Does it do whatever a spider can?
That depends whether the spider in question has a retractable hard top, carbon Monocell chassis and a 616bhp, 3.8l twin-turbo V8 engine. The McLaren MP4-12C Spider does.
Retractable hard top – no faffing about popping the hood up and down, then?
Yup – the roof drops in a mere 17 seconds, and can be operated at speeds up to 19mph.
A retractable glass rear windscreen serves as a wind deflector when the roof is down, but you can drop it if you want to listen to that V8 roar.
Don't convertibles weigh a ton, though?
Not in this case – because the 12C was originally designed as a convertible, McLaren didn't need to add any chassis strengthening to the Spider.
With the help of that V8, it can get from 0-62mph in 3.1 seconds, the same time as the 12C. It'll manage 0-100mph in 6.1 seconds, just a second slower than the 12C. The Spider's top speed, meanwhile, clocks in at 204mph with the roof raised, a mere 3mph shy of the 12C. Open the lid and it'll manage 196mph, which is plenty fast enough.
Excellent. It'll go nicely alongside my hard-top 12C
Have a play with the configurator on McLaren's website, and picture how you'd spend your lottery winnings – because that's the only way you'll get your hands on one. The Spider starts at £195,500, £19,500 more than the 12C coupé. But at that price, who's counting?
You might also like