Gallery
Also read All you need to know about MAZDA 787B!
Total Production
The McLaren revealed F1 back in 1992 and it was produced for eight years until 1998. Although the production years were for eight years, It still remains one of the rarest cars from McLaren, Because only 106 were made in total which comprises three different variants.
Standard F1 (64 made)
F1 GTR (28 made)
F1 LM (5 made)
F1 XP1 LM (1-Tuned prototype)
Prototypes ( 5 made, XP1 - XP5)
Longtail prototype XPGT (1 made)
Longtail variant GT (2 made)
Standard F1 (Road version)
These F1 variants are the road-legal versions and 64 were made in total for sale to the customers. Since its debut, this car had appeared in so many top-end International magazines, as the Autocar magazine quoted regarding F1 "The McLaren F1 is the finest driving machine yet for public roads and will be remembered as one of the greatest events in the history of the car". In April 2017, Topgear magazine listed the McLaren F1 as the "fastest naturally aspirated V12 cars available in the world".
F1 GTR
The GTR version of the car is meant to racing in Grand Tours such as BPR Global GT Series, FIA GT Championship, JGTC (Japan Grand Touring Car), British GT Championship, etc... This car totally raced in approximately 120 races and won 28 of them. This car, the F1 GTR raced since1995 internationally and retired in 2005 from GT touring. In 1996 it was the fastest racecar when on a straight line as it hit the top speed of 330 Kmph in the famous stretch, Mulsanne straight. And that was 6 Kmph faster than the Porsche GT1.
F1 LM
The LM (Le Mans) version of the car is track-oriented that is built in honour to the McLaren F1 GTRs that competed and finished first, third, fourth, fifth, and thirteenth positions overall in 1995 24 Hrs of Le Mans. There were 5 built-in total in which, all of them were sold to the customers. It is a modified version of the McLaren GTRs. The modifications were necessary because the GTR version of the car was not road legal. This particular variant is lower than the standard F1 fitted with stiffer suspensions, stripped down, bare interior ultimately making the car more comfortable and usable every day in both tracks and in the public roads.
F1 XP1 LM
It is a prototype model of the McLaren F1 LM. Only one was built and retained by the company itself. The car was promised by the McLaren CEO, Ron Dennis, as a gift to one of the best Formula 1 driver, Lewis Hamilton if he won two Formula one championships titles. But, unfortunately, he left McLaren Formula 1 team, to the Mercedes Formula 1 team when he had one championship title in his hand.
Prototypes (XP2, XP3, XP4, XP5)
The first, second, third, fourth, and fifth image is the McLaren F1 XP1, F1 XP2, F1 XP3, F1 XP4, and F1 XP5 prototypes respectively.
Technical Specs
Engine BMW S70/2 GTR LM 60° Naturally aspirated V12 (Mid-engine)
Displacement 6,064 CC
Max Power 680 BHP @7,800 Rpm
Max Torque 705 Nm @4,500 Rpm
Chassis Carbon-Fibre reinforced monocoque
Transmission 6-Speed Manual gearbox
Drivetrain Rear Wheel Drive
Curb Weight 1,060 Kg
Power/Weight 550 HP/tonne
Top Speed 240.1 Mph or 386.4 Kmph
0-60 Mph 3.2 Secs
The top speed of the car is still unbeatable for so many companies like Lamborghini, Mercedes Benz, etc... where their top speeds wobble around 220 Mph. It is one of the lightest cars of all time. The V12 engine in the car is said to have a rev limit of at least 10,000 Rpm but due to regulations it was limited to rev at only 7,800 Rpm still making a remarkable power of 680 HP and it was said that this engine could be one of the highest revving engines in the world and the lightest one as well. It can easily be said that McLaren F1 is the fastest naturally aspirated V12 car in the world even now in the 20th century.
The engine BMW S70/2 was perfectly mated with a six-speed gearbox and a Hydraulic triple plate carbon clutch which was flawlessly supported the F1 to win the 24 Hrs of Le Mans. Because of such a reliable transmission, the gear ratios were the same or equal between F1 LM and the Standard F1. Although the F1 LM was way faster than the standard F1 in terms of 0-60 Mph time, as the LM version achieved 0-60 Mph in just around 3 secs but the standard F1 did it in 3.9 secs. And the McLaren F1 LM go on to set a world record 0-100-0 Mph in just 11.5 secs in a mere distance of just 250 meters, which is still an unbreakable milestone from the F1.
One of the most important differences between the F1 GTR and the F1 LM was the Carbon Ceramic brakes in GTR was not used in the LM model.
Also read All you need to know about Mazda Furai!
Design
The design of this car was obviously an outstanding feature. The design of this car would probably be concentrated on "Less weight, more power".
Head Designer GORDON MURRAY
Credit: hagerty.co.uk
This car was fully designed by Gordon Murray, a British-South African designer who worked for McLaren racing and remarkably the McLaren F1.
The only goal he had in his mind was mainly a car with the best handling and the fastest car, an ultimate machine that is enjoyable in every turn of a track and public roads.The inspiration that drove him crazy to build an ultimate road car is, indeed the 1991 Honda NSX.
Gordon Murray said,
"The moment when I drove an NSX, all the benchmark cars like Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche that I have been using got vanished from my mind"
Therefore, Murray tried partnering up with the Japanese company 'Honda', So that they get a supply chain for the engine but eventually the company ended up partnering with the German company 'BMW'. The engine he wanted was had some unique feature he suggested the BMW's M division was the engine without Forced Induction. But when coming to the interior design of the car, It was completely another level that had a three-seater setup with a centred driver position giving a fighter pilot like appearance to the cockpit of the car. Of course, it had fitted with a very fancy looking Scissor doors.
McLaren F1 was undoubtedly a revolutionary machine because it was the car ever to have a Carbon-Fibre monocoque which is now a commonly used monocoque in every modern sports and hypercars.
The F1 produced a large amount of downforce with very minimal modifications to the body such as Front splitter, Rear diffuser, CFRP (carbon fibre reinforced plastic) wing, Air vents for engine cooling at the front, side skirts, etc... and improved the Aerodynamics of the car in a large margin.
The pricing
The standard McLaren F1 was set to sell at a price of $380,000 in 1995. And because of the bespoke legacy of its past, its value keeps on increasing day by day. As we know already that the number of cars built was very limited to only 106 examples. So, the availability of the car is minimal. But the fans are never stopped spending on it to buy one. It is one of the most sought-after cars of all time. In recent times, there was a McLaren F1 with the LM spec made by the company which is one of the two LM spec cars from the factory, was up for sale with a humongous $23 million as base price in rmsothebys.com and Later it was sold to $19 million. The car enthusiasts are too much aggressive to own a McLaren F1 not caring the cost it would take.
And this all about the 1992 McLaren F1 every car enthusiasts should know.
Thank you!
By Porselvan M
If you like our content please leave a like and Sign up to our page to get notified. We ensure that we give you the best content on cars. We need your support.
Reference :
Comments