3-Pedals

I have been a very much of a public critique of mclaren for a long time. In terms of fit and finish, quality, and as a brand and I always said that I would see myself owning last and would prefer to buy a Ferrari or Lambogrhini.

Fast forward to yesterday where I visited a mclaren dealership for a test drive they offered (I wasnt really asking) for the new Artura.

To say that I was blown away is an understatement. Fit and finish of the exterior and interior was unbelievable. Every curve and scoop has a function and isnt there for looks. Inside the cabin the materials and how they fit together was surprisingly good. Its a very simplistic design, very elegant and I loved it.

Then came the drive. The steering, suspension, transmission, and engine are all 1-2 levels above any of the Porsche model in their top respective areas. What I mean is if we consider GT3RS in porsche to have the best steering, mclaren is much better. If we consider turbo s to be best in engine performace, mclaren is better. So if you were to hypothetically take every 911 trim and make a Frankenstein car, it still would not be as good.

Whats most impressive to me was ride quality. It was so much more comfortable than a Turbo S but it handled and cornered as good as my GT3RS. The steering feedback was unreal. Transmission is so good and at higher rpms feels better than PDK-S in my GT3RS. And the engine feels like a 8 liter v10 with lots of displacement and torque, zero lag. The throttle is so linear and pulls SO HARD after 6500 rpm to the redline.

I have test driven more cars than I care to remember. But the last time I was grinning like this was when I test drove a GT3 in 2015. Before that was when I drove an E90 M3 in 2009. I drove and owned many cars in between, much better cars than these cars I test drove but for some reason these two test drives were the ones I still remember and I get goosebumps. This test drive with Artura was the 3rd one.

I have literally placed a deposit for a Q1 2024 750S deliver on the spot. And this car I drove wasnt even 7 series mclaren. I cannot even imagine how 750S will feel.

Now I wanted post this here because I used to HATE mclarens. I learned a lesson yesterday. But I want the forum to know if I am saying these words above, I would absolutely consider mclaren.

The last part will probably hit a few nerves. The amount of money Porsche charges for a Turbo S is too much for what the car is. My new Turbo S built is up there at almost $300k (PTS, etc etc). My 750S build is $75,000 more. Artura would be LESS than turbo s. It is so much money for what you get. Porsche feels like an M4 compared to mclaren. I wish Porsche made a 3100 lbs comfortable 800 hp forced induction model and charge a bit more. I would buy it.

I was looking at Brooks (drag times) stock 720S times. He ran a 9.4@149 mph in a bone stock mclaren. 60-130 was 5 seconds flat. The new mclaren will have 765lt performance with 765lt gearbox, aero, and more horsepower. And here I am thinking Turbo S is fast trapping 134mph. They are like completely different cars. I’m sure tuned Turbo will break 140 mph but I dont think anything is touching the outgoing 720S short of full engine rebuild in Turbo S pushing over 1100 hp. Its just so heavy.

Anyways, I had to share this. I will still buy the TTS because I am a sucker for Porsche. But my eyes are wide open now lol.

eclou

I had the same impressions after a weekend with an early production Artura demo. Somehow the ride is more compliant that the softest settings on the 992 but on track mode it is tighter than any Gt3 I have driven. There is no match for the Mclaren steering feel - incredible feedback! The carbon monocoque is so stiff the car lifts a wheel over any mild curb. My demo did throw some engine lights and the car is now 2 years behind schedule but if it ever gets sorted out its a winner

cavemanmoore

I considered a 720S before ordering a Turbo S. The 720's fit and finish the car was acceptable. The acceleration was fantastic. The atheistic's were stunning. Interior room was tight, but workable. The warning lights on the test drive were not a good sign. None of these were deciding factors for me. My decision to stick with Porsche was based on my intended usage: weekend trips with my wife, stop light sprints, & access to dealerships. The 911 wins in all those categories.

r00t61

I've been looking to get a 720 from my local exotic rental place, but right now it's booked through October

I really want to see what all the fuss is about regarding the 7-series hydraulic suspension and steering. That was one of my biggest criticisms of my 991.2 Turbo, the rather wooden steering and chassis feel

3-Pedals

One piece of advice… If you are not ready to buy it for whatever reason, dont drive it. Porsche feels so slow now, its like i’m brainwashed.

chance6

I will repeat: a Turbo S is far more versatile than any McLaren and is meant to be a car that can do literally everything. A McLaren not so much! Depends on what you want, I guess.
You driving a McLaren hard in the rain?
You driving a McLaren in winter on any snow? Just wondering.

pitt911

I am surprised at the fit and finish comments
I test drove multiple Mclaren products few years back and they were for the most part good reference driving dynamics . The best overall was 600 LT, but fit and finish was sub par on all of them
my concern was always regarding reliability and dealer network. Multiple friends with too many horror stories
looking forward to the times when you can test drive cars and will give Mclaren another shot
Also, Porsche and their dealer network, will benefit from solid competition , so they can step up their game and go back appreciating their customer base without tricks and games

eclou

It's true. Despite the engine lights the demo I drove for a weekend had no creaks or rattles whatsoever and all the tactile switchgear was aluminum and not plastic. The interior while not Italian-stylish was good and functional without quite the ergonomic caliber of Porsche or Honda

22CarreraS

I trust Windows 95 more than Mclaren's electrical system.

3-Pedals

This is correct. However, this is where everyone's use case comes into play. I personally would never drive a nice toy in snow. I spend too much time under a car and I know what salt does to the car. It would just bother me so much to take my almost $300,000 paint to sample turbo s and drive in snow and have everything turn brown in a month. I will even go as far as to say the damage of bird poop on paint is far easier to correct (and as such bothers me less) than what salt does to the undercarriage. Particularly true when you consider the totally exposed engine of the Turbo S. It has very little cover around it that protects it from the elements.

Furthermore, in my case, I want a fast comfortable car. I like Porsches. The only "fast" Porsche that Porsche makes is 911 Turbo S. There is no other car. Some of us want a fast toy car not a grocery getter because it has all wheel drive. And with all due respect to you, if you want to "drive hard" in winter, having 640 hp $300,000 Turbo S vs a used $100,000 base C4 will make no difference whatsoever. So If you want to drive a 911 through winter, fine, by why does it have to be the same Turbo S that is far more expensive? You can have 2 cars, take the keys to Turbo S when there is no salt and use the other "beater" 911. Point being, it doesn't need to be just 1 car that does it all and if you want just 1 car that does it all, it won't feel/remain as special after driving it 10,000 miles the first year.

Porsche does not make a car that can compete with Mclaren dynamics. Period. I dont even know who makes a car that competes with Mclaren. I know for sure its not Ferrari as they are even bigger and heavier than Porsche. Lambo is no different? So I guess, you have to go into 7 figure cars?

3-Pedals

I'm a perfect example of prejudice towards Mclaren. I used to say similar things. Did you actually see their cars (and the ones that are built recently) in person? Drive them?

I was also watching in youtube, they have a new video up of their production process. It takes them 3.5 weeks to build one car. It takes Porsche less than 3 days to build a 911. Attention to detail in Mclaren is unreal. They paint the body panels by hand all at once. It still bothers me that the front bumper of my gt3rs is a different shade of color than rest of the car. It was the same case in my Turbo S. Hard to tell it but if you look closely, its clear they werent painted at the same time.

The downside of such a manual and human driven production process is variations. Human error is much more plausible with Mclaren. But I personally think they have improved. I am super OCD when it comes to these things. I have spent so much time under my 911s and I have taken off body panels and interior panels. I have a good eye for tolerances and I am telling you I could not find faults of this Artura I saw in person. Particularly, the interior felt much more upscale than both of my 911s (GT3RS and Turbo S) and again, this was the entry level car, not the 750S. Porsche won't even let you wrap everything in alcantra, even as a CXX option.

Patton250

We are talking about two completely different leagues. It would be like you saying how much nicer Porsche is than Acura.

I won’t mention how ugly McLarens are.

3-Pedals

I dont understand which car here in your statement is in which league.

There is no need to make a purely subjective comment. There are people who think 911s look like a frog and they are ugly as hell because they all look like a VW beetle from 1960s. This comment is extremely subjective. The thread is all about driving dynamics, specifically steering, suspension, gearbox, sound, and engine. These are far more objective categories. So saying they are garbage without providing any context other than "ugly" simply shows you may actually be in a different league yourself (and it wouldn't be the England Premier league I'm afraid).

neil.schneider

Thank you for this discussion guys. I have been pining over getting a 21 or 22 TTS. I really do want to try a 720 or even the Artura. The idea of having a three-year bumper-to-bumper warranty as well as seven years of maintenance is very attractive. I have a friend that has a 570. He takes it to the track and it is very fast. However, he has had problems with it.

3-Pedals

I think anything these guys made between 2017-2020 have had issues but the number of issues per car and their severity is much better for the more recent cars. Artura roll out was a bit of a disaster it seems. I am hoping a 750S will have all of the 720S kinks worked out, with better audio and apple car play, 765LT gearing and wing, almost 765LT horsepower and lighter.

Its crazy 750S will weigh 140 lbs lighter than my gt3rs with full tank of gas in both. And it has 300 more horsepower to the wheels.