Wednesday 14th June 2017

McLaren 570S Spider - official!

Well if the Audi doesn't do it for you...

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It's definitely summer now. It might be too hot outside, aftersun sales are soaring and the automotive world is revealing its latest drop-top wares. So in just one morning we've had the Audi R8 Spyder V10 Plus and now this, the McLaren 570S Spider.

And there's nobody inside - magic!

Described by McLaren as a "convertible without compromise", the 570S Spider is the first drop-top version of the Sports Series range. And while a new McLaren is always exciting news, the Spiders are especially so. Why? It's that carbon fibre tub, meaning that you get open-top thrills while retaining the structural integrity of the car; not only does it mean very little wobble so typical of convertibles, it means the huge weight gain attempting to mitigate that is avoided too. You might well call it a win-win situation...

Similarly to the 650S, the 570S Spider only weighs a little - 46kg - more than the coupe, and McLaren claims "unchanged" structural rigidity. With identical power and torque to the hard top 570S, this car is said to be capable of the same 3.2-second dash to 62mph and 204mph top speed. Lower the roof - which takes 15 seconds at up to 25mph - and the top speed is still 198mph.

Underneath much is as you were from the Sports Series coupe, with springs, dampers and anti-roll bars all to the same specification. Carbon ceramic discs, Pirelli P Zero Corsas and the McLaren driving modes for powertrain and chassis are all carried over.

Sicilian Yellow one of three new colours

Indeed the most obvious differences would seem to be outside, beyond the obvious removal of the roof. The rear spoiler is 12mm taller than on the coupe, providing additional downforce to offset the altered design of the Spider. Other than that there's a new design of alloy wheel which will be unique to the Spider and three colour additions to the Sports Series palette: Sicilian Yellow, Vega Blue and Curacao Blue.

The McLaren 570S Spider will make its debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed later this month, though the car is available to order now - prices start at £164,750. The first 400 built will be launch editions, too. So what'll it be - Audi or McLaren? Or Lamborghini perhaps? Or Mercedes-AMG? Spoilt for choice!

[Craigwww]

I just can't get excited about these. Just a bit 'meh'.

[Porsche911R]

I like it.

what I don't like are the warranty and service pricing !

[E65Ross]

Craigwww said:

I just can't get excited about these. Just a bit 'meh'.

I remember first seeing pictures of the 570S thinking the front end was a, well, a bit.....ugly. I saw one in real life and it looked absolutely fantastic!

[HeMightBeBanned]

[Henno196]

Mclarens just don't pique my intetest like a new Ferrari or Lamborghini. Maybe it's because they're British so don't have that 'exotic' appeal or maybe it's because they don't look wild enough for the performance and cost.

[AdamV8V]

So if you woke up this morning with £140-170k to spend on a c600bhp drop-top you now have three more options in the Audi, 570S and Aston V12 AMR Roadster.

Got to be a reader poll in there somewhere!

[Spoiler alert, only one has a manual 'box option ]

Edited by AdamV8V on Wednesday 14th June 14:18

[markclow]

When I see that car the word 'meh' does not spring to mind.

Just beautiful.

[Maldini35]

Craigwww said:

I just can't get excited about these. Just a bit 'meh'.

I suggest you take a test drive

[Evo Sean]

Pretty looking thing however, I can't be alone in thinking that the Mclaren range is confusing, they all look identical to me!

You could drag up a press release from 12 months ago and I wouldn't tell the difference!

[Monty Python]

Porsche911R said:

I like it.

what I don't like are the warranty and service pricing !

Only in proportion to the price of the car - you can't expect BMW servicing costs for this sort of car.

[E65Ross]

Evo Sean said:

Pretty looking thing however, I can't be alone in thinking that the Mclaren range is confusing, they all look identical to me!

You could drag up a press release from 12 months ago and I wouldn't tell the difference!

Like how Lambo's all look extremely similar, you mean? Or Audis. Or Porsches. Or BMWs. Or Mercedes. I could go on.

[Regiment]

I wonder what 198mph feels and sounds like with no roof.

[7795]

Porsche911R said:

I like it.

what I don't like are the warranty and service pricing !

Care to elaborate?

[teapea]

They're a lot more pricey to run than an Audi R8, my old R8 cost £500 to service every two years and I never bothered with a warranty.

With a Mclaren, £1300 a year to service or there abouts and £3500 to warranty it with mclaren and you really want that warranty as they're not wildly reliable,

But I have to say it's worth it, the steering and just general feel of the cars is sublime.

[teapea]

Regiment said:

I wonder what 198mph feels and sounds like with no roof.

LOUD I would think, I did 181mph in my 12C coupe and my ears hurt afterwards!

[HeMightBeBanned]

teapea said:

They're a lot more pricey to run than an Audi R8, my old R8 cost £500 to service every two years and I never bothered with a warranty.

Perhaps you're only powerfully built-enough to own an Audi?

[Streetrod]

Evo Sean said:

Pretty looking thing however, I can't be alone in thinking that the Mclaren range is confusing, they all look identical to me!

You could drag up a press release from 12 months ago and I wouldn't tell the difference!

If you think the McLaren range is confusing then what do you think about the Porsche range of which there are currently 20 different versions of the 911 alone!!

Currently there are only two ranges of McLaren you can buy new, the 570 range made up of four cars including this new spider and the 720 range which is only available in one model currently, so five cars in total. Hardly confusing is it plus the 570 range and the 720 looking nothing like each other.

[RamboLambo]

Wow, stunning. McLaren have knocked it out of the park again !

Yet another fantastic product with the appeal and brand growing rapidly.

2nd hand McLarens are a steal at the moment compared to their competitors where you pay a premium for the brand name more so than the product itself.

Lines don't seem to flow so elegantly as the 650S spider but that might be the two tone roofline and rear lid distortion

[anonymous-user]

Henno196 said:

Mclarens just don't pique my intetest like a new Ferrari or Lamborghini. Maybe it's because they're British so don't have that 'exotic' appeal or maybe it's because they don't look wild enough for the performance and cost.

I find the complete opposite is true for me, i see it as a tool to do a job rather than a lot of Italian flair

[CanningTown]

Not nice. Disjointed styling. Looks chintzy.

When will McLaren start making good looking cars?

(P1 excepted. I love that.)