what people say that it's a "must"? I have to say my R8 sounds lovely on full chat but I've always felt it could do with a little extra, but not too much. I suspect the turbos strangle the 650s sound on a stock system.
While the car sounds great loping around town, with a deep Nascar V8 vibe (not the typical flatulent flat-plane crank sound at low revs), indeed it sounds muffled and not as high-pitched at full revs - all of this from the outside.
From inside the car with the top or backlight down it sounds great at high revs, too. It has a visceral screaming howl - and of course lots of turbo spool. This is especially so if you turn OFF the piped-in induction moaning!
One thing I would add, that some people don't immediately realise, is that cars bought through Thorney only come with a 3 month warranty as standard. Sure, the car will be thoroughly inspected and probably in top-notch condition, but buying at this time of year it might be more than 3 months before you start putting serious miles on it so something to consider.
For that blue one the very low miles would be a worry for me. less than 6000 miles in 9 years falls into garage queen territory for me. Conventional wisdom is that McLarens do not take well to being sat around for long periods. If I was buying a car to actually use and drive then upgrading to the 12 month warranty would be absolute must for me on that particular car, because no inspection can guarantee to find everything that could go wrong if a car starts being actually used for the first time in its life.
For that blue one the very low miles would be a worry for me. less than 6000 miles in 9 years falls into garage queen territory for me. Conventional wisdom is that McLarens do not take well to being sat around for long periods. If I was buying a car to actually use and drive then upgrading to the 12 month warranty would be absolute must for me on that particular car, because no inspection can guarantee to find everything that could go wrong if a car starts being actually used for the first time in its life.
Whilst I understand the logic, low miles works well for me because I use my "fun car" a lot. Not hugely, but I pop to the shops etc. Weekends away, etc etc. I put 2k miles a year on my R8. So in 3 years its gone from a "low miler" 24k car to a "regular" 30k miles car (in terms of how it's seen for sale ). And I know how slow it can be to sell high end cars with anything over 15k miles on them! (I know, it's mad, but it is what it is - my R8 is 14 years old for gods sake - but I can tell you it doesn't look like it! - and it defo feels like "new" when you drive it, but sail past 35-40k miles and you are now selling to a market that have a different budget altogether).
And yes, if I do buy the car I'll 100% take the extra warranty out on it.
And yes, if I do buy the car I'll 100% take the extra warranty out on it.
PinkHouse said:
I was passing nearby so went to see this car today. I'm looking for a 650S rather than a 12C, but I'd get a 12C for the right price and this is cheap.
This car is absolutely one to avoid in my opinion.
- There were no receipts or invoices, just the service book, and the most recent stamp was August 2021. The dealer says it was a main dealer P/X that they bought, and the dealer told them it was serviced with an independent last year but they have no evidence of that.
- It is due an MOT in 6 weeks, the last MOT had an advisory on two suspension ball joints having play; there is no evidence these were addressed. There was a minor defect for both headlights being cloudy. They didn't look bad to me, but they absolutely did not look new. It's possible they were reconditioned.
- Both rear wheels had corrosion and minor surface damage. All 4 wheel centre caps were in a very sorry state
- The rear wing struts were both very badly corroded on the surface.
- Both of the LCD screens in the instrument binnacle are not working; they just don't turn on. I mentioned this to the dealer and he just said "yea, they are intermittent".
- The engine was very rough when started from cold and just didn't want to settle down to a steady RPM, the needle was constantly jumping around a little. That's not unusual, but even after 5 minutes of idling it was still up and down.
- When it was first started the check engine light stayed on. After 5 minutes I turned the engine off and then on again, at which point it went away. The "general warning" light (A yellow exclamation mark) did stay lit. The manual suggests that is only supposed to come on alongside other lights, but there were no other lights on. I couldn't investigate further as the LCD screens were broken.
- It says 28000 miles, but the MOT in April 2022 says it was on 26634 miles almost 2 years ago. The MOT in March 2023 says "Mileage unknown". Since the LCD screens are broken it is impossible to tell what the mileage of the car actually is. This also implies those screens have been broken for almost a year without being fixed.
- The interior just felt tired and well used. My own car has covered twice as many miles as this, and is 6 years older, but feels much fresher inside than this one. I have no evidence to suggest the car has been clocked, but if it turned out it was I would not be shocked. It absolutely did not feel like a car that had done the advertised 28000 miles, and the recent mileage history is really, really low.
2018 - 24181
2019 - 24667
2020 - 25939
2021 - 26269
2022 - 26634
2023 - ???
current - ??? (dealer says 28000)
Make of all of this what you will, but if you're looking at this thinking this is a bargain 12C I'd suggest a rethink.
macdeb said:
Cheap cars are cheap for a reason. How can they even put a car like that up for sale? 
I got the impression that they didn't care too much about the condition. They bought it cheap from another dealer who had taken it as PX, and they are selling it cheap to get shot of it. Somewhere out there will be someone who dreams of McLaren ownership and will pick this up as the only convertable they can afford. 12C spiders are really hard to come by these days, and this is the cheapest on the market by 15 grand.Maybe, just maybe, someone will buy it, spend a 5 figure sum bringing it back to good condition and end up with a lovely car that is worth more than they spend on it. That person is braver than I am.
murphyaj said:
macdeb said:
Cheap cars are cheap for a reason. How can they even put a car like that up for sale?
I got the impression that they didn't care too much about the condition. They bought it cheap from another dealer who had taken it as PX, and they are selling it cheap to get shot of it. Somewhere out there will be someone who dreams of McLaren ownership and will pick this up as the only convertable they can afford. 12C spiders are really hard to come by these days, and this is the cheapest on the market by 15 grand.Maybe, just maybe, someone will buy it, spend a 5 figure sum bringing it back to good condition and end up with a lovely car that is worth more than they spend on it. That person is braver than I am.
Davyt said:
Looks like it’s ended up at Arthur Daleys car lot ,, it’s in a sorry state you can see that from the pics..
It's one of those odd garages where the level of the stock is at odds with the vibe of the place; I'm sure a few people here will know what I mean.We all know those small car dealerships that pop up at the side of a main road, with a small building next to a parking lot chock full of old Fords and Renaults that are either P/X or picked up as ex-fleet at auction. Well it's like one of those, but they have a 12C, a Ferrari 360, a Bentayga, a couple of Astons and a 992 GT3 instead of the boring stuff you'd expect. Plus a bunch of vans.
In fairness to them the guys were friendly enough, answered my questions, and didn't try to dress the car up as more than it was. They knew it wasn't a top-end example and didn't try to pretend otherwise. I don't think they were trying to pull a fast one; just selling a car they got in for what they think they can get.
murphyaj said:
Davyt said:
Looks like it’s ended up at Arthur Daleys car lot ,, it’s in a sorry state you can see that from the pics..
It's one of those odd garages where the level of the stock is at odds with the vibe of the place; I'm sure a few people here will know what I mean.We all know those small car dealerships that pop up at the side of a main road, with a small building next to a parking lot chock full of old Fords and Renaults that are either P/X or picked up as ex-fleet at auction. Well it's like one of those, but they have a 12C, a Ferrari 360, a Bentayga, a couple of Astons and a 992 GT3 instead of the boring stuff you'd expect. Plus a bunch of vans.
In fairness to them the guys were friendly enough, answered my questions, and didn't try to dress the car up as more than it was. They knew it wasn't a top-end example and didn't try to pretend otherwise. I don't think they were trying to pull a fast one; just selling a car they got in for what they think they can get.
Frankychops said:
how come the 650s spider is so cheap compared to others? they seem to be circa £60k less than a 720 spider, £20k+ less than a coupe?
In addition to their age, the spider premium over the coupe doesn't really apply to the 650.With other models McLaren launched the coupe first, and then brought out the spider a couple of years later. Most people probably prefer the spider given the choice, but the staggered launch means there are similar numbers of both on the market. The supply/demand balance thus favours the spider, plus they're typically newer, so the spiders command quite a premium on the secondhand market.
With the 650 because it was a 12C facelift they launched both versions at about the same time, so the numbers of spider and coupe on the market are more in line with inherent demand (relatively more spiders compared to other McLarens) and thus values are about the same for spider or coupe. Thus if you want an open-top McLaren, the 650S is relatively speaking more compelling value against other models.
(It's been said often, but the reason spiders are more in demand is that the carbon tub obviates the scuttle shake that lesser performance cars suffer from when decapitated).
I finally got around to a test drive today. A lovely 650s Spider at Thorneys. Not the greatest of weather but the grip on slippery roads on cold tyres was impressive. Loved the ride and cabin and think I can make the space work for trips away etc. Need to decide colour, spider or coupe but think I am ready to pull the trigger on a 650s. Thanks for the advice.
cutting42 said:
I finally got around to a test drive today. A lovely 650s Spider at Thorneys. Not the greatest of weather but the grip on slippery roads on cold tyres was impressive. Loved the ride and cabin and think I can make the space work for trips away etc. Need to decide colour, spider or coupe but think I am ready to pull the trigger on a 650s. Thanks for the advice.
Nice.On the luggage space, the coupes have the 'not a luggage compartment' luggage compartment behind the seats which is probably similar in capacity to the frunk, so overall roughly twice the space as the Spiders I think. Depends how you value that vs being able to drop the top and/or rear window.
Gassing Station | McLaren | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff