[Auto] Used and amused: £70k BMW M3 CSL vs McLaren 12C

[Agent47]

 

 

What goes up must come down, except when we’re dealing with high-performance cars like the E46- generation BMW M3 CSL and the McLaren 12C, one of which has gone down then up in value while the other has dropped steadily. The result is that these two disparate machines can now be had for the same outlay.

The BMW cost £58,455 new in 2003 and dipped as low as £20k in the jaws of the financial crisis, but last April, a 10k-miler sold online for £73k plus fees. The McLaren 12C retailed at £168,500 on its debut a decade ago, but of 12 examples listed on a classifieds site, seven are £68k-£70k with 15k-40k miles. You can buy a 12C for more, a CSL for less, but there’s sizeable overlap where both are contenders for a £70k pot of cash.

You’ve already guessed a 12C costs more to run, but imagine if one business had years of experience with both, was more affordable than dealer networks, was willing to detail common faults and could provide directly comparable running costs. One place does: Thorney Motorsport, near Silverstone.

Owner John Thorne built his reputation with M3s, often on the race track, and branched out into VXR Vauxhalls via the Lotus Elise-based VX220. Vauxhall even appointed Thorney Motorsport an official troubleshooter for cars that dealers struggled to rectify. Thorne has personally raced in the BTCC and has built Yamaha factory chassis for the Dakar rally raid.
Six years ago, Thorney moved upmarket into McLarens, identifying it as a niche that didn’t have the independent aftersales support of, say, Porsches or Ferraris. Thorne has run his own 12C for six years, taking it apart to learn more. He was, he says, astonished by the comparison with the VX220: “An 11-man team designed the 12C and nine of them were involved with the VX220 at Lotus. You can definitely see that in how they’re put together, even if the materials are different.”

Currently, Thorney has 350 McLarens on its books, making it the biggest buyer of McLaren parts outside the UK dealer network, with a £300k annual spend.

Typically, Thorney deals with 12C geometry that’s easily knocked out of alignment, or wear items like upper arms, lower arms and Z-bar links. There are, of course, horror stories, including gearbox failure related to input shaft issues. McLaren replaces the gearbox for £27k, but Thorney has developed its own driveshaft seals, input seals and bearings and, says Thorne, “we can now repair any gearbox around the world for £7500”. Cam phasers are prone to wearing, especially if engines are revved hard before fluids are warmed or run low on oil. That’s a top-end rebuild for £10k. So, yes, 12C ownership can be ruinous if things go really wrong.

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But Thorney charges £95 per hour plus VAT and servicing should average around £1500 annually over three years – about £500 for a small service, £2500 for biggies. Thorney also offers warranties for £2850 annually to isolate owners from unexpected shocks.

When you go to drive the 12C, its fine breeding is immediately apparent: you lift a dihedral door, step over a chunk of carbonfibre tub and sit down with backside lower than knees and fantastic visibility through a widescreen windscreen. Press the starter and the twin-turbocharged V8 rouses with its belchy industrial monotone – lacking exoticism perhaps, but now a telltale McLaren signature.

Unusually delicate steering makes this potentially intimidating car feel surprisingly benign – slower and more natural than a Ferrari 458’s, and significantly more feelsome than both it and even the 720S. The ride quality also stands out, soaking up imperfections while taking nothing from this car’s eagerness to carve through corners. It feels low, wide and on the nose, with a striking lack of mass over the front axle. Despite McLaren’s march of progress, a 12C remains fearsomely rapid. The first cars had 592bhp and 443lb ft, but all were offered the 616bhp upgrade soon after (with the same torque rating), which, I think, also smoothed out a sometimes shunty delivery. There’s still lag to a significant 3500rpm or so, but it kicks hard enough thereafter to get the rear tyres spinning and feels downright furious at 7000rpm. There’s no question that this feels a pure-bred supercar, something that parking it alongside a BMW – even a very special one – only highlights.