Ferrari 488 Compared to the McLaren 720s

So was the Microsoft Zune. How many people bought that instead of an iPod?

The title of the thread says "compared". You are trying to define "compared" by technology only. Others feel differently. If you buy cars based only upon technology, OK. Other people consider additional factors.

McLaren has done a great job getting into this market, they have forced Ferrari to raise the bar. But these cars are bought by many for subjective reasons not just objective reasons. That will take McLaren a long time to be on the same level for people like me.

 

Last couple of pages are a pretty good discussion.

It seems to that people are way over thinking this.

You have people who are serious collectors and buy across all marquees.

You have people who have say 5 to 6 exotic cars and they like to buy the "cool" cars. Usually, not marquee specific

You have people who will have one exotic at a time. If it's going to come to 488 vs 720s then it's going to come to availability (can you buy a brand new 488 vs 720?). How important is it for you to get the special/limited edition cars (mclaren is going to be easier at the moment).

Keep in mind that every new person who enters the exotic market and buys a 570 is one less customer for a 458 and every new customer for a 720 is one less customer for a 488. As mclaren grows and people who are entering the exotic car market gravitate towards mclaren then it will obviously affect the re-sale market of the equivalent ferrari cars.

I am fairly active on instagram and I thought this direct message I received was relevant to what I'm posting above:
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"Hi, I have been following for some time and want to ask your opinion on something. I am lucky enough to have a 458 it's my second exotic. I am just a blue collar construction guy that is lucky enough to have an incredible car. Now my local mclaren dealer (i REDACTED so we have a good relationship despite beinga ferrari guy, wants me to get aboard this program in which he promises me an allocation for the next p1. What he wants me to do is trade the 458 for a 570 (my comment; sales person gives him a path of the succession of cars that he would need to get over the next few years to be able to get the next ultimate series of mclaren).


"like I said I am no one special just a hard working guy that loves ferrari. I am on track to lose 60K on this car but I have enjoyed it. Neither do the 570 or 650 excite me as much but if he is offering me a new p1 would you recommend I join mclaren"

 

blue collar construction guy and next p1 in same sentence? didnt think id ever read that combo! good for you!

 

He gave some more detail about the "blue collar" but I didn't want to post it because people may have been able to connect who it is . He has the financials to do what he needs to do.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

After driving the 488, my judgement was clear; a 458 facelift with a new turbo engine. I was disappointed.

Then I have driven the 650S. I have realized that the McLaren can easily keep up with the 488. A draw. But the completely new of the McLaren fascinated me. A new architecture, superior core technology, I found a tight cockpit, one on the essential concentrated operating concept, I was fascinated by the British understatement, achieving maximum efficiency without great attention. A supersport car for the road, highest performance without a big theater, without big roar.

Yes, you must like the McLaren philosophy. I am now a fan of it. And I am one of many. The pressure on Ferrari is getting bigger and bigger. You cannot rely too much on your reputation, your history, your brand power. I know I repeat myself, the competition is not asleep, it is ahead. In my case not only on the pure technology layer, also the different phylosophy can fascinate. Because I love also Ferrari, I hope they work a little bit harder on new products and innovations than in the past.

 

This forum engine desperately needs to add a 'Like' button!

 

Seeing how your sold your Ferrari...let me guess, you are buying McLaren?

 

I want theater.
I want drama.

Driving a Mac is like going 200 mph on the bullet train. You're amazed at the speed you are going because if you didn't look outside you would swear you were doing twenty. "What amazing technology and efficiency!" "Yah, wake me when we get to Kyoto..."

It's like eating a cup-a-noodles and telling yourself how great it is to fill your belly for a buck and some boiling water.

 

720S might be too much car for me. It's got way too much power for the roads here. These cars are so accomplished and tend not to give much thrill at sane speeds. A 991.2 GT3 might be more fun, though not as sexy. The new Performante is worth a look as well. That screaming V10 can't be ignored...

 

Next time when you drive a McLaren take the seat behind the steering wheel. This is the round thing which tells you, if you are in a Mac, how nimble and precise a super sports car can be. And there are also such pedals on the floor to influence so many things by yourself to come from a to b. In the case of a Mac very funny, because the different position of these things can blow away your brain if you are not responsble enough. Allora, take this side of the car and you will immediately recognize that there is a small but decisive difference to a train.

Cup-noodles? No idea what this is. To fill my belly I prefer raw meat...

 

I've got both a 991.2GT3 coming (in manual) and 720s (picking one up next week). Both are loads of fun and very different. The GT3 relies on huge mechanical grip, but at the limit it will spin due to the weight in the rear. Once you feel it going its probably too late unless you practice on track a lot. It's not a car I feel comfortable turning off the PASM and hang the tail out. Now I realize many don't want to do that anyway, just saying, I do. But the sound is awesome and I like rolling through the gears.

The 720s is a different kind of fun. its much better balanced so you can play with a little oversteer comfortably and at relatively low speeds (ie 30-50) without worrying about a spin. You feel the front tires slipping just a little through the wheel and you throw in a little opposite lock and you have enough power to keep it going through the turn. That's an entirely different kind of fun which I enjoy as well.

Both are great cars

 

Hard to go wrong with .2GT3 (love my .1RS - even though wing is too 'ricer' for you). Think the Performante falls into the same 'has to much power for roads here' theory. Look forward to what you decide.

We all look forward to detailed pics of your 720 and finally some thoughts from an actual owner. Congrats in advance on purchase.

 

Thats well described!
The effect Mclaren acceleration has on your aging brain...the transition from consciousness to unconsciousness.
Well done!

BTW...I didnt get the noodle thing either

 

You like the McLaren philosophy, we get it. You are being totally unfair towards Ferrari though. By nearly all accounts the 488 is a better car than the 650 and is nearly as quick as a 675 round a circuit. The 488 has the better engine, driving dynamics and balance. The only thing the 650 has on it is the carbon tub.

 

spot on and having owned a 650S and having had it a number of times at 280kmh+ for many kms at a time (as well as many kms through the twisties) - I found it very jumpy and unstable and frankly unpredictable. Glad its gone

 

The noodle thing is that you can enjoy food for it's taste or for just the knowledge of eating something to keep you alive as cheaply and easily as possible.

I want more than just something that does the job. I want something worth eating.

 

Bob I was just taunting...I get it, just don't completely agree. I Love and own both marques and while I think I understand the differences between them I tend to appreciate and celebrate them more than criticize. Neither is without fault or shortcoming...

But to say McLaren puts you to sleep? No drama? Ridiculous!

 

The 488 is a better car than the 650S? Better driving balance and dynamics? I see it not so clear, same level yes, but certainly not superior, in my eyes a matter of personal taste.
Look at this video, I'm not the only one...
(you can activate the English subtitles under settings)

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8ym6kSewAQ[/ame]

Unfair towards Ferrari? TheMayor wants theater, he wants drama. Yes, that Ferrari used to be.

I have a drama queen in my garage, a 430 Scuderia. What a crazy machine. With its appearance in 2008 absolutely unique. A naked floor, ugly welds, stupid loud in all aspects, an interior reduced to the minimum, no stereo system, a gearbox which hammers you the gears in the back, adapted and fine-tuned by Michael Schumacher, yes, I really appreciate the "Schumi-button" while hunting upwards to the Swiss mountains. Yes, this is drama pur, what a Ferrari, an F40/F50 for the small purse. 458 Italia? Speciale? 488 GTB? These cars are superior to the Scuderia in all respects, simply the better cars. Drama? Theater? Hmmm..., I don't know, imo these pro-Ferrari arguments dissolve more and more in their own product line.

Now the other side: McLaren products are excellent, at the moment, if we compare the 720S with the 488 GTB, with a clear superiority (technology/performance capabilities). Of course, one is clear, McLaren is not Ferrari, only a Ferrari is a Ferrari. Drama and theater with a Ferrari? Tendency decreasing. Compensation by superior technology? Superior performance? Currently no, advantage McLaren.

When I look at a McLaren, do I want a Ferrari? No, I deal with the philosophy and the technical characteristics of this product, I'm looking for leading technology and superior performance. In this respect, McLaren does not disappoint, they just deliver.

Do I write this because I want to hurt Ferrari fans in this forum? No, definitely not, it still applies, just a Ferrari is a Ferrari. No brand goes deeper into the heart. But for how long?
Ferrari is losing drama and theater, McLaren has never played primarily with these emotional factors. Ferrari is challenged and not McLaren. Ferrari is in a dangerous phase.

 

Now all the drama queens seem to be Ferrari LE cars.

 

Seems like a very rose-tinted view towards McLaren - and I have owned one and returned to Ferrari. Nothing really bad about the Mac, in fact it's a great car. Just that I prefer Ferrari, and for lots of reasons.

To say that Ferrari is challenged, not McLaren is really quite wrong. True, McLaren are the new boy and in that sense provide a new challenge to Ferrari. But, as Lamborghini prove (remember, the company who could probably claim a 100 million pin-up posters from little boys around the world for their Countach, Diablo, Murcielago etc.) challenging and dislodging are two entirely different things, even when you have massive advantages. On the other hand, the motoring abyss is full of sports car companies that were great, had great prospects, built great products but still fell by the wayside. The weight of precedent is so firmly against McLaren it's rather shocking.

No doubt they make great products and I cannot in all good conscience criticise them because I really do think they are great. But in my mind the overlapping product line, allowing Mac to pitch their power and pace above Ferrari's latest is both smart and reflective of the fact that they know they can't compete with Ferrari on an absolutely direct basis.

Ferrari make their own engines - two of them, Ferrari have their own wind tunnel in site at the factory, Ferrari have a larger and more established resource for software and chassis development, Ferrari have their own test track outside the front door of the factory. They make universally acknowledged great products and have a wonderful history, even today competing effectively in F1.

It takes more than McLaren building a great product. They need to wait for Ferrari to fail. In the meantime, they risk, every year, getting a step closer to the abyss that has claimed so many before them. I don't actually think they will end up there, but I want to point out the size of the task they have ahead of them. And in my reckoning, it is extremely unlikely they will replace Ferrari in any way.

 

And the Geeks can buy an Occulus video game to get their kicks. All that technology....

 

Total rubbish on so many levels

 

This is an old narrative that was never 100% true and is even less true of the products McLaren has been making since the original 12C. The P1 provides more theatre and drama than almost any other car on the road. Against their contemporaries I'd say the 570S, the 675LT and the 720S are equal or better in that department as well.

When was the last time you drove a McLaren and which one was it?

 

I've driven all of these cars and I think the 488 vs. 650S thing is too close to call. They're both great cars and you can't go wrong with either.

But the 675LT vs. 488 and 720S vs. 488 are both easy. McLaren wins both of these comparisons hands down. The big advantage the 488 has over the 720S is that it is available in convertible form. I'm sure the 488's successor will bring a strong fight back to McLaren but for now I think McLaren has the edge.

 

488 vs 650s are corming in slowly

https://youtu.be/A_0UR5pmchE