It’s a cloudy day in Yokohama. Summer is well and truly over and Japan is definitely in autumn. The Osabashi Pier venue was by far one of the best and most unique car launch I’ve been to in Japan and a worthy place to unveil a special new car.
McLaren even brought out the big guns for this event, showing the MP4-10 F1 car from a time of better Honda relationships. Legendary cars from McLaren’s past were also displayed including the legendary F1 and P1 road cars. Of course the existing Sports Series lineup greeted us as we
walked into the wooden floored hall.
With the humid Japanese summer having passed, McLaren Automotive Japan launched their new 570S Spider to completing the Sports Series range just in time for the milder temperatures. Joining the 540C, the 570S, and 570GT, the 570S Spider adds an open air experience to McLaren’s most attainable range.
The 570S Spider was only launched at the 2017 Goodwood Festival of Speed in June. The prompt launch event in Japan just three months after its global launch shows the importance of the Japanese market for McLaren. After all, Japan is McLaren’s 4th largest market (fastest
growing in Asia) and accounts for 6% of global production.
The main talking point of the 570S is its retractable hardtop roof, which can be raised or lowered in 15 seconds and at speeds of up 40 km/h. Due to the carbon-fibre monocoque and construction of the 570S Spider, its only 46kg heavier the Coupe.
Power comes from the same 3.8-liter twin-turbo V8 we’ve seen in McLaren’s various cars. Power is rated at 570hp and 600NM of torque. That roughly translates to a 0-100 km/h time of just 3.2 seconds and a top speed of 328 km/h, or 315 with the roof down. Those are figures very close to its fixed roof counterparts.
Downforce is the same too due to the 12mm extension of the rear spoiler. Overall it’s a predictable design, it’s exactly what we expected a 570S convertible to look like as we’ve seen the transformation of 650S to 650S Spider before. That’s not to say it’s not a striking looking car, because it is.
The rear buttress are a thing of beauty, while the neat little wind deflector in between can be raised or lowered to let more V8 noise into the cabin. A lovely touch that. The 570S Spider is also unique in that it has those iconic McLaren butterfly doors no other cars in this class have.
Which begs the question, what does the 570S Spider go up against? For around ¥5,000,000 more there’s the Ferrari 488 Spider but with 660hp surely the forthcoming 720S convertible will be more of a rival to that? For more similar money there’s the Lamborghini Huracan LP580-2 Spyder, the Porsche 911 Turbo S Cabriolet, and not much else. It’s in a unique position in the market.
Prices for the 570S Spider will begin at around ¥29,988,000 with the first 400 being the ‘Launch Editions’. As with the 720S, the ‘Launch Edition’ cars are specially curated specs by McLaren’s design team. Available colors for the ‘Launch Edition’ are Sicilian Yellow, Vega Blue, and Curacao
Blue (as seen here).
The only thing left to do is see how it performs on Japanese roads…
By Ken Saito