The word supercars or hypercars invokes an image of luxury, speed, quality, exclusivity, and value for the high price it commands. Think of the Honda NSX, or Ferrari F40, and the Porsche 918 Spyder. These supercars hold their own among rivals and still retain their value no matter how long ago they were produced. This high resale value is not the case with most McLarens. We have observed that McLarens lose their value down the line, no matter the buzz accompanying them when they are first launched.
McLaren has produced some genuinely great cars down the years, the McLaren being a case in point. However, for every McLaren car that stands the test of time, there are several more that depreciate in a matter of years. This reason begs the question, why does McLaren not hold value?
There are several reasons for that. Why don’t we go on a ride (pun intended) to find out why?
McLaren Cars
McLaren is a British-made automobile brand. It is one of the oldest cars for exotic sports cars, and they produce just a few cars. They also have a racing arm involved in Formula 1. Speaking of expensive, we are talking of six-figure expensive. McLaren fulfills every expectation regarding class, design, price range, high speed, acceleration, exclusivity, high technology, among other features. McLarens are popular for their motorsports past, spectacular doors, bold designs, a mid-engine set up, and aerodynamics commitment in products.
Recent high-class McLaren model products list includes—
- The McLaren 765LT
- The McLaren 600LT
- The McLaren 2020 GT
- The McLaren 570S
- The McLaren 650S
- The McLaren Senna
- The McLaren Speed tail
- The McLaren Sabre
These products listed have more development in their specifications as well as appearance. This point further explains that every new McLaren model is always a better version of the last model. These products are amazing; some McLaren products like the 650S are almost at the hypercar level.
The McLaren has a segment of series for their productions. They are the Sportscar series, the Superseries, and the Ultimate series. For the sports car series, there are the McLaren 600LT, 570S, and so on. The Superseries have just one, which is the McLaren 720S coupe, which is a successful replacement of the McLaren 650S. The Ultimate series is the McLaren Senna and the McLaren Speed tail.
Prices of McLarens
As stated earlier, McLarens are pricey and are usually around the six-figure range. The price range of McLarens is around $192,500 to a few million dollars.
When you consider all the amazing qualities of McLarens, do you expect it to lose value or appreciate? How is it possible that Lamborghinis and Ferraris still keep their value after many years, yet it doesn’t mean they are better than McLarens? I mean, famous supercars can’t stand the advanced technology of McLarens, yet their value doesn’t depreciate. Why do McLarens not hold their value?
Why Do McLarens Depreciate?
When it comes to power, appearance, and lightweight design, McLaren is the full package. Despite all the amazing features of McLaren sports cars and supercars, it is surprising to note that McLaren is beginning to have a reputation for depreciation. Does one wonder how such a car can depreciate? You are about to find out why an exotic, expensive and exclusive car like McLaren can decline in value.
Firstly let’s talk about the extent of depreciation of McLarens. Let’s look at one of the products that have depreciated over the years. Consider the McLaren 650S depreciation pace; its release date was 2014, and the price was around £ 200,000 for brand new. The current price is £ 110,000, and its depreciating value is £ 90,000 in the last 7years, which is a considerable chunk when you compare it to other competitor cars. The McLaren 650S in particular is experiencing the majority of the depreciation.
There is a depreciation prediction for the McLaren 570S this was in the year 2019. The McLaren 570S is expected to decrease by 35% after 5 years— from around $ 178,350 to $ 115,928, that loss in value estimates to about $ 62,422. You can conclude that McLarens will depreciate steeply…
This situation isn’t good for the company’s brand. It is much worse for the buyers, especially supercars enthusiasts. Don’t get it wrong, McLaren’s product has the standard that one would expect of a supercar; it just doesn’t hold value.
But cars in other financial tiers also suffer from depreciation. That is one reason why they are so cheap—
Reasons Why McLarens Don’t Hold Their Value
Outdated Tech
One of the main focuses of McLaren is its car’s tech. Unfortunately, in the world we live now, technology evolves in a blink of an eye. This outdated tech means that the car’s value drops, especially when newer models with better technology come around.
Unlike some other supercars that try to combine everything into one beautiful package (yes, some fail at that, we agree.) McLaren’s focus on one aspect drives down the value of the older models when a newer model comes around.
Acura’s unpopularity also stems from a lack of tech innovation. So, this is not only a supercar issue.
Reliability
The lack of reliability is another reason why McLaren’s value seems to be going downhill. The brand has a perception of unreliability to most people. There is the belief that British brands are not known for their reliability.
This reasoning explains why many people may not consider a McLaren their first choice when considering getting a supercar. This lack of faith in the brand has caused a steep decline in the value of their automobiles. When you ask yourself if a Mustang is a good car or any car, you want to make sure that it is reliable.
Surprisingly, this lack of faith doesn’t change McLarens’ quality cars with a great build. Unfortunately, this wrong perception towards McLaren products has affected its market base. Many people believe they are more reliable options for a supercar or a hypercar other than a McLaren.
Awareness of The Product
One of the reasons why McLarens are depreciating is a lack of understanding. People lack awareness of its existence, unlike other competitor supercars like Lamborghini. This statement means that not many people believe it’s an amazing supercar product that lives up to the specs standard and even beyond expectations.
Too Many Cars in a Limited Market
One of the things that set supercars apart is their exclusivity, their limited number produced at a specific time. This imposed scarcity is one of the significant reasons why supercars are expensive. McLaren’s defied this norm by making too many cars for clientele that is finite.
When a company floods the market with too many six-figure sum supercars, there will be a drop in the value. For instance, owning the McLaren 600LT gave the owners a feeling of exclusivity when they first came out. That feeling soon evaporated when the company decided to flood the market, driving down the value.
The company intended to make more sales, but it triggered the wrong result from customers. Instead of making more sales and appreciating, the cars began to depreciate rapidly.
McLaren’s Management Problems
There has been a sort of management flux since McLaren, and Ron Dennis ended their thirty-seven-year association. The company dug itself into a deep hole by borrowing a whopping $333 million to buy his shares. In the best of times, getting out of debt like this would have been difficult, but the pandemic and its attendant economic troubles came right after this, leading to enormous uncertainty.
Especially as the United Kingdom refused to bail out the company because McLaren’s major shareholder is the kingdom of Bahrain. The uncertainty and poor management has led to some baffling decisions in the company; And diminished the public’s faith in their products.
Poor Build Quality of McLarens
Without a doubt, McLaren received another blow when it had to recall more than two thousand seven hundred cars between 2016 and 2017. Even the McLaren Senna wasn’t spared from this wave of recalls. The cause of the recall?
The foam pad located under the fuel tank supposed to prevent water from seeping into the tank was defective. This recall highlighted several issues owners have had with the quality of parts of their McLarens.
When news of car recalls starts flying around, especially cars meant to be made from the highest quality materials, there is no way that the brand’s value won’t drop. Especially is one of your flagship models; the McLaren Senna is part of the cars involved in this wholesale recall.
It is not out of the woods yet since more recalls were issued in 2019 and 2020 as well.
CONCLUSION
Depreciation of cars is like a two-edged sword for people. For supercar enthusiasts that spend lots of money to buy expensive cars, it is not a very good deal. When you consider the loss of value, some people who can’t afford the high side are profitable.
The company bears the brunt of the consequences because terrible depreciation affects the brand negatively. However, it’s not all McLaren that depreciates, for instance, the P1, Senna, and Speed tail maintain their value. Regardless, the McLaren company has to take more preventive measures to cushion depreciation and above all change the public’s perception about their vehicles.
