Yahoo Autos Eight Things You Learn After Driving the McLaren 570S
The McLaren 570S is an entirely new car for the British automaker. Instead of being a full-on supercar, the 570S is meant to be a direct competitor for the Porsche 911 Turbo. And when we say direct, we mean really, really direct. Power, price, and performance figures are nearly identical between the two cars. But the similarities end on paper.
This car looks amazing. Yes, this is a very obvious thing to say, but that doesn't make it any less true. It's a $200,000 car, like the 911 Turbo S, that looks like a $400,000 car, unlike the 911 Turbo S. Sure, the one I got to test was bright orange, which does attract some attention in itself, but the overall design is what really sells it. The back of the 570S is probably the weakest part, with odd LED lights that could have benefitted from a treatment that was more similar to the P1, but from the front it's a winner. It's hypercar looks at entry supercar prices.
It's quick. Yes, another obvious thing to say, but the 570 doesn't feel any slower than a 650S, which costs a vast amount of money more than this car. And that's because it's barely slower: The 650S hits 60 in 2.8 seconds on its way to a 207 mph top speed, while the 570S gets to 60 in 2.9 seconds and has a 204 mph top speed.
It feels more sports car than supercar. There's a few reasons for this. Most supercars are a pain in the ass to get in to, to park, and to drive around town. For the most part-forget about the doors-the 570S is just a car. This sills are low and narrow, you can see fairly well out of it, and it's not impossible to drive inside a parking garage. It just works.
It drives much differently than other McLarens. McLaren's innovative suspension for the 650S and P1, which replaces the roll bars with hydraulics, is not present in the 570S. Instead, you have a traditional suspension setup. That means the ride isn't the Rolls-Royce smooth of the other cars in the McLaren lineup, and instead is sports car harsh. So you lose the trick setup that McLaren pioneered, but what you're left with is a well tuned setup that I might actually prefer to the hydraulics of its big brothers.
The steering is amazing. Unlike the 911 Turbo that the 570S competes with, the McLaren has hydraulic steering. It's a treat. Ever since the 911 went electric, it's come under criticism for not being what it once was. Kind of like Bob Dylan. That's what makes the McLaren so damn satisfying, it's well weighted, feels great, and is very quick. A delight to use.
There is turbo lag. The 570S uses a slightly detuned version of the 3.8 liter V8 that McLaren uses in all of its cars. In this application, it has 562 horsepower, which is nothing to sneeze at. However, there is definitely lag before the turbo spools up, particularly at low revs and at altitude. It's just another reminder that this car isn't not naturally aspirated.
The interior is rather lovely, but the infotainment blows. McLaren has done a pretty damn good job on the interior, with great seats and a fantastic wheel. The instrument panel is easy to read and decipher on the fly. But some other parts of it are baffling. The function to raise and lower the nose for parking is nearly impossible to find unless it's explained to you. And the center stack can be a practice in frustration. McLaren has invested all its tech resources into making the car drive amazingly, so maybe the next generation of its infotainment will be better.
I'd get it instead of a 911 Turbo. The 911 Turbo is a brilliant car, don't get me wrong. But there is something about the McLaren that feels very, very special. Probably because when you look at them both side-by-side, a Porsche 911 Turbo looks nearly identical to a Porsche 911, while the 570S could be a doppelganger for a P1. Also the McLaren is just that much more fun to drive than the Turbo. It's a hell of a thing.
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