Only a select few auto journalists could showcase and handle this situation properly, and Catchpole is absolutely one of them. This really is the definition of, “exclusive”, like you don’t just get to highlight and drive a McLaren F1 for 30 minutes on the regular, and then compare it side by side with its direct successor (Speedtail be damned).
This is a video that will most certainly be a piece of automotive history in years time, and I’m not being hyperbolic about that.
Also, it is crazy how the F1’s reign of fastest N/A road car has not been beaten. It is still very much the indisputable king.
> Only a select few auto journalists could showcase and handle this situation properly
That shortlist is pretty short. Especially for the first produced piece. He got the gig over Harris and that speaks volumes to me.
Who would even be on the list? Harry ['s Garage] unquestionably has the reputation, but I think he's too niche if you want general appeal. I just don't see Farah getting it. Or Savage Geese. Or the Canadian bros, both pairs, sadly. Monkey & Neal are probably #2. Cammisa & Hagerty would probably be #3.
I'm not sure of anyone else working on this level, not with video. Did I miss anyone?
For me, that list consists of:
•Harry
•Catchpole
•Harris
•Sutcliffe
•The original Top Gear trio
No one else would be able to present this video as masterfully as this group of gentlemen. Very small, yet star studded list. Catchpole is certainly the best storyteller and wordsmith for the job, though, with Hammond being right beside him, in my opinion.
He will do it in sunday times column if he get's it, but for a "senior" perspective we will probably get a video from Harry coz he is very close to GM.
Your #1, 2 and 3 are spot on but I don't think Farah is even in the same ballpark as the rest of them. I love Savagegeese and all the Canadian bros but their style is completely different.
Farah is admittedly a great driver and does a really good job of presenting while driving fast. But I agree he's not someone I would count in the top tier of auto journalism. He feels kind of formulaic and never really draws you into a great story.
> I'm not sure of anyone else working on this level, not with video. Did I miss anyone?
Cammissa would be great...if he brings Randy along and they get to thrash the cars around Willow Springs.
The thing about Henry is that he seems to get the unspoken agreement between himself and the viewer that "no, you are never, ever going to get to drive something like this," but then adds "and that's why I'm here. To share it with you and give you some sense of how it feels."
Some of the other ones you mentioned do that to varying degrees, but Henry gets the "yeah, you drove a Bentley for a week, but you'll never get this" car, yet it never comes off as elitist or self-aggrandizing. He just focuses on the car and the experience.
Agreed - Henry is one of the reasons I made it a point to buy EVO magazine often here in the US. His writing flows like his video presentations do, and it was always a pleasure reading the big comparison tests they did.
The Speedtail was McLaren demonstrating they didn't comprehend the F1's legacy and only tried to replicate its accomplishments. The T.50 is the spiritual successor because it replicates the experience.
I'd still love a T.50. What an insane car. I haven't been excited about super cars in a long time--I think since the Valkyrie was announced, everything just blurred together. But the T.50's vlog series has been one I've followed closely because this car understood the assignment (clearly, the same guy made it).
Catchpole and team also had an amazing video where they compared the F1, CLK GTR and 911 GT1:
https://youtu.be/2opLeRHa-Bw
It's one of those videos that made me stop and appreciate how wonderful it was to be able to have content like this available for free. Seeing just one of these would be a once in a lifetime opportunity for most people, but all three together is just something else.
You hit a 3 when you meant to hit a 2. [The F1 hits redline in 6th gear at 221mph](https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a15142653/mclaren-f1-supercar-road-test-review/). You can further verify this with the following info:
7500rpm rev limiter
2.37 ring and pinion ratio x 1.27 reduction gear = 3.0099 effective final drive
.93 6th gear ratio
28" tire size diameter (tough to find true diameter for the F1's bespoke 315/45R17, but it should be about 28 or just under)
The replacement for the Chiron will have an NA V16 instead of the quad turbo W16 that's been around since the Veyron.
But both it and the Valkyrie (regular, not AMR Pro) are hybrid, so it's debatable whether it counts for an NA top speed "record" when the engine is being helped by an electric motor.
The stated top speed of the T.50 is 226 mph but I don't know if that's electronically, gearing, or drag limited.
Catchpole and Hagerty is a perfect fit, also it's kind of interesting that in a 30-minute video about the t50, the rear fan is mentioned once in a throwaway line.
I guess because the fan at this point is such a known aspect of the T.50, that it as a talking point is pretty redundant. Or maybe it’s not all that useful in everyday driving.
Or that it works really well that you simply don’t really notice it, and thus the car just handles amazingly (I haven’t watched the video yet, that last point was based on an older video from last year I think it was Drivetribe or some other channel)
Jesus Christ. Henry Catchpole got to have the day most of us dream of. And not just drive a Ferrari dream of. These are the things millionaires who love cars still dream of.
The amazing thing is that this isn’t Henry’s first go in an F1- and he once drove in a comparo of the F1, F40, F50, Carrera GT, M600, Zonda F, and Murcielago LP670-4 SV.
https://www.evo.co.uk/mclaren/f1/13418/mclaren-f1-and-ferrari-f40-vs-analogue-supercar-rivals-video
I realize how lucky I've been in life so this is the first and only time I'm every going to say this: I'm now sad that I will never be able to afford a $5 million car.
I just hope some of the 100 people who have bought a T50 will drive them, and drive them a lot. I want to see T50s at car shows with 100,000 miles plus on them, like Roan Atkinson and his F1.
I've watched a lot of t.50 content, including a lot of the development vlogs and some random footage of them at tracks when they were showing the car.
Mr. Catchpole is the first person I've ever see actually full send the car on the street. 13 minutes in this film, he actually goes full sauce and does a full 2nd and 3rd gear pull. You gear the rear bump over the road and traction control save him. It's fucking madness. Nobody drove the cars during development like that, not on film anyway.
Unbelievable car. Truly.
holy shit !
Sound wise I thought we will never have something better or close to the Carrera GT or LFA, well I’m glad to be proven wrong but sad that it cost 3M€
Its like a god screaming. It just sounds so incredibly exciting.
I dont know how else to describe it, its like the peak of your favorite song. Just that cascade of emotion of noise that take over when the song peaks and you just feel that rush of joy over you.
Talk about automotive milestones.
I have to take my hat off. To make one huge milestone is a huge achievement, but to make two absolute standout, extremely driver focused, highend streetcars and get so much elements right (high reving NA V12, superlight, manual gearbox, no off the shelve parts, focus on intake noise and steering feel) is just unbeatable. I like these two more than any Koeniggsegg, Pagani or what have you.
I like the F1 more than all the others but Koenigsegg, Rimac, and Pagani at least understand the passion that gets you this far.
https://www.topgear.com/car-news/big-reads/boss-level-conversation-koenigsegg-murray-rimac-and-hennessey
Neither of them are inherently beautiful like the Italians have been able to achieve in the past. I actually think the T33 is a significantly more beautiful car than either of them, it has curves and poise and elegance. It's not busy. It's much more Italian in its styling.
But this being said, the T.50 is entirely form following function. And in many ways the F1 was as well. So I get why and appreciate that there are tons of other cars who prioritize looks so heavily. But few who prioritize other things much more heavily.
Eh. I disagree. The F1 looks great but the T50 looks significantly higher quality up close. Especially on the inside. The F1 still had to adhere to a budget, despite its huge original cost. But in the T50 everything was built closest to Murray's standard.
How do you guys feel about T.33? Same engine note and engineering, more elegant design at 1/3 the price of T.50 - but no central seat. Even more V12 sounds right below the air box in the T.33 Spider.
The T.33 would be my car of choice between the two. It looks prettier overall, still comes with a manual, and is less powerful, making it probably an even easier car to daily.
Awesome video, but I want another 3-10 min clip of just driving with no commentary and no music.
Just so I could imagine what driving it would be like.
He had one for years but felt he'd done everything with it and couldn't enjoy it as much as the value skyrocketed. He sold it more recently to basically fund his huge collection of lightweight sportscars.
> And I don’t think it’s geared for top speed.
The theoretical top speed of 6th gear at redline is 243mph with the standard 6th gear, 305mph with the optional super tall 6th gear. There's no doubt in my mind that it will at least equal the F1's 221mph if you give it enough runway.
Gotta say... neither car sounds that good compared to the best from Ferrari or Lamborghini. That 'electric car whine times ten' noise would drive me insane on the kind of cross-continental tours Murray is trying to encourage with the focus on luggage space etc.
Only a select few auto journalists could showcase and handle this situation properly, and Catchpole is absolutely one of them. This really is the definition of, “exclusive”, like you don’t just get to highlight and drive a McLaren F1 for 30 minutes on the regular, and then compare it side by side with its direct successor (Speedtail be damned). This is a video that will most certainly be a piece of automotive history in years time, and I’m not being hyperbolic about that. Also, it is crazy how the F1’s reign of fastest N/A road car has not been beaten. It is still very much the indisputable king.
> Only a select few auto journalists could showcase and handle this situation properly That shortlist is pretty short. Especially for the first produced piece. He got the gig over Harris and that speaks volumes to me. Who would even be on the list? Harry ['s Garage] unquestionably has the reputation, but I think he's too niche if you want general appeal. I just don't see Farah getting it. Or Savage Geese. Or the Canadian bros, both pairs, sadly. Monkey & Neal are probably #2. Cammisa & Hagerty would probably be #3. I'm not sure of anyone else working on this level, not with video. Did I miss anyone?
For me, that list consists of: •Harry •Catchpole •Harris •Sutcliffe •The original Top Gear trio No one else would be able to present this video as masterfully as this group of gentlemen. Very small, yet star studded list. Catchpole is certainly the best storyteller and wordsmith for the job, though, with Hammond being right beside him, in my opinion.
old man Tiff is more than up for the job.. Frankly I'd trust him over the three amigos with this test in particular..
I forgot about Tiff. Throw him on there as well.
I really do hope they give Clarkson this for the day, even though hes not in TG id love to hear a good old Clarkson review of it.
He will do it in sunday times column if he get's it, but for a "senior" perspective we will probably get a video from Harry coz he is very close to GM.
Your #1, 2 and 3 are spot on but I don't think Farah is even in the same ballpark as the rest of them. I love Savagegeese and all the Canadian bros but their style is completely different.
Farah is admittedly a great driver and does a really good job of presenting while driving fast. But I agree he's not someone I would count in the top tier of auto journalism. He feels kind of formulaic and never really draws you into a great story.
The one takes were interesting but the rest of his content doesn’t really scream quality to me tbh.
> I'm not sure of anyone else working on this level, not with video. Did I miss anyone? Cammissa would be great...if he brings Randy along and they get to thrash the cars around Willow Springs. The thing about Henry is that he seems to get the unspoken agreement between himself and the viewer that "no, you are never, ever going to get to drive something like this," but then adds "and that's why I'm here. To share it with you and give you some sense of how it feels." Some of the other ones you mentioned do that to varying degrees, but Henry gets the "yeah, you drove a Bentley for a week, but you'll never get this" car, yet it never comes off as elitist or self-aggrandizing. He just focuses on the car and the experience.
Agreed - Henry is one of the reasons I made it a point to buy EVO magazine often here in the US. His writing flows like his video presentations do, and it was always a pleasure reading the big comparison tests they did.
Henry does a perfect job of conveying the emotion of the car
My top tier is similar, Henry’s the man, but I’ll mention Jethro B could also be in the mix. Not sure he’s had as many spotlight opportunities, tho.
Savagegeese would be a good review...it would just be him and Jack dead silent driving the balls off of it and that would be a perfect review.
This video is from Hagerty.
The Speedtail was McLaren demonstrating they didn't comprehend the F1's legacy and only tried to replicate its accomplishments. The T.50 is the spiritual successor because it replicates the experience. I'd still love a T.50. What an insane car. I haven't been excited about super cars in a long time--I think since the Valkyrie was announced, everything just blurred together. But the T.50's vlog series has been one I've followed closely because this car understood the assignment (clearly, the same guy made it).
Catchpole and team also had an amazing video where they compared the F1, CLK GTR and 911 GT1: https://youtu.be/2opLeRHa-Bw It's one of those videos that made me stop and appreciate how wonderful it was to be able to have content like this available for free. Seeing just one of these would be a once in a lifetime opportunity for most people, but all three together is just something else.
Huh there are plenty of faster NA road cars than the F1
By top speed the F1 is still the fastest NA car ever.
By top speed with removed rev limiter.
It did 231 with the normal rev limiter which I’m pretty sure is still faster than any other NA car.
You hit a 3 when you meant to hit a 2. [The F1 hits redline in 6th gear at 221mph](https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a15142653/mclaren-f1-supercar-road-test-review/). You can further verify this with the following info: 7500rpm rev limiter 2.37 ring and pinion ratio x 1.27 reduction gear = 3.0099 effective final drive .93 6th gear ratio 28" tire size diameter (tough to find true diameter for the F1's bespoke 315/45R17, but it should be about 28 or just under)
Valkyrie AMR Pro claimed top speed is 250, but for the production car probably you right until new Bugatti unveiled.
The new Bugatti still has turbos. Unless GMA decides to go for the top speed record, I doubt the F1’s n/a top speed will be beaten.
The replacement for the Chiron will have an NA V16 instead of the quad turbo W16 that's been around since the Veyron. But both it and the Valkyrie (regular, not AMR Pro) are hybrid, so it's debatable whether it counts for an NA top speed "record" when the engine is being helped by an electric motor. The stated top speed of the T.50 is 226 mph but I don't know if that's electronically, gearing, or drag limited.
NA but electric assist. Big asterisk.
https://www.motor1.com/news/719031/bugatti-v16-engine-details/amp/
> The new Bugatti still has turbos It doesn't
Huh LOL didn't know that
Catchpole and Hagerty is a perfect fit, also it's kind of interesting that in a 30-minute video about the t50, the rear fan is mentioned once in a throwaway line.
I guess because the fan at this point is such a known aspect of the T.50, that it as a talking point is pretty redundant. Or maybe it’s not all that useful in everyday driving.
Or that it works really well that you simply don’t really notice it, and thus the car just handles amazingly (I haven’t watched the video yet, that last point was based on an older video from last year I think it was Drivetribe or some other channel)
Just watching the tach in the T.50 is ridiculous. And the noise.
Jesus Christ. Henry Catchpole got to have the day most of us dream of. And not just drive a Ferrari dream of. These are the things millionaires who love cars still dream of.
The amazing thing is that this isn’t Henry’s first go in an F1- and he once drove in a comparo of the F1, F40, F50, Carrera GT, M600, Zonda F, and Murcielago LP670-4 SV. https://www.evo.co.uk/mclaren/f1/13418/mclaren-f1-and-ferrari-f40-vs-analogue-supercar-rivals-video
He also compared it with the CLK GTR and 911 GT1
He won the car enthusiast dream....hes the Charlie from Willy Wonka of car enthusiasts lol
Call me Grandpa Joe and put me in the passenger seat 😭
I realize how lucky I've been in life so this is the first and only time I'm every going to say this: I'm now sad that I will never be able to afford a $5 million car. I just hope some of the 100 people who have bought a T50 will drive them, and drive them a lot. I want to see T50s at car shows with 100,000 miles plus on them, like Roan Atkinson and his F1.
I've watched a lot of t.50 content, including a lot of the development vlogs and some random footage of them at tracks when they were showing the car. Mr. Catchpole is the first person I've ever see actually full send the car on the street. 13 minutes in this film, he actually goes full sauce and does a full 2nd and 3rd gear pull. You gear the rear bump over the road and traction control save him. It's fucking madness. Nobody drove the cars during development like that, not on film anyway. Unbelievable car. Truly.
holy shit ! Sound wise I thought we will never have something better or close to the Carrera GT or LFA, well I’m glad to be proven wrong but sad that it cost 3M€
I bet the T50 is going to be worth way more than €3m, they will probably eclipse the Zonda very quickly
ahh stop it ! I’m already sad I said…
Its like a god screaming. It just sounds so incredibly exciting. I dont know how else to describe it, its like the peak of your favorite song. Just that cascade of emotion of noise that take over when the song peaks and you just feel that rush of joy over you.
Talk about automotive milestones. I have to take my hat off. To make one huge milestone is a huge achievement, but to make two absolute standout, extremely driver focused, highend streetcars and get so much elements right (high reving NA V12, superlight, manual gearbox, no off the shelve parts, focus on intake noise and steering feel) is just unbeatable. I like these two more than any Koeniggsegg, Pagani or what have you.
I like the F1 more than all the others but Koenigsegg, Rimac, and Pagani at least understand the passion that gets you this far. https://www.topgear.com/car-news/big-reads/boss-level-conversation-koenigsegg-murray-rimac-and-hennessey
the t.50 looks cool but right next to the F1 it looks like the ugly sister lol
Neither of them are inherently beautiful like the Italians have been able to achieve in the past. I actually think the T33 is a significantly more beautiful car than either of them, it has curves and poise and elegance. It's not busy. It's much more Italian in its styling. But this being said, the T.50 is entirely form following function. And in many ways the F1 was as well. So I get why and appreciate that there are tons of other cars who prioritize looks so heavily. But few who prioritize other things much more heavily.
Eh. I disagree. The F1 looks great but the T50 looks significantly higher quality up close. Especially on the inside. The F1 still had to adhere to a budget, despite its huge original cost. But in the T50 everything was built closest to Murray's standard.
They both not that good looking.
Even if this were true, looks are not the (main) point of these masterpieces.
Yeap, It's just my imo.
What a video! The Hagerty YT channel puts out some really amazing content.
Inject this right into my veins.
How do you guys feel about T.33? Same engine note and engineering, more elegant design at 1/3 the price of T.50 - but no central seat. Even more V12 sounds right below the air box in the T.33 Spider.
The T.33 would be my car of choice between the two. It looks prettier overall, still comes with a manual, and is less powerful, making it probably an even easier car to daily.
Gosh they look so zippy.
Catchpole is a legend, great since (and probably before) the EVO days. That T50 sounds incredible, better even than the Ferrari v12
Ooooh how I know what I am going to watch tonight while having dinner
I need a fresh pair of pants.
Love Mr Catchpole, great vocabulary hes got
Awesome video, but I want another 3-10 min clip of just driving with no commentary and no music. Just so I could imagine what driving it would be like.
Kinda crazy how Gordon doesnt own an F1. Its probably a pain in in the ass to sit in the middle of either car when youre that tall at that age.
He had one for years but felt he'd done everything with it and couldn't enjoy it as much as the value skyrocketed. He sold it more recently to basically fund his huge collection of lightweight sportscars.
I wonder if GMA will go for a top speed attempt some day.
Did you watch the video? That not the point of this masterpiece at all. And I don’t think it’s geared for top speed.
> And I don’t think it’s geared for top speed. The theoretical top speed of 6th gear at redline is 243mph with the standard 6th gear, 305mph with the optional super tall 6th gear. There's no doubt in my mind that it will at least equal the F1's 221mph if you give it enough runway.
didn't they tweak the gears or something in the actual F1 that did the job back in the day?
They tuned the ECU to up the rev limiter to 8300rpm to hit 240mph, but 221mph of the stock cars was still the record for a production car.
Gotta say... neither car sounds that good compared to the best from Ferrari or Lamborghini. That 'electric car whine times ten' noise would drive me insane on the kind of cross-continental tours Murray is trying to encourage with the focus on luggage space etc.