McLaren = McLove

No kidding, I saw a McLaren yesterday! So, for those of you who believe that Sacramento is a poor cow town -- let that be a lesson to you! An older gentlemen pulled up beside me on Folsom-Auburn Boulevard. (I think he must be used to folks staring -- my gawking didn't really seem to effect him.) I had been staring in the rear view mirror for some time as it drove up. I continued to admire through the 2 minute light. WOW is all I can say! And then, in the blink of an eye, it was gone. It's not fair being teased like that. "Please Sir, would you take me for a little ride?"

Here's some interesting research on the most beautiful car I've ever seen:
The Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren is an Anglo-German sports car jointly developed by Mercedes-Benz and McLaren Automotive, built in Portsmouth and the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. Daimler AG, owner of Mercedes-Benz, also owns 40% of the McLaren Group.

It is the fastest automatic transmission car in the world. Due to the presence of the automatic gear box, front mid-engined arrangement and its driving characteristics lead some commentators to classify the SLR McLaren as a GT whose rivals can be considered to be the Aston Martin V12 Vanquish and Ferrari 599 GTB.

[Note: SLR stands for "Sport, Leicht, Rennsport" (sport, light, racing)] Mercedes-Benz has stated that they will build 3500 SLRs in a span of 7 years, with an annual production of only 500 cars.

The car uses carbon fibre for its entire body construction in an attempt to keep the weight low. Despite CFRP materials the total curb weight is 1768 kg (3898 lb).The following tests have proven that the SLR can achieve a 0-60 mph (97 km/h) in 3.8 seconds and reach a top speed of 360 km/h (224 mph) .

Car and Driver achieved a 0-60 mph (100 km/h) time of 3.75 seconds. C&D suggests the times may be even lower if temperatures were lower. Car and Driver achieved top gear acceleration 30-50 mph and 50-70 mph times of 1.7 and 2.4 seconds, which are the fastest ever recorded by the magazine in a production car.


So maybe you are wondering what will this Chariot of the Gods set you back? The car's base price is GB£300,000 (approx. US$495,000 or €475,000.)

Maybe I should focus on a buying and paying off a home here in Cali first, right? :)