German Car Zone - View Single Post - The Ultimate Garage? (CGT, F430, SLR, Murcielago etc etc)

Just_me · 02:11 PM

His SLR impressions:

I took a McLaren SLR for a demo ride last Friday, St. Patty's Day. I had looked at it Thursday and was fairly interested in it but the main problem was that I would have had to get rid of one of my cars, most likely the Maranello because they're both considered to be GT Touring type cars. They wanted me to take it for a demo ride which I really didn't feel good about because my interest was questionable. But I caved in after several of them assured me it was OK to put 5-10 miles on her.

The following is my impression or opinion which me not being Jeremy Clarkson or equivalent, may not be worth two bits! Anyhow, while driving her the 5-10 miles, it seemed to have heavy steering (not as nimble as the Maranello) and IMO wanted to wander a little. In other words, if I took my hands off the wheel, I didn't think she would track a straight line for too long. I drove it like a Grandma would (only had her up to 75 or 80) out of respect for the dealer whose was kind enough to let me take it for a test ride. I just felt a little guilty because I didn't want to put any excess miles or stress on the car in case somebody else was going to buy it and my interest in it wasn't that hot and heavy.

It's a beautiful looking coupe and the Silver paint (metalflake or firemist - whichever you prefer) was unbelieveable in the sun. It was like a 2 bit whore at the White House! It really stood out!! The ride was real firm though, I guess because the body is mounted directly to the frame and not rubber mounted on the frame (that's what they told me) and every expansion strip on the highway was felt. But.... you could feel the power! Push the throttle down a little bit and she wants to rip it up... bad! It looks like a super technological achievement while looking over the car's interior and exterior. Trick stuff everywhere.

The doors were Gull Wing type (300 SL?) not like the Murcielago doors that go straight up but the SLRs open outward and then up making entry easier than the Murcie doors. The hood was like the vault at Fort Knox. All kinds of mechanical and suspended stuff. Once the initial latch was released, a secondary latch was pushed and then you merely pushed down on the nose and it tilted up and forward with ease. There was a word of caution not to be too aggressive at any point. The LED rear turn signal lights in the rear were neat as hell. Really bright and in a backward C pattern. And the rear air-brake spoiler, what can I say... damn, if I would have played with it anymore, I might have talked myself into buying the car!

I love gimmicks on cars. I once bought a 545i BMW over the others because it had the beeping back-up sensors! This particular car had two options. One was red painted brake calipers ($800 - just like my Maranello) and they really looked sharp against the silver paint. The second option was a special super soft leather interior (a $10,000 hit - can't remember it's name) and it was really pretty soft and luxurious. And there were these elaborate tire pressure sensors mounted on the inner fenders. I could just see it now.... One salesman is opening and closing the hood and showing me how easy and trick it is, another salesman is running his hands over the interior and saying it was a soft as a newborn baby's butt , another salesman is working the rear turn signals telling me they're brighter than a lighthouse and the other salesperson is working the rear spoiler up and down and up and down and my head is spinning and all I can say is take my money.... give me the keys and take my money.. please!! And then, thank God I wake up!! Phew.... what a dream!

Seriously, I think it is very hard to justify the SLR price in my opinion. I'd love to own her but I don't think I'd be able to talk myself in getting rid of the Maranello for it even if it was half the price. To be fair, I absolutely love the car, but comparing it to the Maranello, I think I got the better of the two! But ohhhhh that rear air-brake spoiler!!!

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