Will cutting off the roof of a supercar defeat its purpose? Now is a good time to get red spots all over your body and find out the truth. I’m coming to the beach!
"Are you single?" The question was asked by Rowan Horncastle, who is trying to cultivate a look that compares to that of a "Swedish billionaire" under the blockade order. Other members thought that what he was talking about was actually the demeanor of a "70s TV host", but now it seems to have doubled its power to attract the attention of the right person. Isn't it annoying? Charlie Turner and I are fifteen years older than Rowan. The former has a Mexican mustache that we both want, and the latter has a bald head that we don’t. However, it is clear to onlookers that this dome is round and bright, and even the Byzantine church is jealous of it.
"You know..." Just as everyone was watching Rowan walking across the beach in a coquettish manner, someone said nitpickingly: "I'm an old man, and it's hard to seduce people with a yellow Ferrari." Of course, these remarks triggered a trigger. There was a heated debate, and the final conclusion was that this kind of coquettishness should be limited to thirty-five years old. If you choose navy blue, you may be able to sell it harder into your forties. The same principle applies to Lamborghini, but there is an additional condition - you must be born short and small, otherwise your head will stick out of the windshield like a mole in Whack-a-Mole. As for McLaren, it's okay to be a little more mature, and for Porsche, it's okay to be old enough to die.
I have just mentioned the key point of convertible supercars. These are all supercars, and the only difference from the coupe version is that the roof can be opened. However, these differences make people look at convertible supercars in a new light. They no longer regard them as unyielding and powerful driving tools, but as Another way to show off your wealth that goes well with a sky-high expensive watch and wearing barefoot loafers (Rowan still has to work hard on the barefoot loafers).
However, in the eyes of car fans, losing one’s identity is ten times more important than losing one’s roof. It's a matter of perception, and when you realize that people around you are wondering if they've seen you on the Made in Chelsea reality show, you've already lost. However, this only tells part of the truth. Leaving aside the pretentious Mediterranean ports and Mayfair Hotel, traveling in the open-top posture in the beautiful summer suburbs with birds and flowers, while enjoying the sounds, colors and smells of nature, the multi-layered flavor of these convertibles is indeed The non-hardtop version is comparable.
The F8? Spider is a new product of Ferrari. Although the interior of the body is actually not much different from the 488, and the 488 itself has many similarities with the 458, both are excellent works. There's been an improvement in terms of power, because it's a one-way road of either progress or retreat. In addition, the rectification efficiency has been improved by 10%. Even with the installation of a more advanced frame electrical control system and the roof opening and closing mechanism that has been used for the past nine years, the weight is still slightly reduced. The opening and closing action of this roof is relatively simple, just open, flip and close. Although the opening and closing noise is greater than McLaren's more neat, fast and eye-catching mechanical roof, it takes up less space at the rear of the car. Both rivals use hard folding tops, while Lamborghini and Porsche prefer canvas. The soft top is obviously a lower-cost solution. In fact, before adding various accessories, the price of the two soft top rivals does not touch the two hundred thousand pounds mark (this Huracán is the rear-wheel drive entry version).
But more than 100,000 pounds is still a big sum, so it is better to do less than to do more. Let’s just pretend that the price doesn’t matter. The Porsche we tested cost ￡178,414, which is admittedly more than a hundred thousand pounds cheaper than McLaren and Ferrari. The equipment is not a big deal, and the speed is not necessarily much slower. All it lacks is the exclusive style and the courage to add accessories. The lion opens his mouth cheekily. Let me use Apple CarPlay as an example. Porsche does not charge extra, but Ferrari charges 2,400 pounds. Another example is the 911's Burmesterhi-fi, which is half as good as its competitors' low-quality sound systems. But this does not mean that the convertible Turbo?S is cheap. After all, for a little more than half the price of the Turbo?S, you can buy the non-Turbo version of the convertible 911 (it is said to be a non-Turbo version, but in fact it still has a turbocharger). So this is all a matter of relativity, and perhaps it's relevant that high-end cars are often priced out of reach. Because leaving a deep impression on others and reflecting value or value for money are equally important for this type of car.
Porsche has twice as many drive wheels as its rivals, and is powered by a 3.7-liter twin-turbocharged horizontally opposed six-cylinder engine. Both McLaren and Ferrari have 4-litre twin-turbocharged V8s with more than 700bhp, while the Huracán has a noisy naturally aspirated 5.2-litre V10. The Cheddar Gorge parking area we are in now has a lot of gravel scattered on the ground. It is conceivable that gravel collapse will occur here. So whenever someone gets into a Lamborghini and opens the engine ignition protection cover, I will be careful and move to a more open area.
The Huracán coupe is already very noisy, but the sonic power of the Spyder version is so powerful that it penetrates deep into your ears, like a thunder trumpet player playing the Italian national anthem. When the revs rise, it sounds like a crazy baritone, and once the fuel is reduced, it will emit a dull thunder. The same heavy bass makes the canyon vibrate every time it passes by.
The three opponents, who all relied on turbochargers to dazzle everyone, were almost out of breath from the sound waves behind the Lamborghini, and their prestige was as weak as asthma in comparison. One discovery that surprised me was that Ferrari's singing voice was actually the most disappointing. The singing voice was more melodious and low-pitched. Although the volume was a bit different, the timbre was more similar to a Paxman French horn than a Bavaroti, without the mechanical roar of a Porsche. There is no McLaren's turbine roar that echoes through the clouds. However, it has one skill that its opponents do not have, and that is its very quick response. Why don't other supercar manufacturers dissect this engine, analyze it carefully and then copy its advantages? It is not difficult to imagine that they should do this, but if they have made such efforts, why do their engines still suffer from turbo lag? So in the end it might actually involve some unique skills. After driving Ferrari and Lamborghini repeatedly, one after another, I am convinced that the F8 has the most precise throttle response. Isn't it surprising that the turbocharger actually beats the free-breathing V10.
The McLaren's response above 4,500rpm is almost as good as the F8's, and its speed is even better, but drivers will only reach this level of speed when they really want to use force. In the real world where traffic lights have high and low speed limits and little space for pins, the speed you most often use is actually about 2,000rpm. In other words, when you most need to use instantaneous explosive power, it is around 2,000rpm. Ferrari can give you exactly what you want. Let's put it this way, its singing voice may be a bit weak, but with this engine I can lead my opponent in a breath.
These four cars are all ridiculously fast. Only the Lamborghini accelerates from 0-96km/h in more than three seconds, and all of them reach 210km/h in less than ten seconds. However, Lamborghini has the ability to turn short sprints into a grand event. It is better than a radio station in every aspect. It is especially good at attracting crowds to watch the fun. It is also most likely to stop midway when it realizes that it cannot win and concentrate on showing off its coquettishness and attracting attention. Karen likes to focus on martial arts. With its intricate spoiler equipment and carbon fiber frame (it is the only one here that uses a carbon fiber frame), the 720S has the most powerful power-to-weight ratio among the four. During acceleration, it seems to turn into a flying knife, flying over and over. The farther the target is, the farther away the throwing knife will be. It knows very well that it has a guaranteed victory before the game starts, and the rest of the time is just to follow the plan and complete the task.
Following closely behind will be Ferrari. The F8 basically uses the off-the-shelf engine from the 488 Pista, so it has 50bhp more power than the GTB. Maranello once again deliberately suppressed the torque in the lower gears on this piece (by secretly allowing the clutch to slip), so the acceleration power seemed to increase steadily with each upshift. The effect was that the acceleration was unrelenting and not at all Time makes you gasp, and you are always in the most violent rapids on the power curve. It is so exciting that you are shaking all over and out of breath, and you often forget how fast the current speed is. Especially because the function of the big yellow instrument in the middle has been changed to reporting speed and gear information. If the screens on both sides are not properly set in advance, the vehicle speed will only become an insignificant footnote next to the remaining distance reading.
Porsche acceleration is like sneezing. There is a simmering period before the explosion. When the speed reaches 2,000rpm, the nostrils begin to itch. It makes people feel that the Turbo is slowly expanding the lungs as it inhales, and the speed needle passes 2,500rpm. There is a period of calm before the storm that initially makes your heart skip a beat, and then laments that it was a false alarm. Then as soon as the speed reaches 3,000 rpm, a shocking explosion of saliva and snot is triggered. Fortunately, this explosive force is not like sneezing, which will not cause the natural reaction of closing your eyes. Instead, it will force you to open your eyes wide and round. This explosion is actually more like a volcanic eruption, which can continue to erupt until you become timid. The Porsche has four seats and is heavier than its rivals. However, as an unforgettable moment, the feeling of waiting for the storm to come is as unforgettable as the explosive power that follows.
However, it does require some skills to make full use of the 911's turbocharger. Porsche clearly decided that in order to carry forward the unique characteristics of the Turbo's large turbine (that is, more powerful boost power), it should emphasize the smell of turbo lag instead of trying to eliminate the lag reaction. Therefore, when passing through the twists and turns of the Cheddar Gorge, the driver should try to use a lower gear to maintain the engine's fighting spirit, so as to exert the full power of Turbo?S when exiting the corner. In this way, you will find that this is an amazingly powerful weapon, especially when God is inevitably against you and it rains heavily, this method of maintaining momentum is even more wonderful.
After running like this for several hours in intermittent showers, the biggest discovery is that McLaren's roof switch is the fastest and quietest (the entire operation is completed in ten seconds, and the roof is on you in just seven seconds) overhead), and the cabin is brighter than its three rivals thanks to the ￡7,500 electrochromic roof paneling. I originally planned to turn a blind eye to the interior of this car, but I couldn't turn a blind eye to the white paint.
The gray carriage was also unsatisfactory. It was as monotonous as Ron Dennis's monologue. You have to chew carefully to appreciate how much effort McLaren has put into giving the 720S a sense of vitality, such as playing with the telescopic instrument panel, the impeccable size, shape and position of the steering wheel, the doors that rise and open outwards, or the The axle box is used to house the transmission button.
After witnessing this design effort, it is inevitable to feel that the Ferrari cabin seems to be repeating the same old tune without any changes. Granted, you can now install a display in front of the passenger to read the speed out loud instead of having to dig around on the dashboard. CarPlay has finally made an appearance, but the screen is no bigger than your phone, and it needs to be operated with a knob on the center console, just like the cruise control function. So when it comes to driving around with nothing to do, this Ferrari is actually not that useful. It wants you to push hard, so the tachometer dominates the dashboard, and the steering wheel is equipped with buttons that are within easy reach of your thumb. Porsche's cabin is similar to that of Audi's more than three rivals. The button arrangement and control method are equally clear and easy to use, but it does not give people a feeling of being different or very unique. It just uses a logical method to arrange the switches. All right. Although Lamborghini is owned by Audi, it has its own style. You can easily integrate into this car environment until you open the roof and find the center console screen facing the sky is so reflective that you have to cover your eyes with your hands.
The bigger problem is the Huracán’s driving position. McLaren, Porsche and Ferrari will push you down, but Lamborghini is like an uncle sitting in a sedan. As a result, the cabin of Huracán is the most windy among the four. If you are tall, your eyebrows may be aligned with the top of the windshield. Since the windshield goes deep into the front, you should not hit the glass headfirst, and the openness of the cabin will definitely be improved. But once the roof was closed, the cabin seemed dark and cramped. Luggage storage depends on the small luggage compartment at the front of the car, and there is no need to ask behind the seats. The other two two-seater convertibles do not go against this stereotype, but the luggage space in the front is much better than that of Lamborghini.
Multiple kites, a cricket bat, badminton set, large and small balls, Frisbees and buckets were all packed into the Ferrari because we were about to set off for the beach. According to the original plan, the beach trip was supposed to take place in the afternoon of the same day. Unfortunately, God was not in favor, so we had no choice but to go home early and meet again at Brean Sands the next day. By chance, Rowan, Ollie Kew and I met unexpectedly at a Membury Highway service area the next day. When I sneaked up to Ollie from behind and honked the horn, he was startled and jumped on the spot. When the group left the service area and went straight to the M4, the 720S roared away with a deep roar and a roar. The Lamborghini apparently exerts twice as much effort as the McLaren, and is visibly slower to the naked eye. I flicked the shift paddle on the 911, and it was up to fifth gear in an instant. During this time, the 911 had an itchy nose and sneezed again and again.
However, when we come to the other end of the M4 highway, the Porsche can still record 9.3L/100km, the McLaren is 10.9, and the Lamborghini is 12.3. The fuel consumption is the same as Ferrari's 112km/h at more than 2,500rpm. It's about the same when cruising. On the other hand, the British and German representatives can maintain high-speed cruising at about 1,700rpm. It turns out to be very interesting to watch Kew's hair fluttering in the wind from behind. To be honest, the best place to listen to the Lamborghini V10's song is actually two hundred yards behind it, so that you won't be criticized. Viewed from the back, Lamborghini looks like a hunchback with its head retracted under its shoulders. The Porsche's back is more hunched, and the visual center of gravity is placed above the rear axle. However, the vision from both sitting positions will also pose a challenge to the driver.
The beach at Brean Sands is almost seven miles long. We chased each other for the first mile, trying to avoid beach mats, dogs, and sand castles while maintaining an intoxicating speed of about 25 kilometers per hour. Intoxicating, because the trip wasn't to see what these convertibles were capable of, but to see how other people reacted to them. From what I saw at the scene, the audience's reaction was quite enthusiastic, and they would gasp after knowing the price. According to the informal voting results, Lamborghini is the most popular, because as a guy on the beach said: "When I was young, there was a poster of a bikini girl sitting on a Countach. That picture is unforgettable."
Later that day, we found some good places to use our skills, some good places with bumps and bumps, in short, roads that are not very friendly to roadsters. McLaren, on the other hand, is so good that it doesn't pay attention to the ups and downs at all, and there is nothing that can cause it to deviate from the track or lose control. All in all, it is incredible. A driver with his feet deep into the nose of the car is like sitting in the front row of a theater watching an action movie with the front of the car swinging back and forth. Its steering skills are excellent, its speed is outrageous, and its richness of touch is no less than that of the coupe. It is a very good communicator. Putting aside the lengthy pedal stroke before the brakes start to show off in earnest, this car is both ferocious and thrilling to drive, with firm and decisive moves, a no-nonsense approach, and ruthless elimination of frame shake issues. .
Other opponents have more or less signs of frame shaking. Lamborghini has no frame shaking at all, which is very commendable.
But when you go straight into the corners, you will find that its response is not so positive and direct, and the sensitivity should be higher. The reason is that the frame is deformed to a certain extent, and the information conveyed by the bottom plate is inevitably delayed. As a result, it is impossible to reproduce the seamless connection between the front wheel information of the coupe version. The rear axle has not lost its luster, but the front-end response has indeed lost some of its luster.
The front response of the convertible 911 is also not as sharp as the coupe version, but for a car with such a large open-top area, the vibration of the 911's frame is already very small, and the amplitude is so small that it does not shake at all. Or cramps, the frame will be corrected immediately with just a slight twist. Surprisingly, Ferrari is more difficult to control. Whenever the lower body is impacted laterally by the road ridge, the force will go straight through the frame frame and even the steering wheel will vibrate. However, these vibrations are not enough to interfere with communication continuity. Putting aside the soft engine sound and signs of frame shaking that slightly taint the driving experience, the F8 is absolutely dazzling to drive. On the one hand, it is more lively and charming than McLaren and Porsche, and on the other hand, it is more alert and agile than Lamborghini. No matter the speed is high or low, it can dance gracefully on any road. McLaren is more dedicated, even more determined, if not less heroic, to say the least.
The above two cars, like Porsche, know how to relax and know how to calm down and cruise easily after being excited. Lamborghini has made the wrong move and is determined to stay in the last place. The sound of the engine drowns out everything, and the emotions and sorrows are all expressed in color. However, this kind of true expression will only make people feel that its depth and capacity are not as good as its opponents. Do you want to use this type of convertible for transportation frequently? It's best to ignore other people's laughter and choose a Porsche with the roof open, because once the lockdown order is lifted in the future, your open-top attitude of four people rushing to the bar first will only make those who have laughed at you hate it.
Personally, I think F8 may be a bit like a temporary solution, which seems to indicate that Ferrari has not yet caught up with McLaren's technical improvement on the 720S. But put that impression aside and you'll probably fall in love with the Ferrari, because it's the most exciting thing here. But overall, McLaren still does a better job at handling the job, provided you consider how important the job is. Want some advice? In short, just choose the convertible supercar that suits you best. So it was easy for us to come to the conclusion that McLaren would be the perfect fit for our Swedish billionaire. The jury is still out as to which one would suit a 1970s TV presenter, although I think it's unlikely that such a person would be driving a roadster around today.
This article comes from the author of Autohome Chejiahao and does not represent the views and positions of Autohome.