Have McLaren gone soft?
The name is so associated with high performance supercars with prices to bring tears to your eyes â a classic F1 would cost you more than ÂŁ10 million if you were lucky enough to find an owner willing to sell and the ultimate track-only P1 GTR is out of your reach unless youâve got at least ÂŁ2 million to spare. Even if you have a deep bank account, youâre out of luck because there are only around 40 in existence and they were all sold almost immediately and only to existing P1 owners.
The 675LT which I got the chance to drive around the west coast a wee while ago, is a stunner of a machine and again all 500 â most of which still havenât even been built yet â were sold within two weeks of the announcement of the model late last yearâŚ. and they start at around a quarter of a million quid.
But now the folks at McLaren Automotive â formed only six years ago and already into profit â have sprung another surprise.
Their latest baby isnât just more affordable, if thatâs the right word, but it has a boot!
Well, not quite, but the 570GT, the newest addition to the Surrey-based companyâs entry-level Sports Series has a luggage space behind the seats ⌠and a rear door. Itâs actually a glass panel which hinges at the side for access to the leather-lined load bed. Itâs very practical and certainly beats trying to cram bags in behind the seats from the front. The âpiano lidâ panel hinges at either the left or right side, depending on whether the car is LHD or RHD so it faces the kerb and if youâre worried that your overnight bags might scratch the paintwork, McLaren will even vinyl-coat the aluminium wing top for protection.
The rear loadspace adds another 220 litres of carrying capacity to the existing 150 litres under the bonnet, which is of little use beyond a small holdall for your toothbrush and a change of pants if the excitement of the power of the 562 horses pushing out from the mid-mounted twin-turbo 3.8-litre V8 proves too much.
So the car is a lot more practical as a car you could use every day and even allow you to go away for the weekend, without having to send your luggage in advance.
Itâs got a great panoramic sunroof which opens up the interior into a light and airy space along with the soft-closing dihedral doors and powered steering adjustment fitted for the first time in a McLaren. The suspension is a lot softer, the steering ratio has been reduced and the disappearance of the classic rear flying buttress means thereâs a reduction in downforce.
So, to repeat the question â is the 570GT a McLaren for softies?
Absolutely not. Certainly steel brakes are the standard fitting but the test car I drove at the international launch in Tenerife had carbon ceramics â a ÂŁ7,290 option. I put them to good use because the GT may be more user-friendly but thereâs bags of power and performance which will certainly not disappoint the enthusiast.
Effectively this is a supercar which has been calmed down to meet grand touring spec, rather than a tamer beast which has been beefed up.
All the key McLaren elements are there including the lightweight carbon cockpit tub and the twin-clutch, seven-speed, semi-automatic gearbox driving the rear wheels and with the same engine and output as the 570S, itâs only a couple of tenths of a second slower in acceleration. Thatâs down to the extra 40kgs itâs carrying in creature comforts around the cabin.
The biggest challenge with the car is actually getting in â gravity makes it marginally easier than getting out again â but once youâre there, the seats wrap around like a snug-fitting glove and hold you firmly no matter how enthusiastically you take the corners. Head and legroom feels good and the big glass roof helps counter any sense of claustrophobia.
Itâs on the open road that this car simply comes alive and thereâs no lack of grunt from the power unit behind you although everything feels more subdued and refined, including the engine note. That was something of a disappointment and for me is just one of the delights of taking the wheel of a McLaren.
Donât get me wrong, it still sounds good but it would have been good to have the option of a button which could do some fancy stuff with the exhaust to create a more meaningful burble.
On the motorway, itâs a delightful cruiser with great stability and manners but itâs when you head for the hills and their twisting tracks that the car simply springs into life. Feedback is first class, response from the right foot is immediate and gearchanges through the paddles are so razor-sharp you have your fingers working overtime just for the fun of it.
So this may be the softest of the McLaren stable but it has all the performance elements of its harder family members and itâs a clever move by the company to open up the brand to yet another range of buyers.
Theyâre the ones who crave the performance that comes from engineering excellenceâŚ.but also need somewhere to put their bags.
CAR: McLaren 570GT
PRICE: ÂŁ154,000
ENGINE: 3,799cc twin-turbo petrol V8, seven-speed, twin-clutch semi-auto gearbox, rear wheel drive
POWER: 562 bhp
TORQUE: 443 lb ft
MAX SPEED: 204 mph. 0-62mph 3.2secs
ECONOMY: 25 mpg
CO2: 249 g/km
TT Rating: Â Â 
