"Mr Bean's" 1.4 million car repair bill

[Liberal_in_LA]

Giant bill for fixing Rowan Atkinson's McLaren

Everyone who's had a fender bender knows the cost of repairs is going up. But few cars can be as costly to fix as "Mr. Bean" actor Rowan Atkinson's rare McLaren F1.

It took more than a year — and more than 900,000 pounds ($1.4 million) — to get his supercar up and running after a 2011 crash that left Atkinson with a badly damaged shoulder.

The high-performance car makes extensive use of carbon fiber and needed specialist care — it took weeks just to get a proper insurance estimate.

Ben Stagg, specialty insurer with RK Harrison, said the quality components used to make an F1 are one reason the repair costs were so high.

"All modern supercars are predominantly carbon fiber — most Lamborghinis, most Ferraris — and the smallest ding in carbon fiber is a big repair job," he said. "And part of the engine bay is gold, that's the best heat conductor. It's the materials they used compared to everyday cars that make it so expensive."

He said many owners baby their expensive cars, driving them only a few times a year in perfect weather conditions, but Atkinson actually drives his McLaren extensively.

The unusual repair job, thought to involve one of the largest car insurance settlements in British history, is extensively documented in Classic & Sports Car magazine, with a picture of the burgundy McLaren on the cover.

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Giant-bill-for-fixing-Rowan-Atkinson-s-McLaren-4262759.php#ixzz2KKZ17I9l

[Blue Owl]

1. He's become the Mr. Bean of the 1%

n/t

[hootinholler]

2. What happened to the recliner on the roof?

[Blue_Tires]

3. Love his automotive taste...

And much respect for actually driving the thing as the lord intended, instead of letting it sit in a heated, sterile garage 364 days out of the year...

[snooper2]

4. He should have just upgraded

[oberliner]

5. He is very weird about cars

Owns many expensive ones and makes strange judgments about owners of particular makes and models.

[Rosco T.]

6. He's also a very accomplished driver..

.. he takes care of what he buys, the 1% comment isn't really needed.

[KittyWampus]

7. I appreciate he actually drives the darned thing.

[Octafish]

8. The Devil, you say!

[Tyrs WolfDaemon]

9. I'm sure this is just me, but I can't stand the color/paint in the picture

Looks like someone went nuts with some bleaching agent.

[Liberal_in_LA]

10. yeah, it looks bad in the pic. This is what it really looks like (before the repair)

[Tyrs WolfDaemon]

12. Well the paint job is much better than it looks in the other pic

but I still don't care for it. That's just my personal taste. A deep forest green would have been nice.

[LanternWaste]

11. I suppose my reaction to his bill would be the approximate same reaction...

I suppose my reaction to his bill would be the approximate same reaction a subsistence farmer from Rwanda would have to my recent $850 mechanic's bill, and I suppose that same farmer would be justified (morally and statistically) to frame me as part of the world's 1%.

His repair bill is about 25 times what I make in a year. My repair bill is about 50 times what the subsistence farmer makes. I'm in no position to judge Mr. Atkinson's sins, as mine are different only by degrees...