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Artura broke after two miles.

14695 Views 378 Replies 54 Participants Last post by  Lotus000
Finally took delivery of my long awaited Artura two days ago. I made it exactly two, yes two, miles before it spat codes and stranded me on the side of the road. Transmission fault. That works out to $135,000 per mile. 🎉 Now it’s going on a truck back to the dealer.

I am now hearing that possibly 50% of delivered cars are undrivable. One owner got two and lemon law’d both! Ooph.

Feels bad man. Yay McLaren.

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If the fix came after breaking I’d take that to mean new deliveries will have the fix during PDI. Also good news.
We hope.
this makes sense to me, to verify the fix, and if it failed gather diagnostic information and pull data from the cars ECUs, having factory technical onsite talking to engineering back at McLaren probably fastest way to debug. since this only affected "50%" of cars, it seems likely it is related to the current state of the OP's vehicle.
I would agree. Better to not futz around with it. Get it fixed, verify the fix and develop a plan to implement the fix going forward.
Do they do updates pre delivery? That's what i wasn't sure about
Great question. I asked my salesperson but I don’t think he knew much about the pdi process. (I would not expect him to though.) TBH I kinda got the feeling the fix was either ready or nearly ready when my car went out. It felt like my car got missed somehow, or, it just missed that update window. Does not really matter either way. Shit happens. I am hoping that all the shipping, testing, fixing, inspecting and cleaning will result in a well shaken out car.
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Good news @Maniac71 . Congrats.

McLaren is currently taking steps to ensure that all to-be-delivered cars will have the latest software update (v4.6) before they are delivered. If you have not yet received your car, it absolutely should have the update when delivered.
Where did you hear that?
UPDATE: The McLaren engineer has updated the software and the car appears to be gtg. They are going to road test it and check a couple other little skwaks I found. The service manager said the engineer is not leaving until everything is 100%. Looking like my car should be done by noon tomorrow and maybe even ship back tomorrow night. 🤞🏻
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UPDATE: The McLaren engineer has updated the software and the car appears to be gtg. They are going to road test it and check a couple other little skwaks I found. The service manager said the engineer is not leaving until everything is 100%. Looking like my car should be done by noon tomorrow and maybe even ship back tomorrow night. 🤞🏻
Great to hear. The expected, real-world outcome when one has an issue (with anything really) by first seeking help (from an official source i.e. dealer), troubleshoot and find solutions.

I put it this way because after reading through this entire thread, my head was really spinning from all the back and forth. It was like the world was going to end, like McLaren was going to be crushed, wiped off the face of the planet, blown into smithereens! Some eluding to the Artura being that final straw that would kill the brand. Others who currently own McLaren vehicles calling the end of the company's life (to which I would say you should just sell your car now if you believe in what you're saying). It has come to the point that someone like me would be better off canceling their order based on some comments on this thread (something I'm not doing nor others would do either). Lets see if this issue gets resolved and your car acts as it should.

I just came back from my week long vacation with one of those days visiting the MTC. Calling it a 'factory' is almost discrediting as the term carries a conotation which reminds one of noise, dust, heat, conveyor belts, and intense labor. Rather it is a place of calm, order, and cleanliness. If you're well-educated with McLaren, you would already know this.

The production line was filled with Arturas and probably one hand full of GTs. McLaren is in full running operation, various Arturas were being road tested in Woking and I saw at least one a day in town, somedays I saw the same car twice in different locations. Cars leaving the MTC campus and some returning to their home.

So through all the chaotic discourse that I see here at times and within this thread, and all the rest being said, I just wanted to say...that the world isn't actually ending (yet).

Note* These cars have a great warranty. If you have an issue, your dealer should be competent enough to follow the processes set in place to resolve your issues (Some opinions say otherwise but that's not the point right now). While the internet can be a place for community discourse and all the benefits (and cons) that come with it, the internet is not your authorized dealer/service center.

And personally speaking, that is the reason I am cautious to post about any issues I may be experiencing, rather it is not a priority to rush to the internet to voice my complaint before resolution. My issues are to be solved with the appropriate parties first before opening up to the opinions of others, some being constructive, the rest simply being noise.
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Great to hear. The expected, real-world outcome when one has an issue (with anything really) by first seeking help (from an official source i.e. dealer), troubleshoot and find solutions.

I put it this way because after reading through this entire thread, my head was really spinning from all the back and forth. It was like the world was going to end, like McLaren was going to be crushed, wiped off the face of the planet, blown into smithereens! Some eluding to the Artura being that final straw that would kill the brand. Others who currently own McLaren vehicles calling the end of the company's life (to which I would say you should just sell your car now if you believe in what you're saying). It has come to the point that someone like me would be better off canceling their order based on some comments on this thread (something I'm not doing nor others would do either). Lets see if this issue gets resolved and your car acts as it should.

I just came back from my week long vacation with one of those days visiting the MTC. Calling it a 'factory' is almost discrediting as the term carries a conotation which reminds one of noise, dust, heat, conveyor belts, and intense labor. Rather it is a place of calm, order, and cleanliness. If you're well-educated with McLaren, you would already know this.

The production line was filled with Arturas and probably one hand full of GTs. McLaren is in full running operation, various Arturas were being road tested in Woking and I saw at least one a day in town, somedays I saw the same car twice in different locations. Cars leaving the MTC campus and some returning to their home.

So through all the chaotic discourse that I see here at times and within this thread, and all the rest being said, I just wanted to say...that the world isn't actually ending (yet).

Note* These cars have a great warranty. If you have an issue, your dealer should be competent enough to follow the processes set in place to resolve your issues (Some opinions say otherwise but that's not the point right now). While the internet can be a place for community discourse and all the benefits (and cons) that come with it, the internet is not your authorized dealer/service center.

And personally speaking, that is the reason I am cautious to post about any issues I may be experiencing, rather it is not a priority to rush to the internet to voice my complaint before resolution. My issues are to be solved with the appropriate parties first before opening up to the opinions of others, some being constructive, the rest simply being noise.
Great to hear. The expected, real-world outcome when one has an issue (with anything really) by first seeking help (from an official source i.e. dealer), troubleshoot and find solutions.

I put it this way because after reading through this entire thread, my head was really spinning from all the back and forth. It was like the world was going to end, like McLaren was going to be crushed, wiped off the face of the planet, blown into smithereens! Some eluding to the Artura being that final straw that would kill the brand. Others who currently own McLaren vehicles calling the end of the company's life (to which I would say you should just sell your car now if you believe in what you're saying). It has come to the point that someone like me would be better off canceling their order based on some comments on this thread (something I'm not doing nor others would do either). Lets see if this issue gets resolved and your car acts as it should.

I just came back from my week long vacation with one of those days visiting the MTC. Calling it a 'factory' is almost discrediting as the term carries a conotation which reminds one of noise, dust, heat, conveyor belts, and intense labor. Rather it is a place of calm, order, and cleanliness. If you're well-educated with McLaren, you would already know this.

The production line was filled with Arturas and probably one hand full of GTs. McLaren is in full running operation, various Arturas were being road tested in Woking and I saw at least one a day in town, somedays I saw the same car twice in different locations. Cars leaving the MTC campus and some returning to their home.

So through all the chaotic discourse that I see here at times and within this thread, and all the rest being said, I just wanted to say...that the world isn't actually ending (yet).

Note* These cars have a great warranty. If you have an issue, your dealer should be competent enough to follow the processes set in place to resolve your issues (Some opinions say otherwise but that's not the point right now). While the internet can be a place for community discourse and all the benefits (and cons) that come with it, the internet is not your authorized dealer/service center.

And personally speaking, that is the reason I am cautious to post about any issues I may be experiencing, rather it is not a priority to rush to the internet to voice my complaint before resolution. My issues are to be solved with the appropriate parties first before opening up to the opinions of others, some being constructive, the rest simply being noise.
Sadly there are some pretty bad dealers out there, not going to name names,
But one will attempt to sell you a crashed vehicle as one that nothing has happened to it.
So honestly the the least I need to interact with some, the better, just my opinion.
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Sadly there are some pretty bad dealers out there, not going to name names,
But one will attempt to sell you a crashed vehicle as one that nothing has happened to it.
So honestly the the least I need to interact with some, the better, just my opinion.
Agreed!
I think that's right. It should be part of the PDI process which may have a correction at any of those locations.
Ask and we shall receive i guess

Triple F posted a video today about the pdi process

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Great to hear. The expected, real-world outcome when one has an issue (with anything really) by first seeking help (from an official source i.e. dealer), troubleshoot and find solutions.

I put it this way because after reading through this entire thread, my head was really spinning from all the back and forth. It was like the world was going to end, like McLaren was going to be crushed, wiped off the face of the planet, blown into smithereens! Some eluding to the Artura being that final straw that would kill the brand. Others who currently own McLaren vehicles calling the end of the company's life (to which I would say you should just sell your car now if you believe in what you're saying). It has come to the point that someone like me would be better off canceling their order based on some comments on this thread (something I'm not doing nor others would do either). Lets see if this issue gets resolved and your car acts as it should.

I just came back from my week long vacation with one of those days visiting the MTC. Calling it a 'factory' is almost discrediting as the term carries a conotation which reminds one of noise, dust, heat, conveyor belts, and intense labor. Rather it is a place of calm, order, and cleanliness. If you're well-educated with McLaren, you would already know this.

The production line was filled with Arturas and probably one hand full of GTs. McLaren is in full running operation, various Arturas were being road tested in Woking and I saw at least one a day in town, somedays I saw the same car twice in different locations. Cars leaving the MTC campus and some returning to their home.

So through all the chaotic discourse that I see here at times and within this thread, and all the rest being said, I just wanted to say...that the world isn't actually ending (yet).

Note* These cars have a great warranty. If you have an issue, your dealer should be competent enough to follow the processes set in place to resolve your issues (Some opinions say otherwise but that's not the point right now). While the internet can be a place for community discourse and all the benefits (and cons) that come with it, the internet is not your authorized dealer/service center.

And personally speaking, that is the reason I am cautious to post about any issues I may be experiencing, rather it is not a priority to rush to the internet to voice my complaint before resolution. My issues are to be solved with the appropriate parties first before opening up to the opinions of others, some being constructive, the rest simply being noise.
Agree.

The supplier should always be given first right of reply and, be given a fair opportunity to correct issues to the customers satisfaction prior to the pounding away on a keyboard broadcasting the problem, creating the level of unnecessary drama as seen here.

It isn't so much that problems can arise in these new hybrids but more how the problems are dealt with. Nobody wishes to be inconvenienced after spending good money on a car but unfortunately at this level of technology, with the use of so many electronics, it's more or less a forgone conclusion that at one point something is going to arise. I suspect to get one of these cars to never manifest problems will prove a rare exception and not the rule.
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Great post! I do agree…mostly. Given McLaren’s track record and their assurances to me that issues like this were a thing of the past, I felt the post was warranted, appropriate and deserved. We buy these cars to have fun with. At least I do, and my very first experience as a McLaren owner was anything but fun. It was embarrassing to me and made me feel like an idiot for writing the check. I have been saying to myself, “What did you expect dummy?!”. A fool and his money…

Now, I get asked almost daily, how is your new McLaren…to whit I reply…”Well….” and people look at me like, “seriously?”. They usually do not even understand my response. They say, “wait, wait, wait; the first time you drove it, you went two miles and it broke??” Yes, I answer. Then they just look at me either bemused (non-car person) or crestfallen (car person).

If McLaren is embarrassed by my original post, I would respond thusly…next time, do not put yourself in a position to be embarrassed so badly. Until they send me paychecks, I am free, nay obligated, to report such fiascos, even if I end up the worse for it. Ultimately I’m a car guy and I would want to know what others were dealing with. I would hate to think that some “car guys” hid their experiences from other car guys. It’s kinda like…bros before hoes…at least to me.
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Again, it’s a 1.0 car with I’ve new complicated systems. A little patience is warranted as these are among the earliest deliveries.

I suspect things will accelerate in getting better sometime after they get their over the air system going but that may take months.
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Great post! I do agree…mostly. Given McLaren’s track record and their assurances to me that issues like this were a thing of the past, I felt the post was warranted, appropriate and deserved. We buy these cars to have fun with. At least I do, and my very first experience as a McLaren owner was anything but fun. It was embarrassing to me and made me feel like an idiot for writing the check. I have been saying to myself, “What did you expect dummy?!”. A fool and his money…

Now, I get asked almost daily, how is your new McLaren…to whit I reply…”Well….” and people look at me like, “seriously?”. They usually do not even understand my response. They say, “wait, wait, wait; the first time you drove it, you went two miles and it broke??” Yes, I answer. Then they just look at me either bemused (non-car person) or crestfallen (car person).

If McLaren is embarrassed by my original post, I would respond thusly…next time, do not put yourself in a position to be embarrassed so badly. Until they send me paychecks, I am free, nay obligated, to report such fiascos, even if I end up the worse for it. Ultimately I’m a car guy and I would want to know what others were dealing with. I would hate to think that some “car guys” hid their experiences from other car guys. It’s kinda like…bros before hoes…at least to me.
I can understand the need to vent - it must have been incredibly disappointing for sure and whilst I sympathize with your situation I can't help thinking you shot the gun far too early.

There is nothing wrong with informing others of problems encountered over the course of ownership - I'm big on that, and absolutely can't stand the protectionism and secretive nature which exists amongst the fanboy brand whore die hard set. 'The Ferrari set are diabolical when it comes to protecting obvious flaws which desperately need to be called out - this lot will go to all lengths to supress any owner complaints which surface. It's ridiculous they way they go on, often making out the problems are pleasures to embellish as part of the experience! And this is precisely why that brand is still dishing up what they are with no incentive to improve upon very basic things which other manufacturers can provide without any major effort required. Can you blame them? No. Why fix something or make something better when the fan base are hopeless gluttons for punishment with seemingly more queuing up by the day to receive their share of just deserves. Ferrari has never had it so easy as they have today which is such a pity as they are capable of a lot better than what they have been - and still are to a fair degree - dishing up - (well one can only hope).

Prospective purchasers (desirably) should be able to become aware of common issues likely to arise, issues which may affect a purchasing decision - but it is both fair and reasonable to at least allow the supplier the opportunity to resolve problems before firing away online.

Now, if the problems can't be resolved or continue to resurface or, the manner in which the resolution occurred was unsatisfactory/unacceptable then by all means go off with all guns blazing into the sunset!
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I am just very excited to learn that it is nothing more than a software update.

I wonder, too, what more will be 'unlocked' when over-the-air updates go live? You'd think if Woking decide that the mill can handle more, than the software can be OTA-updated to get a small bump in power, something like that, right? Could also tweak recharge rate, etc. Huge possibilities with OTA rollouts.

Everyone's expectations line up--we all want Artura to succeed because, quite frankly, it HAS to. The 750 is a mid-life refresh for the 720, and didn't require a lot of R&D to get it up and running.

The R&D cost for Artura were likely tremendous. It's also the entry-level car. While McLaren may not refer to it as "entry leve" (whatever is at a quarter-million dollars...) it is the foundation on which they have set to build their future house. The cars gotta sell.

Simultaneously it's good that there are a lot of orders on the books. I still would wager fewer than 1,000 units have been delivered and are in the wild. If (WHEN!) it works out to be a great car, it's going to do nothing but help McLaren be more financially stable. That gets us Artura LT and 720 replacement, not just a refresh. Replacement as in 3.8-4L V8 with a hybrid setup. The P1 replacement, whenever it drops, will sell itself. It's also good, I think, that there will be a strict delineation between Artura, Artura LT, and 7xx when it drops.

I purchased an Artura because I wanted brand-new technology. I didn't want a 992 GT3 (turned down allocation....which in hindsight I gave away money, but whatever) because I'm tired of Porsche ADM games. I didn't want a Lamborghini STO (or other Huracan) because the tech is a decade old. The STO sounds great, but the Artura doesn't sound bad. If I wanted to be heard in a car I'd get a mid-60's muscle car and put a loping cam in it.

What I wanted from a new car is bleeding-edge technology with good road feel. I get that in Artura.

For those that haven't driven one, when you're in comfort + comfort, the drive feels like .... just a car. You could be in any ol' car driving down the road. But when you switch to track + track, it's a very different experience. It's absolutely daily drivable if you wanted to, and becomes whatever car you want it to be when you want a different feel.

I've been excited about my order for well on a year now, and delivery is imminent. I was excited to first place my order and enter my spec and MSO options. I was also concerned when December came and my FOK got bumped, along with the re-builds in Baltimore going back for the fix. I remain as excited (more so) as delivery gets closer, and for me it's very good news that it's a software issue that is fixable with a computer and a dongle.

Do I get why people piled on Maniac at the beginning? Eh, not really. This is a person that was excited as we all are when we get any new toy, much less a purchase of this order of magnitude. The guy drove two miles in a car and it went haywire. He was frustrated. Now he's probably as happy as a clam knowing that the car will be fixed. Frustration about a new purchase that he couldn't enjoy coupled with not knowing what's wrong is tough. It's different than a blown tyre--that's a sucky situation but at least you know what's wrong. At the end of the day, McLaren made it right.

That to me is the more important takeaway. They flew people over, diagnosed the issue, and have installed the new update. Also, they STOPPED PRODUCTION OF A CAR THEY HAVE TO HAVE SALES FOR in order to fix issues. I think that says a lot about their dedication to quality going forward. You don't pull the plug on deliveries and sales unless you're serious about the product and end-user experience.

And that's the important take-away:
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Unfortunately my car is not a software issue. So far dealer has discovered the hybrid electric motor self destructed and wreaked havoc on the internals. They are now searching through the gas motor and transmission to see what else got damaged since the electric motor sits directly between the gas motor and transmission. No ETA on when it will be fixed, but I was assured by my Mclaren corporate rep that they have all the replacement parts available here in the US for the car.

Even though it's a big bummer, Mclaren corporate and the dealer as always have been great to work with. I am being compensated financially until it is fixed, Mclaren offered to send me a loaner Artura if I'd like, they are even taking care of the cleaning service at my house to have all the oil and coolant cleaned up from my garage floor and to have the stains removed.

On a different note, I have my MSO 750 spec session in 2 hours. Wish me luck 👍🏻
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Unfortunately my car is not a software issue. So far dealer has discovered the hybrid electric motor self destructed and wreaked havoc on the internals. They are now searching through the gas motor and transmission to see what else got damaged since the electric motor sits directly between the gas motor and transmission. No ETA on when it will be fixed, but I was assured by my Mclaren corporate rep that they have all the replacement parts available here in the US for the car.

Even though it's a big bummer, Mclaren corporate and the dealer as always have been great to work with. I am being compensated financially until it is fixed, Mclaren offered to send me a loaner Artura if I'd like, they are even taking care of the cleaning service at my house to have all the oil and coolant cleaned up from my garage floor and to have the stains removed.

On a different note, I have my MSO 750 spec session in 2 hours. Wish me luck 👍🏻
Holy crap! Nice to know that they're doing the right thing. At least the DLD problem had some warning signs....
Unfortunately my car is not a software issue. So far dealer has discovered the hybrid electric motor self destructed and wreaked havoc on the internals. They are now searching through the gas motor and transmission to see what else got damaged since the electric motor sits directly between the gas motor and transmission. No ETA on when it will be fixed, but I was assured by my Mclaren corporate rep that they have all the replacement parts available here in the US for the car.

Even though it's a big bummer, Mclaren corporate and the dealer as always have been great to work with. I am being compensated financially until it is fixed, Mclaren offered to send me a loaner Artura if I'd like, they are even taking care of the cleaning service at my house to have all the oil and coolant cleaned up from my garage floor and to have the stains removed.

On a different note, I have my MSO 750 spec session in 2 hours. Wish me luck 👍🏻
Wonder what the cause was(just curious, you probably won't know), lubrication? Cause highly doubt these motors are anywhere near its limits

But nice to know they're willing to take care of you like this, hopefully everyone gets the same treatment.
Unfortunately my car is not a software issue. So far dealer has discovered the hybrid electric motor self destructed and wreaked havoc on the internals. They are now searching through the gas motor and transmission to see what else got damaged since the electric motor sits directly between the gas motor and transmission. No ETA on when it will be fixed, but I was assured by my Mclaren corporate rep that they have all the replacement parts available here in the US for the car.

Even though it's a big bummer, Mclaren corporate and the dealer as always have been great to work with. I am being compensated financially until it is fixed, Mclaren offered to send me a loaner Artura if I'd like, they are even taking care of the cleaning service at my house to have all the oil and coolant cleaned up from my garage floor and to have the stains removed.

On a different note, I have my MSO 750 spec session in 2 hours. Wish me luck 👍🏻
I would hope they replace the whole trans/ICE/electric motor. They're all interconnected and they won't have any way to know if there was an over-load event from the failure. Unless they X-ray and UT everything...
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