An interesting point of view,only a small querie about your drive,the rear view?? i was more than surprised with the visability out the back,almost 90% of what i get out of my 997,which by supercar standards is fantastic,i am of average height,(well ok a bit below) and the mirror ajustment was easy to get a full view.The car will never need a rear view camera in my opinionI test drove both 12Cs at LFSC yesterday. They have a McLaren Orange car with CCB and a black car (not sure which black, but not Fire Black) with iron brakes. Both have the sports exhaust. I have really mixed feelings about the car. One one hand I know that it is fantastically, astoundingly capable and fast. But on the other hand I am inclined to agree with the magazine reviews.
The car is emphatically a road car and not a track car. This is not to say that it won't blow away all competitors on the track, because it will, but the feeling you get is one of refinement and not one of a raw missile. I have some 40 track days in my Exige and the 12C is really the polar opposite of that. Where the Exige is loud and demands your attention lest it spit you out backwards, the 12C is refined, smooth, and extremely easy to handle. The suspension is astonishingly good - you go around corners absolutely flat yet bumps in the pavement are totally suppressed in Normal mode and passed through just enough to be felt in Track mode. It is the best suspension I've ever experienced - tighter and smoother than a Gallardo, an Evora, a 911 Turbo, a Cayman S, an F430. Frankly it's hard to imagine it getting any better.
My concern is that the 12C is too good and too drama free. Certainly it is blisteringly fast, but I worry it won't be fun. I've spent a lot of time on the track in my Exige, but I've also driven a ZR1 and a Carrera GT there. I would definitely have the CGT over my Exige, but I fear that I might prefer the Exige over the 12C. When I go over the alligators in the Exige, I know I've hit them because the entire cabin shakes and I start to lose the rear end. But I wonder if the 12C will filter a lot of the bumps out. As for the rear end, I did manage to break the 12C free a bit on my test drive and found it to be very well balanced and controllable for the moment of oversteer I got into - although certainly I'll need to be on the track to get a full sense for that.
In some respects the 12C reminds me of an ideal Aston Martin or of a much faster Evora. It is extremely fast, yes, but it is refined and composed first and foremost. Sadly that does take away from the drama and the fun somewhat. I wonder if watching the scenery blow by at Mach 1 would add that drama back. To some extent, it does.
The steering feel is about perfect. I can see a case for it being heavier, but I find it is far superior to the F430 (I haven't driven the 458) and not too far off from the Exige. The steering is tight but controllable and easily centered. I found the F430 somewhat twitchy where the 12C is rock solid. The ratio on the 12C seems a bit faster than the F430. I mentioned the carbon ceramic vs. iron brakes in the other thread. Suffice to say the feel/modulation of the carbon brakes on the 12C are equivalent to the iron brakes. Visibility out the back is useless, but that's OK because I'm used to not having a rear window in the Exige. Visibility out the front is excellent - perhaps better than the Exige and far better than the F430 or 458. Side mirrors are almost too big.
On the sports exhaust, I thought it was somewhat intrusive in the cabin given the road-going tilt of the car. It definitely sounds like a rumbling / gravelly American V8. On Track mode the sound was just starting to get to the point where I had to raise my conversation volume. I prefer a higher pitched F1 style whine, although I've only heard the Enzo reach my ideal - thus, since the exhaust sound doesn't really excite me, I'll definitely order a standard exhaust.
I wish there was a setting on the 12C that made it less good. I thought the Normal / Sport / Track settings for the powertrain were about perfect (minus the rather artificial change in cabin engine noise), but I wish there were more variation in the suspension settings. While the Track setting will keep the car absolutely flat in the corners while still filtering out nearly all of the bumps, I wish it would transmit every pebble, crack, and crease in the pavement into the cabin. Then, perhaps, it would be as exciting as my Lotus on the track. The isolation of the suspension, its speed and comfort makes it perhaps the perfect road car. But then the question becomes, what's the point of going 0-60 in 3 seconds on a public road? Would I enjoy cruising along at 50 mph in an Jag E Type more?
I guess the problem is, McLaren really has made an everyday supercar, but do I really want to make this my daily driver? Certainly it'd be a lot of fun, but I worry about the depreciation, and people hitting me when parked, and the lack of cargo room... Perhaps I should just stop worrying and drive the damn thing.
US Test Drive Report
I test drove both 12Cs at LFSC yesterday. They have a McLaren Orange car with CCB and a black car (not sure which black, but not Fire Black) with iron brakes. Both have the sports exhaust. I have really mixed feelings about the car. One one hand I know that it is fantastically, astoundingly capable and fast. But on the other hand I am inclined to agree with the magazine reviews.
The car is emphatically a road car and not a track car. This is not to say that it won't blow away all competitors on the track, because it will, but the feeling you get is one of refinement and not one of a raw missile. I have some 40 track days in my Exige and the 12C is really the polar opposite of that. Where the Exige is loud and demands your attention lest it spit you out backwards, the 12C is refined, smooth, and extremely easy to handle. The suspension is astonishingly good - you go around corners absolutely flat yet bumps in the pavement are totally suppressed in Normal mode and passed through just enough to be felt in Track mode. It is the best suspension I've ever experienced - tighter and smoother than a Gallardo, an Evora, a 911 Turbo, a Cayman S, an F430. Frankly it's hard to imagine it getting any better.
My concern is that the 12C is too good and too drama free. Certainly it is blisteringly fast, but I worry it won't be fun. I've spent a lot of time on the track in my Exige, but I've also driven a ZR1 and a Carrera GT there. I would definitely have the CGT over my Exige, but I fear that I might prefer the Exige over the 12C. When I go over the alligators in the Exige, I know I've hit them because the entire cabin shakes and I start to lose the rear end. But I wonder if the 12C will filter a lot of the bumps out. As for the rear end, I did manage to break the 12C free a bit on my test drive and found it to be very well balanced and controllable for the moment of oversteer I got into - although certainly I'll need to be on the track to get a full sense for that.
In some respects the 12C reminds me of an ideal Aston Martin or of a much faster Evora. It is extremely fast, yes, but it is refined and composed first and foremost. Sadly that does take away from the drama and the fun somewhat. I wonder if watching the scenery blow by at Mach 1 would add that drama back. To some extent, it does.
The steering feel is about perfect. I can see a case for it being heavier, but I find it is far superior to the F430 (I haven't driven the 458) and not too far off from the Exige. The steering is tight but controllable and easily centered. I found the F430 somewhat twitchy where the 12C is rock solid. The ratio on the 12C seems a bit faster than the F430. I mentioned the carbon ceramic vs. iron brakes in the other thread. Suffice to say the feel/modulation of the carbon brakes on the 12C are equivalent to the iron brakes. Visibility out the back is useless, but that's OK because I'm used to not having a rear window in the Exige. Visibility out the front is excellent - perhaps better than the Exige and far better than the F430 or 458. Side mirrors are almost too big.
On the sports exhaust, I thought it was somewhat intrusive in the cabin given the road-going tilt of the car. It definitely sounds like a rumbling / gravelly American V8. On Track mode the sound was just starting to get to the point where I had to raise my conversation volume. I prefer a higher pitched F1 style whine, although I've only heard the Enzo reach my ideal - thus, since the exhaust sound doesn't really excite me, I'll definitely order a standard exhaust.
I wish there was a setting on the 12C that made it less good. I thought the Normal / Sport / Track settings for the powertrain were about perfect (minus the rather artificial change in cabin engine noise), but I wish there were more variation in the suspension settings. While the Track setting will keep the car absolutely flat in the corners while still filtering out nearly all of the bumps, I wish it would transmit every pebble, crack, and crease in the pavement into the cabin. Then, perhaps, it would be as exciting as my Lotus on the track. The isolation of the suspension, its speed and comfort makes it perhaps the perfect road car. But then the question becomes, what's the point of going 0-60 in 3 seconds on a public road? Would I enjoy cruising along at 50 mph in an Jag E Type more?
I guess the problem is, McLaren really has made an everyday supercar, but do I really want to make this my daily driver? Certainly it'd be a lot of fun, but I worry about the depreciation, and people hitting me when parked, and the lack of cargo room... Perhaps I should just stop worrying and drive the damn thing.
The car is emphatically a road car and not a track car. This is not to say that it won't blow away all competitors on the track, because it will, but the feeling you get is one of refinement and not one of a raw missile. I have some 40 track days in my Exige and the 12C is really the polar opposite of that. Where the Exige is loud and demands your attention lest it spit you out backwards, the 12C is refined, smooth, and extremely easy to handle. The suspension is astonishingly good - you go around corners absolutely flat yet bumps in the pavement are totally suppressed in Normal mode and passed through just enough to be felt in Track mode. It is the best suspension I've ever experienced - tighter and smoother than a Gallardo, an Evora, a 911 Turbo, a Cayman S, an F430. Frankly it's hard to imagine it getting any better.
My concern is that the 12C is too good and too drama free. Certainly it is blisteringly fast, but I worry it won't be fun. I've spent a lot of time on the track in my Exige, but I've also driven a ZR1 and a Carrera GT there. I would definitely have the CGT over my Exige, but I fear that I might prefer the Exige over the 12C. When I go over the alligators in the Exige, I know I've hit them because the entire cabin shakes and I start to lose the rear end. But I wonder if the 12C will filter a lot of the bumps out. As for the rear end, I did manage to break the 12C free a bit on my test drive and found it to be very well balanced and controllable for the moment of oversteer I got into - although certainly I'll need to be on the track to get a full sense for that.
In some respects the 12C reminds me of an ideal Aston Martin or of a much faster Evora. It is extremely fast, yes, but it is refined and composed first and foremost. Sadly that does take away from the drama and the fun somewhat. I wonder if watching the scenery blow by at Mach 1 would add that drama back. To some extent, it does.
The steering feel is about perfect. I can see a case for it being heavier, but I find it is far superior to the F430 (I haven't driven the 458) and not too far off from the Exige. The steering is tight but controllable and easily centered. I found the F430 somewhat twitchy where the 12C is rock solid. The ratio on the 12C seems a bit faster than the F430. I mentioned the carbon ceramic vs. iron brakes in the other thread. Suffice to say the feel/modulation of the carbon brakes on the 12C are equivalent to the iron brakes. Visibility out the back is useless, but that's OK because I'm used to not having a rear window in the Exige. Visibility out the front is excellent - perhaps better than the Exige and far better than the F430 or 458. Side mirrors are almost too big.
On the sports exhaust, I thought it was somewhat intrusive in the cabin given the road-going tilt of the car. It definitely sounds like a rumbling / gravelly American V8. On Track mode the sound was just starting to get to the point where I had to raise my conversation volume. I prefer a higher pitched F1 style whine, although I've only heard the Enzo reach my ideal - thus, since the exhaust sound doesn't really excite me, I'll definitely order a standard exhaust.
I wish there was a setting on the 12C that made it less good. I thought the Normal / Sport / Track settings for the powertrain were about perfect (minus the rather artificial change in cabin engine noise), but I wish there were more variation in the suspension settings. While the Track setting will keep the car absolutely flat in the corners while still filtering out nearly all of the bumps, I wish it would transmit every pebble, crack, and crease in the pavement into the cabin. Then, perhaps, it would be as exciting as my Lotus on the track. The isolation of the suspension, its speed and comfort makes it perhaps the perfect road car. But then the question becomes, what's the point of going 0-60 in 3 seconds on a public road? Would I enjoy cruising along at 50 mph in an Jag E Type more?
I guess the problem is, McLaren really has made an everyday supercar, but do I really want to make this my daily driver? Certainly it'd be a lot of fun, but I worry about the depreciation, and people hitting me when parked, and the lack of cargo room... Perhaps I should just stop worrying and drive the damn thing.
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I wish you had driven a 458 that would have made your excellent analysis more complete ! I absolutely agree with your analysis but not the conclusions thereof!
I agree, the 12C is one of the few cars that have made my eyeballs hurt from acceleration. The other 2 being the CGT and the ZR1, and those two in much warmer weather.Ritesh said:
Well, sadly LFSC doesn't have any 458s around for test drives! They actually bought both US press cars and sold those too. I will try to get a 458 test drive in at some point.I wish you had driven a 458 that would have made your excellent analysis more complete ! I absolutely agree with your analysis but not the conclusions thereof!
Also, perhaps the police are less eager to throw supercar owners in jail in Essex...
As a former (modified) Elise owner (while in the Essex, to boot), I would never in my wildest dreams (or fantasies/nightmares) cross-compare it (or an Exige) to an MP4-12C (let alone Gallardo, 360/430 & 458, R8, NSX, etc). Perhaps a Spec-Miata/MX-5, Ariel Atom, or the like - yes. Even the Evora seems a bit of a stretch to compare to the aforementioned. Perhaps the forthcoming V10-powered ESPRIT may balance-out the otherwise one-dimensional slot-car like skewed spartan experience of the Lotus Elise/Exige platforms.
The brilliance of the MP4-12C (along w/ the 458 Italia) is that they bridge the gap between a town-&-country gentleman-racer GT & the dedicated track-day performer.
I guess it comes down to diff'rent strokes for diff'rent folks! All one's preference...
Just my 2-pence. . .
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