Mad - 570S to 600LT, plus McLaren Ascot

[Fatherdougal]

I went to the 750S event at McLaren Ascot (more of which later) and really had my head turned by one of the 600LTs I saw there. When I bought my 570S just over a year ago, I hadn't really considered it, but it looks absolutely beautiful, and I understand it is much more track-focussed than everyday-er. I wondered if anyone had any real world experience of both and had made the transition?

For Spider to Spider it looks like I'm looking at around £40k to change perhaps. Definitely keen to understand if people think it's worth it?

On a side note, and whilst trying to keep within the name and shame rules, I have to say that event just cemented my experiences with Ascot to date disappointingly. I've contacted them probably 4 times now and not once been contacted back. There definitely seemed to be a "size you up straight away depending on what car you've arrived in" favouritism that really put me off. Very understated event considering they had billed it as a 'celebration' and definitely not a dealership I'd be rushing to buy from now. Disappointing.

[Frankychops]

Was it ascot or Bracknell?

Only you’ll know if the lt is 40% better to you.

[Fatherdougal]

Frankychops said:

Was it ascot or Bracknell?

Organised by Ascot but held at Bracknell. Think most of the staff hosting were Ascot.

[Babw]

Shame to hear the event wasn't great, I've generally been very happy with the Mclaren events.

Last year Mclaren Manchester held one of these "summer celebration" events and it was fantastic. Really warm welcome with the whole team, got to spend a bit of time in a Chiron as well as all the activities like the sim racing they had.

[simon_j]

Fatherdougal said:

I went to the 750S event at McLaren Ascot (more of which later) and really had my head turned by one of the 600LTs I saw there. When I bought my 570S just over a year ago, I hadn't really considered it, but it looks absolutely beautiful, and I understand it is much more track-focussed than everyday-er. I wondered if anyone had any real world experience of both and had made the transition?

For Spider to Spider it looks like I'm looking at around £40k to change perhaps. Definitely keen to understand if people think it's worth it?

On a side note, and whilst trying to keep within the name and shame rules, I have to say that event just cemented my experiences with Ascot to date disappointingly. I've contacted them probably 4 times now and not once been contacted back. There definitely seemed to be a "size you up straight away depending on what car you've arrived in" favouritism that really put me off. Very understated event considering they had billed it as a 'celebration' and definitely not a dealership I'd be rushing to buy from now. Disappointing.

I moved from a 570GT to a 600LT. What do you want to know? The 600LT is more raw, louder, vibrates, etc but not to extreme levels. I’ve done 12 hour driving days without any issues. Overall it just feels more solid, less squeaks and rattles. No costs outside of servicing.

Manchester have been really great for me. It’s definitely a step up but whether it’s worth it depends on your circumstances.

[John Lark]

OP - can’t speak for ascot but, if you’re in the south, I’d advise anyone to avoid Guildford like the plague for servicing, I’ve used them for a few years, but this year they have a totally new set of staff. Utterly hopeless. Bad communication, never got near hitting promised deadlines, got the bill insanely wrong (no need to guess in whose favour the mistake was), there really was nothing good about it,

I’ll be going back to Manchester at this rate despite the distance, Realise off topic but in case it helps anyone

[Fatherdougal]

simon_j said:

I moved from a 570GT to a 600LT. What do you want to know? The 600LT is more raw, louder, vibrates, etc but not to extreme levels. I’ve done 12 hour driving days without any issues. Overall it just feels more solid, less squeaks and rattles. No costs outside of servicing.

That’s great, thanks. Is there a really noticeable improvement in performance? Is the sound more dramatic due to location of the exhausts? Did you feel for you it was worth the step up in cost? Cheers

[Fatherdougal]

John Lark said:

OP - can’t speak for ascot but, if you’re in the south, I’d advise anyone to avoid Guildford like the plague for servicing, I’ve used them for a few years, but this year they have a totally new set of staff. Utterly hopeless. Bad communication, never got near hitting promised deadlines, got the bill insanely wrong (no need to guess in whose favour the mistake was), there really was nothing good about it,

I’ll be going back to Manchester at this rate despite the distance, Realise off topic but in case it helps anyone

Good to know - thanks! Have to say coming from Porsche the dealer network seems woeful. Seems like a hobby for most rather than a business. I’m wondering if it’s just me, but had less than optimal experiences with Brum, Bristol at the end, Ascot. Looks like it will be Hatfield and NF to try next…!

[samoht]

Fatherdougal said:

Good to know - thanks! Have to say coming from Porsche the dealer network seems woeful. Seems like a hobby for most rather than a business. I’m wondering if it’s just me, but had less than optimal experiences with Brum, Bristol at the end, Ascot. Looks like it will be Hatfield and NF to try next…!

This is why places like V Engineering (in Thatcham) are increasingly popular.

[renmure]

No experience of a 570 here, but I am 2 months into enjoying my 600LT Spider coming from a Ferrari 360 Spider.

I'm no boy racer or track demon so for me it was all about the aura of the car. Big splitter, big wing, top exit exhausts, lots of carbon and a general "hardcore" look that set it apart so I never felt like I was being a bit daft not looking at the 540/570 models because it wasn't really comparing like-for-like.

[CTE]

I had a 12c for 5 years then went to a 675LT (18 months)… on the road day to day they felt very similar. If you started having some fun obviously the 675 was sharper but still very similar with the biggest obvious different being the exhaust tone and with hilarious pops and bangs when changing gear etc. On a track the the 675 would set the faster lap time, especially somewhere fast like Silverstone... however a good driver in a 12c versus an average driver in a 675 wouldn't be clear cut at all although that would apply to a lot of cars.
I now have a 570S spider and originally wanting a 600LT (and in some ways still do) although there were non around to speak of at the time, but I`m not convinced I haven't made the wrong choice for what I use the car for, that is road trips, pottering about locally and the odd blast, which is rare with any of these cars as they are way to fast to be driven in anger on the road.
I`d imagine the 600 would be a bit stiffer (better suited to track work) and definitely noisier both from the exhaust (fantastic when you are on it I`d expect), and no doubt a bit noisier mechanically due to stiffer springs and less noise insulation etc. I also really like the looks of the 600 over the 570 due to the extra aero but you do have to look twice sometimes to spot the differences.
I think in summary I`d be equally happy with either, but they do fulfil slightly different roles so it really depends what you use the car for, they're both brilliant.
As for the purchase cost difference, I think you`d argue the 600 will always be worth proportionately more (so would the ownership cost be any more?) than the 570 and will always have better pub bragging rights... until someone turns up in a 675/720/750/765...

[simon_j]

Fatherdougal said:

simon_j said:

I moved from a 570GT to a 600LT. What do you want to know? The 600LT is more raw, louder, vibrates, etc but not to extreme levels. I’ve done 12 hour driving days without any issues. Overall it just feels more solid, less squeaks and rattles. No costs outside of servicing.

That’s great, thanks. Is there a really noticeable improvement in performance? Is the sound more dramatic due to location of the exhausts? Did you feel for you it was worth the step up in cost? Cheers

Yes, you’ll notice the difference in performance. It feels more planted to the road with higher levels of grip especially at the front end in high speed corners and at the rear under breaking. Noise is more pronounced, obviously more in a spider as you can drop the rear window. For me it was worth the change as I’d done a lot of miles in the GT and was ready to move on. The only way you’ll know is to try it.

[4.7AMV8]

Cant comment on the 750 to 600 comparison but have to agree on positives about Manchester. I needed to measure the width of a 570s and guys there had no issue, even me checking how high the door opened until i could just about squeeze out of it as if it was in a garage...didn't even park my car out front, just walked in off the street.

[Purso]

Service side of mclaren ascot has allways been excellent for me. collected and delivered date and time covered trailer and reasonable costs.