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2015 McLaren 650S Review

Otolith organs are the tiny acceleration-sensing parts of your inner ear that are extremely effective at telling your brain when you are changing velocity. They make easy work of elevator rides, subway cars and most roller coasters, but the organs are completely overpowered by the 2015 McLaren 650S – the acceleration from its twin-turbocharged V8 leaves them dazed and confused, an overwhelming, dizzy sensation topped off with a bout of queasiness. The British automaker did not intend its MP4-12C successor to be nauseating – despite its effectiveness in this role – but the explosive way the rear-wheel-drive supercar puts its power down is absolutely mind-boggling. We've driven countless other exotics, but it's hard to point to a single example that changes velocity as quickly, and as capably, as this $330,000, carbon fiber, street-legal racer. Some would consider a $1-million winning lottery ticket the key to happiness. We'd argue that spending five days with a Mako Blue McLaren 650S – barf bag poised in lap – is a much more gratifying prize. Its new lines are far more distinctive than its predecessor, which was cleanly styled but a bit paint-by-numbers supercar. McLaren's MP4-12C, launched in the middle of 2011, was a superb sports car. Unfortunately, many who drove it felt that it lacked the final bits of polish, and a sharp, emotional edge, to push it ahead of its Ferrari 458 Italia and Lamborghini Gallardo competition. Not content sitting in the cold shadows of its rivals, McLaren went back to its engineering team and had them diligently rework dozens of components. What emerged, under the quartz lights of the 2014 Geneva Motor Show, was this 650S. The basic architecture, a Formula One-like carbon-fiber tub with front and rear aluminum crush extrusions, was unchanged from the 12C, but the new model debuted fresh styling, refined suspension tuning, more potent brakes and a healthy boost in power. Mako Blue isn't our first choice from McLaren's nearly unlimited color palette (orange and yellow are stunning), but standing face-to-face with the carbon-fiber-bodied coupe reveals that this paint provides an optimal way to show off the car's P1-inspired styling. Compared to the 12C, the 650 appears more aggressive and decidedly more threatening – both necessary in this emotion-driven segment. Most importantly, its new lines are far more distinctive than its predecessor, which was cleanly styled but a bit paint-by-numbers supercar.

McLaren, Koenigsegg, Toyota, Ford, Dodge and Corvette Lego kits announced for 2021

Lego has announced a slew of car-themed sets for 2021. The six kits comprise nine vehicles and fall under the brick pusher's Speed Champion line of official OEM-licensed kits. News of their arrival comes from German toy retailer JB Spielwaren's pre-order listings, which show three single-car sets and three dual-car sets of matched marques. Starting with the McLaren Elva roadster, the kit consists of 263 pieces and is finished in blue. It seems to have a difficult time capturing the curves of the real-life Elva, but there's only so much you can do with a bunch of plastic blocks. Lego has made several other McLaren kits before, including the Senna, 720S, and a more advanced Senna GTR for the Technics line. Next up is the Koenigsegg Jesko, made up of 280 pieces and finished in white. Though the real-life Jesko is still curvy, this kit does a better job of replicating its aggressive maw, vents and cantilevered rear wing. Rounding out the single-car sets is the 299-piece Toyota GR Supra in yellow. This marks the first time Toyota has lent their license to Lego. Again, it struggles a bit to represent the curvy Supra, relying on printed details like logos and headlights to identify. On the other hand, the Chevrolet two-car does a stupendous job with the 1968 Corvette. The C3 is instantly recognizable as such. The C8-R race car it's paired with suffers from the same issues as some of the previous cars, though. The set contains 512 pieces, and funnily enough the C8 driver has short hair while the C3 driver sports a period-correct wavy mane. The next set is a 627-piece Mopar-themed pair, including a purple (Plum Crazy?) 1970 Dodge Challenger T/A and an SRT top fuel dragster. The race car is spot on, but the Challenger was probably tough to make given the width restrictions. It looks a couple of pegs too narrow compared to the wide proportions of the real deal. Last but not least, the Ford set contains a Bronco R and Ford GT Heritage Edition. Consisting of 660 pieces, the set does an excellent job of representing both cars. The GT looks faithful in its Gulf livery, and the Bronco R looks more like a real Bronco than the actual Bronco R race truck. All in all, it's always fun to see more Lego sets with real cars, and we're glad to see more manufacturers added to the roster. The single-car sets are recommended for ages 7 and up, while the double-car sets have an 8 years and up rating. Price in U.S.

McLaren F1 Crashes, Flips In Italy During Race

Friends, this is why we can't have nice things. A McLaren F1 was flipped down an embankment in Italy yesterday, and this video of the crash's aftermath is about as sad as when Old Yeller was shot. According to Italy's La Nazione, this one-off, red-on-white F1 was crashed during a four-F1 tour between the towns of Saline di Volterra and Pomarance in the province of Pisa. It's unclear what caused the driver to lose control and invert our British hero on a grassy hill, although as this is a McLaren F1, we wouldn't be remotely surprised if speed ended up being a factor. YouTuber Marchettino, an Autoblog reader and well-known source of videos from Ferrari's Fiorano test track, was on the scene to capture the video available below. The footage shows the McLaren accelerating away, only to cut away to the aftermath of the wreck. Emergency personnel were tasked with righting the stricken hypercar, a process that was accompanied by the cringe-worthy cracking of its Peter Stevens-designed bodywork. At least they had the decency to cover the crumpled Brit with its fitted black cover as they loaded it onto a flatbed, a fitting yet somehow disturbing visual. According to reports, the driver and passenger were airlifted from the scene with non-lethal injuries, and both are recovering in a hospital. Given the rising worth and rarity of F1s, despite the extensive damage in evidence, we reckon that this won't be the last the world sees of this special car. Take a look below to view the video. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. News Source: La Nazione, Marchettino via YouTube, Jalopnik McLaren Coupe Performance Classics Videos