On this weeks episode of Ignition
Category
đźš—
MotorTranscript
00:00 This is the McLaren 650S.
00:04 And if you think it looks similar to the P1, it's for a
00:07 good reason.
00:08 You see, when you make one of the world's most powerful,
00:11 fastest, and extreme cars, you learn a thing or two.
00:15 And McLaren says that what it's learned, it's applied to
00:18 the 12C, in effect creating the 650S.
00:24 It still uses a lightweight carbon fiber tub and a
00:27 dry-sump flat-plane 3.8 liter twin-turbo V8, but now it
00:31 makes 641 horsepower and 500 pound-feet of torque.
00:36 It is, of course, more powerful and faster, but its
00:39 array of clever electronic tricks has been improved, too,
00:42 from active aerodynamics and suspension control.
00:46 McLaren says it's a better driver, too, thanks to a new
00:49 damper mount and revised steering.
00:51 [MUSIC PLAYING]
01:10 Press the launch button, wait two seconds for boost to
01:13 build, and then the 650S launches hard, passing the
01:17 quarter mile in a single lap.
01:19 Passing the quarter mile in 10.7 seconds at 134 miles an
01:23 hour, it's nearly half a second faster than the 12C,
01:27 and it falls into the select group of production cars that
01:29 come up in the tens off the factory showroom.
01:33 Braking was good, but less impressive.
01:36 The 650S may have large carbon ceramic rotors, but the power
01:40 they put through the Pirelli P0 Corsas was only able to
01:43 produce a best 60 to 0 stop of 105 feet.
01:49 Around the figure eight, though, the 650S ran a very
01:52 respectable 23.1 second lap, with an
01:58 average lateral G of 1.05.
02:10 The first thing you should do if you ever find yourself in a
02:12 McLaren 650S is find a straight bit of road, downshift a gear
02:18 or two, and then just do that, because the resulting
02:27 acceleration will leave you with a pretty big dumb smile
02:32 on your face.
02:34 That 3.8 liter twin turbo V8 that revs to 8,500 RPM, it
02:40 does terrific things with the power that it makes.
02:52 I love that you can hear the turbos spool up, too.
02:55 In fact, that's the first thing when you hear it, when
02:58 you get on the throttle, is just that--
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03:05 We're working with quite a bit of power here, 641 horsepower.
03:09 But the McLaren's very light, too.
03:12 So that power to weight makes it feel so great when you
03:15 power out of corners.
03:17 Now, that low weight is the byproduct of having a
03:21 construction that's basically built entirely out of carbon
03:25 fiber, at least the tub is.
03:28 The carbon fiber is high strength, but also low weight.
03:32 And that pays dividends throughout the car's
03:34 performance.
03:35 [MOTORCYCLE ENGINE REVVING]
03:38 What this car has in place of any roll bars is basically a
03:42 complex series of hydraulics that link the left side of the
03:45 car to the right side of the car.
03:48 Now, what that means is the car's computer can control the
03:52 roll stiffness.
03:53 So when you want to go fast, you can crank it over to track.
03:56 It tightens everything up.
03:57 But when you just want to go cruise, you know, commute,
04:01 whatever, you can crank it over to track.
04:04 Whatever.
04:05 Go to the local car show.
04:06 You can put it in normal, and it softens up.
04:10 The result is a ride quality that feels really, really good.
04:15 You don't get this kind of comfort out of this kind of
04:18 car unless you have a system like this.
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04:26 This is obviously the spider version of the McLaren 650S.
04:31 And McLaren says there's basically no downside to
04:34 taking the roof off.
04:35 That's another advantage of the carbon fiber tub is that
04:38 it's so strong that you don't need to add extra structural
04:42 support when you remove the roof.
04:46 Now, let's just enjoy ourselves.
04:48 [MOTORCYCLE ENGINE REVVING]
05:00 You simply have to love mid-engine supercars or
05:03 mid-engine super sports cars.
05:06 They just feel so tight and together, especially when
05:11 they're low weight, especially when they're this focused on
05:13 performance.
05:15 It's really satisfying to drive them, even at 8/10,
05:20 like we are.
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05:23 All that combines into a car that's really
05:25 nice to drive hard.
05:28 And you think of how nice it is to drive at low speeds, how
05:31 nice it is to drive on a mountain road.
05:35 I guess next we'll have to find out how fast it is around
05:38 a racetrack.
05:39 [MOTORCYCLE ENGINE REVVING]
05:52 Get a little heat in the tires this morning at Willow
05:55 Springs, the Pirelli Corsas, a very aggressive compound.
06:01 The McLaren feels light in the way that it's very quick
06:06 responding to the wheel.
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06:12 Not much weight in the front.
06:14 The weight distribution is actually the same as a Porsche
06:18 911, but the polar moment is a little different.
06:23 Great aero stick through the high-speed corners.
06:25 I'll tell you what, Willow Springs has got them, too.
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06:33 The flat-plane crank V8 has a very European feel, smooth,
06:40 revving.
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06:47 8,500 RPM, almost 650 horsepower.
06:51 We're over 150.
06:55 Down into turn one.
06:57 Moves around a little bit in the brake zone.
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07:02 Not instability, but you can kind of see how the car dives
07:06 a bit and moves around a little bit.
07:08 You can feel the brakes working hard.
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07:12 They are giant carbon fiber.
07:15 The McLaren stops really well and wanders just a little bit
07:21 in the process.
07:22 Watch.
07:23 [MOTORCYCLE ENGINE REVVING]
07:26 Not like that.
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07:33 McLaren puts power down really well.
07:37 Puts power down so well it even causes a little bit of a
07:40 power understeer occasionally.
07:43 McLaren has a very sporting feel.
07:47 And by that, I mean it'll loosen up when I let off the
07:49 throttle.
07:50 Just a little, not bad.
07:54 You can see as I go to the brake, I straighten the wheel
07:56 up a little bit because the front end works better.
07:59 I've got to lift off the throttle to get the car to
08:03 bite at the front and come down to the apex.
08:05 [MOTORCYCLE ENGINE REVVING]
08:09 Must have a really good differential setup because the
08:12 McLaren puts power down so well.
08:14 [MOTORCYCLE ENGINE REVVING]
08:19 Soft rev limiter, about 8,500 RPM.
08:22 [MOTORCYCLE ENGINE REVVING]
08:27 I can feel that arrow stick the tail here
08:29 down through turn eight.
08:31 Just a little bit of brake for nine, set it up wide, eyes in.
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08:41 Got to lift to get the nose down.
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08:47 I find the 650S to be a real step forward from the
08:50 original MP4-12C that we drove in Motor Trend's Best Driver's
08:55 Car a few years ago.
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10:41 [MUSIC PLAYING]
10:54 Though it's extremely fast on the track,
10:56 it's the way the 650S behaved on the road
10:59 that kept impressing us.
11:01 [MOTORCYCLE ENGINE REVVING]
11:03 [MUSIC PLAYING]
11:05 From its remarkably smooth ride to the incredible power
11:08 to the great steering feel and response,
11:11 not to mention the amount of theater
11:13 from the turbo spooling up in that moving rear wing,
11:16 there's something satisfying about a supercar that's
11:18 as potent as this one, but also as civilized.
11:21 [MOTORCYCLE ENGINE REVVING]
11:23 It's a remarkable technical accomplishment,
11:25 but that's just what we'd expect from a Claren.
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11:41 Everything's better when you're topless.
11:44 This is a good time to drive.
11:46 Top down, cool weather, loud car, activate sport.
11:51 [MOTORCYCLE ENGINE REVVING]
11:54 This thing doesn't have heated seats.
11:56 [MOTORCYCLE ENGINE REVVING]
11:58 Got two more cars to do, though.
12:00 Yeah, I know.
12:01 I'm trying to, like-- oh, man.
12:03 I've been up since 2 o'clock in the morning.
12:05 For what?
12:06 Like--
12:07 You're trying to sleep?
12:07 Yeah, I was going like-- my body was doing the hot and cold
12:09 flashes thing.
12:10 So like, you'd bundle myself up because I'm so cold,
12:12 and then wake up, and just like, in a pool of sweat,