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Colin James Behind the Wheel

PostPosted: Thu Nov 24, 2016 1:31 pm
by Marsbar
Colin James Behind the Wheel Of A 562-Horsepower McLaren

Like any son of the Prairies who followed his creative muse, Colin James has logged the miles: first as a 17-year old splitting driving duties with his mom during a massive family trip of the U.S. southern states, then on many a cross-Canada jaunt with his early band the Hoodoo Men - and more recently on European and North American tours.

He also admits to a love of speed, though two years of riding motorcycles - first a Honda Shadow, then a BMW 1200 sport bike - scared him enough to satiate the thrill of going fast. That, and being pulled over by West Van police on a couple of occasions - and not for his autograph.

Tamped down as it might be, that primal instinct does reveal itself now and then during his time in the McLaren 570S.

No surprise when you read the specs on this model: the aforementioned 562 ponies from a fire-breathing, mid-mounted 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8; a seven-speed seamless shift dual clutch gearbox with paddle-shifters; a carbon-fibre monocell chassis weighing just 75 kilos; a sub-10 second sprint from zero to 200 km/h; and a top speed of 328 km/h.

Little wonder Colin James is smiling.

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“Tight as a tick,” he marvels at one point en route to Lions Bay, a community his family called home for 18 years before moving down to the North Shore a few years ago. “Just wish I could come out of a corner faster than I am able to today. Just to get a better feeling for its weight and everything. But it seems light.”

He’s right. At just 1,313 kilograms, its power-to-weight ratio is a whopping 428 brake horsepower per tonne. Translation: Hang On!

-- Excerpted from Blues traveller has a need for speed and finds it in this 'everyday' supercar, Colin James behind the wheel of a McLaren 570S with Andrew McCredie.