pokin

I drove the following cars over the summer in one of the supercar tours (the NJ/NY one). The tour was very well organized and my experience was great. Highly recommended and will certainly repeat next year. Here are some very brief memorable thoughts (pics are random from the net):






Mercedes McLaren SLR 722: Holy Sh*t was all I could say every time I tapped the gas petal in this Monster. Its looks are very deceiving. Luckily, the organizers gave us plenty of warning about this car. This was the unanimous monster of the pack. I was expecting some finely-tuned tech note purring from the exhaust? Negatory, it is raw power clothed in eye candy - definitely built to sound, look and feel intimidating. Driving this thing gave me a metal workout.





Bentley Continental: Wow, wow... what a huge surprise! This is a very powerful beast disguised as an uber town car.





Aston Martin DB9: Excellent balance of ride, handling and power. This was certainly a pleasure to drive.





Lamborghini Gallardo: Loud and low. It literally drove like a go kart with a monstrous engine strapped to the rear (similar thought as some of the other drivers). Did I say that it was really LOUD?





Maserati Quattroporte: This car seemed and felt the closest to a daily driver. Interior was decent - except for those black rubber (or rubberish) trims on the console. Power is tamed, but definitely present when needed. Exterior styling - not my cup of tea.





Ferrari F430 Spider: The hands-down favorite of most - including me. The sound, the , the handling.... This is the most refined of the bunch.

Lxcord

iTrader: (1)

ok

speedemon90

luck ass bitch

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

This guy is jealous.




Awesome experience man!
how much is the tour?

VQPower37

awesome ... i would love to be part of something like this how much do things like this generally run?

SuperTrooper169

iTrader: (2)

Nice write up, but actually photos of the cars and event would have been more impactful.

crazyasiantl

iTrader: (7)

nice


i think something like this goes for 1600

bigman

It's funny, I have 4 out of the 6 cars here in the shop.

SuperTrooper169

iTrader: (2)

^ Not funny... but freaking awesome!

Steven Bell

iTrader: (2)

Nice...I've wanted to do this for a long time, but I see pricing in the $1,600-$1,800 range. I'm not paying that kind of money for this.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

it depends how long the tour is.
you can easily spend this amount on a vacation trip.

But I agree with one poster above, should have taken pictures of the cars, trip, the friends you made, etc.

pokin

I did the tour offered by Gotham Dream Car Tours in NJ - it was somewhere between $800 and $900. While checking cost for the different tours, I noticed some that ran as high as $1600 - same drive time but varying cars. For $1600ish, I would not have done it, but for $800 - absolutely worth it IMO. I did the morning session - 8:00am orientation, 9:00 take off, and 2:00pm return.

Steven Bell

iTrader: (2)

Shoot, even for $800, it seems like it should be longer.

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

Ouch, I take that back.
for only a couple of HOURS!????

te3point5

it splits up to be abount 45 min. in each car.

pokin

I will definitely do that next year

Here are some random photos (will need to get a much better camera as well):






















A few intriguing facts:
Replacement cost for SLR bumper = $30,000
Replacement cost for SLR hood = $75,000

justnspace

iTrader: (1)

You're the man!

Eoanou

I think it could be fun, $800 isn't that much considering.

Aman

I don't think that's a 722, just a "regular" McLaren. I think the 722 has blackhoused headlights, and "722" on the front fenders. Of course a regular McLaren must still be a helluva car. Nice day

pokin

I am not sure why this did not have the red 722 on the fender. However, it was RENNTech-badged = approx. 720hp.

Pure Adrenaline

iTrader: (2)

722 doesn't refer to the horsepower rating. It goes back to the 1955 Mille Miglia race in which Stirling Moss won in a 300 SLR. He started at 7:22 AM.


Nice cars. Would be a fun experience if I ever got around to it. Thanks for sharing.

Do they keep you under tight control in terms of driving style? Or do they let you have fun with it?

KaMLuNg

iTrader: (5)

i think it is funny that they are all registered to FL plates... what?! couldn't afford the NJ insurance on those supercars... hah!

CarbonGray Earl

$800? That's a great deal. Sounds like an awesome experience.

onebadna1nsx

Damn, I'm jealous.......

ghttf

thats a V8 Vantage

pokin

For the most part, yes. Restrictions/cautions were very reasonable - like:

Stay between the pace and tail cars - about 1 to 2 miles apart (we had 2-way radio comm)... don't detour from route... keep eyes peeled for smokey - ticket? you would be on your own!... fun revving fine or moderately spirited driving was fine, but no redlining... gun it if you wish, but no careless or reckless driving... the SLR will smoke rubber at 90mph - so be careful with that pedal. Some of the drivers occasionally slowed on remote stretches, then gunned it for short durations.

pokin

Yep, good eye. We drove the DB9 - I don't have a good photo.

vas25tl

How long do you get to drive each car?

mclarenf3387

Very cool. I really want to do one of these tours one of these days. Where did they let you drive around? I see the Garden State Parkway in one pic which is no fun to drive on, too many cops. The road in that third pic looks like it would be a great place to go for a drive in those cars.

Look up how much it costs to rent one of those cars for a day before you add in all the fees and its not that bad of a deal.

97BlackAckCL

iTrader: (6)

so jealous

paz840

iTrader: (2)

Looks like fun. Hope I get to do something like this someday.