THE LEGEND - MCLAREN F1 - SPEED SCIENCE

MCLAREN F1

Mclaren F1

The legendry F1 redefined what a super car could be. F1 is still regarded as one of the greatest super cars ever. F1 had the title for fastest production car until Bugatti Veyron came in 2005. The F1 surpassed the Jaguar XJ220's 213 mph record from 1992, as well as the low production number RUF CTR2's 217 mph record from 1995. The F1 can reach a mind boggling speed of 240 Mph (386 Kmph). Chief engineer of Mclaren Gordon Murray's design concept was a common one among designers of high-performance cars: low weight and high power. This was achieved through use of high-tech and expensive materials such as carbon fibre, titanium, gold, magnesium and kevlar. The F1 was the first production car to use a carbon-fibre monocoque chassis. In 1994, the British car magazine Autocar stated in a road test regarding the F1, "The McLaren F1 is the finest driving machine yet built for the public road." They further stated, "The F1 will be remembered as one of the great events in the history of the car, and it may possibly be the fastest production road car the world will ever see." In 2005, Channel4 placed the car at number one on their list of the 100 greatest cars, calling it "the greatest automotive achievement of all time". Notable past and present McLaren F1 owners include Elon Musk, Jay Leno, and the Sultan of Brunei. The engine for this car was naturally aspirated to increase reliability and driver control. Turbochargers and superchargers increase power but they increase complexity and can decrease reliability as well as introducing an additional aspect of latency and loss of feedback. A 6.1 L (6,064 cc) 60-degree V12 engine called BMW S70/2 was made for F1 by BMW’s motorsport division BMW M. The BMW engine Weighed 266 kg and produced 627 BHP. The car has a great power-to-weight ratio resulting in high speeds. The F1 was too fast to compete at LeMans, so McLaren had to make it slower. It still won. The F1 remains one of the fastest production cars ever made; as of July 2013 it is succeeded by very few cars, including the Koenigsegg Agera R, the Bugatti Veyron, the SSC Ultimate Aero TT, the Hennessey Venom GT and the Bugatti Veyron Super Sport. However, all of the higher top speed machines use forced induction to reach their respective top speeds, whereas the McLaren F1 is naturally aspirated. Only 106 Mclaren F1s were made.

INTERIOR

The car features a central driving position – the driver's seat is located in the middle, ahead of the fuel tank and ahead of the engine, with a passenger seat slightly behind and on each side.[22] The doors on the vehicle move up and out when opened, and are thus of the butterfly type, also called Dihedral doors. Standard equipment on the stock McLaren F1 includes full cabin air conditioning, a rarity on most sports cars. Further comfort features included SeKurit electric defrost/demist windscreen and side glass, electric window lifts, remote central locking, Kenwood 10-disc CD stereo system, cabin access release for opening panels, cabin storage compartment, four-lamp high performance headlight system, rear fog and reversing lights, courtesy lights in all compartments, map reading lights and a gold-plated Facom titanium tool kit and first aid kit (both stored in the car). Despite a driver’s seat in the middle and a 240 mph top speed, it was so mind-bogglingly comfortable that owners like Rowan Atkinson and Paul McCartney drove theirs everywhere.

Mclaren F1's Middle driver seat

Mclaren F1's 1+2 seating

MCLAREN F1 LM

Only five McLaren F1 LM (LM for Le Mans) cars were built in honour of the five McLaren F1 GTRs which finished the 1995 24 Hours of Le Mans, including taking the overall win.The weight was reduced by approximately 75 kg (165 lb) over that of original, through the removal of various pieces of trim and use of optional equipment. The car also had a different transaxle, various aerodynamic modifications, specially designed 18-inch (457 mm) magnesium alloy wheels and upgraded gearbox. The F1 LM used the same engine as the 1995 F1 GTR, but without race-mandated restrictors, to produce 680 hp. It had a top speed of 225 mph (362 kmph), which is less than the standard version because of added aerodynamic drag, despite identical gear ratios. The LM is 76 kg (168 lb) lighter than the stock F1 – a total mass of 1,062 kg (2,341 lb) – achieved by having no interior noise suppression, no audio system, a stripped-down base interior, no fan-assisted ground effect and no dynamic rear wing. In the place of the small dynamic rear wing there is a considerably larger, fixed CFRP rear wing mounted on the back of the vehicle.

Mclaren F1 LM

APPEARENCES

The Mclaren F1 is prominentlt featured in Need For Speed Video Game series since it’s start. It was featured in many games like NFS Hot Pursuit 2, NFS Hot Pursuit 2010, NFS II SE. It is featured in many other racing games like Forza Motorsport 4, Forza Horizon 2 & 3, Gran Turismo 4,5 & 6, The Crew, Project Cars and Test Drive Unlimited 1 & 2 and mobile games like Real Racing 3 and Asphalt 7 & 8. F1 has also appeared in many episodes of BBC’s Top Gear.