458 Italia vs McLaren MP4 Blighty - The UK press decides

Thanks for clearing that up.

Just to take TopGear as an example... Jeremy Clarkson often says that to him "a Ferrari is a scaled down version of God". I also can't remember the last time Ferrari had a new car receive a bad review in the UK, although there are occasional models that got a verdict akin to "brilliant as a car, but perhaps not as good as we were expecting from Ferrari" - which implicitly acknowledges how good Ferrari are as a motoring company.

The Fiat 500 was received with rave reviews, although personally I think the interior is horribly cheap. Every new Lamborghini is celebrated. Journalists always go googly-eyed over Alfa Romeos, even the ones that look awkward such as the MiTo.

I remember that with the demise of MG Rover as a British entity, those associated with the factory actually attacked the British motoring press for being unpatriotic in not recommending British cars. They also accused Jeremy Clarkson in particular as being one of the nails in the company's coffin when Top Gear gave new Rover models lukewarm (at best) reviews and pointed out the company's cost-saving efforts in recycling parts from older models.

I would say the British, as a nation, are quite self-deprecating in their humour and very self-critical of their achievements. So I'm not sure if the entire British motoring establishment could accurately be called anti-Italian. If anything, there seems to be an Italian love affair that supersedes any preferences for most cars made in Britain.

All the best,
Andrew.

 

The McLaren has been tested by any non-British journalist? Apart from that event with earlier prototypes in Portugal a few months ago, it´s a bit weird that in this globalized world they still haven´t arranged an international media presentation or something like that.

 

Take a look about this german one

EDIT: LINK REMOVED

 

I would guess the full road tests are being timed to coincide with the individual market launches

(Ulmis : read that piece carefully - I'm not even sure he drove it himself and its certainly not a full road test )

 

You are wrong, Autobild magazine had their own editor attending the test with 458, MC12, GT2 etc.


The german editor pointed out the same things as the brits about MP4.

 

I knew there was a reason I came on this forum.....oh wait, it wasn't to get insulted!

Let's keep it simple - you show me a bad UK review of an italian super car and i'll show you two bad reviews of a UK car.

 

Oh my, aren`t we sensible ?

 

Easy guys, let's not get too heated up.

Funkstar... Ulnis already apologised for the earlier comment. All's well.

All the best,
Andrew.

 

Maybe it was simply lowered like an awful lot of customer cars are.

 

You'll have a whole bunch of links, then, to tests that show the British bias against ANYTHING Italian? Please post because I must have missed those.

 

Mate, don`t be absurd, pick any comparo between italian vs whatever and you`ll see the british press nitpicking

 

You mean like when the British press unanimously chose the 458 over the new wonder McLaren? Or every time they chose a Ferrari over an Aston perhaps? Or maybe it's their all round praise for the Aventador you're referring to?

 

The Brits (mags) at times can get too excited about something (see Evora), but overall they are quite fair minded. The thing is that they have a certain set of preferences for what performance cars should be like. Those preferences are not universal. The American mags do not fully share them.

 

The rotten apple was already placed before McLaren`s launch by a well known british motoring journalist.

Everybody talks now about those italian cheaters, yet nobody can point directly and say: this is what they done.


It`s the public perception that was manipulated in a shrewd manner.

Ferrari won 5 tests by 5 british mags ? Effing cheaters, they had ringers.

As somebody said on rs6 forum after seeing the 458 was faster than GT2RS: Ferrari what have you done ?

 

Depends on the mag, Car and Driver , Road and Track are like europe mags, Motor Trend and Automobile mag they see it rather different

 

You mean people on forums?? Certainly the majority of the British press arent saying this, they're just saying how good the Ferrari is. And how many Ferrari owners are disagreeing with the British press rave reviews??!!

I'm not really sure where you're going with this?!

 

Similar verdict from down under. Note that the 458 is just summed up in one sentence.

"The most desirable car on the road today? Definitely."

so it seems like the magic doesn't stay within UK press, it had propagated to down under. As international reviews come around, it will be amusing to see how different cultures rank the 2 but here's one more for Ferrari unless the Macca has a few things TWEAKED.

http://www.carsguide.com.au/site/news-and-reviews/car-reviews-road-tests/mclaren_mp4-12c_review

VERDICT

The McLaren ticks all the supercar boxes. It is bold, fast, rewarding and - ultimately - a great drive. The 12C - despite that name - is also a car for every day and every job. It can dribble to the shops and it can also make you feel like an F1 star on the track.

But there is always that Ferrari lurking in the background, so you have to consider the 458. For me, the bottom line is the difference between lust and love.

The Ferrari is a car you desire to drive, have to thrash, want to enjoy, and need to show off to your friends. The McLaren is more low-key, yet probably a touch quicker, and a car which would get better over time - instead of bringing headaches.

So, for me and provided I could get a couple of little things tweaked, the McLaren MP4-12C is the winner.

And, just for the record, Hamilton has chosen racer red paint for his 12C while Button prefers basic black, and Jay Leno has gone for volcanic orange. Mine? I'd take it in McLaren's classic racing orange, with the sports pack and black wheels.

McLaren MP4-12C

4.5/5

Engine: 3.8-litre, twin-turbo V8, 441kW/600Nm
Body: Two-door coupe
Weight: 1435kg
Transmission: 7-speed DSG, rear-wheel drive
Thirst: 11.6L/100km, 98RON, CO2 279g/km

Others to consider

Ferrari 458 Italia
4.5/5 Stars
Price: from $526,950
ENGINE: 4.5-litre, V8 petrol, 419kW/540Nm
Transmission: 7-speed DSG, rear-wheel drive
BODY: two-door coupe
THIRST: 13.3L/100km, 98RON, CO2 307g/km
"The most desirable car on the road today? Definitely."

Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4
4/5 stars
PRICE: $475,000
ENGINE: 5.2-litre, V10 petrol, 405kW/540Nm
TRANS: 6-speed manual, all-wheel drive
BODY: 2-door coupe
THIRST: 13.7L/100km, 95 RON, CO2 325g/km
"A great looker with belter speed, but not in the McLaren-Ferrari class."

Porsche 911 GT2 RS
4/5 stars
PRICE: $560,000
ENGINE: 3.6-litre, twin-turbo flat six, 460kW/685Nm
TRANS: 6-speed manual, rear-wheel drive
BODY: 2-door coupe
THIRST: 11.9L/100km, 98 RON, C02 284g/km
"The fastest Porsche is scary quick but not as sexy as the 458 or user- friendly as the McLaren."

 

Cal,im pleased youve made up your mind, but is it me or did you not read this review properly?
At least we all have a choice now,i wonder where the aventador stacks up between these two,should be an interesting few months

 

Whatever hope the 12C had will be destroyed by the 458 Spyder. Absolute brilliance by Ferrari in the timing of the release of 458 Spyder. i.e. as McLaren try ramp up sales / marketing. In addition with the 458 "scud" probably being talked about as well, McLaren has its work cut out for it!!

 

I still think they are apples and oranges.

Besides, the waiting lists for the 458 spider are far longer than the current 12c deliveries. I can see a lot of people buying the 12c and then waiting a year or two for the 458 spider if that's what they want.

If the 458 spider does anything, it expands the overall market base.

 

+1
I think it's a magnificient color matching for the MP4.

 

On the Top Gear website they have a quick snap shot of the piece they ran in the magazine pitting the McLaren against the 458...

http://www.topgear.com/uk/photos/mclaren-mp4-12c-vs-ferrari-458-italia-2011-07-14?imageNo=0

Go to picture 16. That tells you all you need to know about the relative merits of these two cars...

 

It sure does!

 

yep,it sure does,one of the main reasons many people have signed up for it !!!!

 

Is it just me or when you see a 12c in white and a 458 in white, the 12c looks boring and the 458 fantastic?

Really good article. The last statement puts it in perfect perspective.