LIFE STARTS AT SEVENTY (some text hidden) --NONE--

By Jonathan Crouch

Introductionword count: 78

The McLaren 570S is a car that back in 2015 took its maker into new, more accessible territory, offering a supercar feel to buyers who might previously have expected to have had to settle for something less. The Woking maker claimed it was easy to live with, yet dramatic to drive and as a result, wanted this model to attract a wide circle of buyers. Should you be one of them on the used market? Let's find out.

Modelsword count: 5

(2dr coupe / 2dr Spider)

Historyword count: 370

What really differentiates a really fast sportscar from a fully-fledged supercar? Price? Performance? Daily usability? Or perhaps a mere sportscar just looks less exotic. This one, the McLaren 570S really doesn't. It was, we were assured by the Woking maker at this model's launch back in 2015, 'just' a very fast sportscar. Yet, uniquely in its segment, it offered all the credentials you'd expect from a top-tier supercar: lightweight carbon fibre construction, low-slung futuristic looks, a mid-engined rear wheel drive configuration - even shattering performance. If your idea of a car in this class is something engineered more conventionally - say a Porsche 911 Turbo S, an Audi R8 V10 Plus or a top Mercedes-AMG GT - then a 570S might well make you think again. That's what McLaren was hoping back in 2015 anyway. Back then, the brand was relatively new to the upper end of the exclusive sportscar segment. Prior to that, the company had exclusively campaigned in proper supercar territory, initially launching itself as a credible Ferrari and Lamborghini rival with the MP4-12C of 2011. In 2014, that design evolved into a model called the 650S, which then in turn in 2017 evolved even further into the even more desirable 720S, which during this 570S model's production lifetime was the headline act in the company's mid-range 'Super Series'. Above that level sat only the really exotic 'Ultimate Series' of McLaren cars, represented by the uber-exclusive Senna model. 'Super Series' models like the 720S got trick suspension, active aerodynamics and more power, but otherwise share much with more affordable everyday-usable so-called 'Sports Series' designs like this 570S. It wasn't the cheapest car McLaren sold in its era - there was a only slightly slower 540C model available for a few thousand less - but at '570' level, customers got a much wider range of choice, including the option of an open-topped 'Spider' body style and a more practical, road-orientated 'GT' version of the core Coupe variant for those who wanted it. It was the fixed-top 570S that most McLaren customers wanted though - and here, we're going to find out why. 570S sales finished in 2021 when the car had already been effectively replaced by the McLaren GT.

What You Getword count: 362

If this isn't a supercar, then what is? The dihedral doors that have featured on every McLaren road car since the iconic F1 model of the 1990s represent the most eye-catching piece of pavement theatre here but even when you close them, the effect remains striking. Move in profile and you start to get a feeling for what McLaren was trying to do here. As a 'Sports' model rather than an exotic supercar, the 570S had to be everyday-usable, which is why you've got a much larger side-glazed area than you'd normally expect to find from a model of this kind. There was even an alternative 'GT' version of this car with extra rear storage space accessed through a glass hatch housed in revised rear bodywork. If you go for that though, you lose the standard coupe model's unique 'floating' C-pillars and its lovely rear flying buttresses that are separated by a concave rear screen. You do though, still retain much of this look if you go for the open-topped Spider model, which features an electrically-retractable roof panel that can operate in just 15 seconds at speeds of up to 25mph. When you're ready to take a seat inside, the Dihedral doors open using a button tucked beneath the bodywork, then hinge up and outwards in an elegant arc. They lift higher than is the case with more exotic McLaren models, plus with the 570S, the forward section of the door sill was dropped by 80mm to try and help facilitate a more dignified entry and exit.. And once inside? Well this may be in McLaren terms something of a volume model, but it's still very evidently hand-crafted, each car taking a team of 370 highly trained technicians 188 man hours to build. Anything else you need to know will almost certainly be covered by the infotainment screen that dominates the upper part of the centre stack. We'll finish with a look at boot space, which in 570S models is all concentrated under the bonnet. This compartment is 144-litres in size in the standard coupe version, which of course is pretty small, but probably large enough to take a medium-sized travel case.

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