Introduction
The car featured a 6.1 liter BMW S70 V12 engine. It was in production from 1994 to 1998 and was a 2 door 3 seat coupe with the driver's seat located at the middle of the car. It had a length of 4287 mm, a width of 1820 mm and a height of 1140 mm. Curb weight was at 1140 kg.
The car had many variants and the final incarnation of the road car, which was meant to be a homologation special was the F1 GT. Porsche and Mercedez-Benz had already built homologated cars, thus increasing competition for the McLaren. McLaren needed to extensively modify the F1 GTR in order to compete. The vast modifications required forced McLaren to build a production car on which to legally base their new race cars. This was the basis for the production of the F1 GT.
Design
The design of the F1 GT featured the same extended rear bodywork of the F1 which produced an increased downforce. However, it had no rear wing like those seen on the F1 LM as the downforce generated by the long tail was sufficient enough to not require the addition of the wing. The front end of the car was also similar to the racing car. The wheel fenders were further widened to allow for larger wheels and the interior was redesigned and a racing steering wheel was included in the package.
Development
Development of the F1 GT was based on unfinished standard F1 chassis. The XPGT prototype model was based on F1 chassis #056 and the model is currently with McLaren. There was technically only the need for one production model but, due to demands from customers, McLaren made two production versions. These two customized F1 GT were from the F1 chassis #054 and chassis #058.
The design concept for the McLaren F1 was low weight and high power. Thus, the F1 used several high-tech and expensive materials such as carbon fiber, titanium, gold and magnesium. It was also the first production car to use a carbon-fiber monocoque chassis.
The McLaren F1 debuted at The Sporting Club in Monaco on May 28, 1992. The production version of the car was essentially the same with the original prototype which was known as the XP1. The only difference was the wing mirror which was mounted on top of the A-pillar on the XP1. The car had been deemed as not legal as it had no front turn signal indicators and McLaren had to make changes to the car as a result. The original wing mirrors developed by McLaren incorporated a pair of indicators in the design which was soon adopted by several car manufacturers after several years.
The McLaren F1 was proven as a safe car when a test driver who was wearing just shorts and a t-shirt drove the first prototype car several times. He managed to escape the incident unscathed. The second prototype, the XP2 was built for crash testing and it was successful in its results.
Engine
The engine of the car was custom built by BMW's motorsport division, BMW M. The engine had specifications of 6.1 L V12 which was derived from BMW's M70/S2 engine with aluminum alloy block and head. The 266 kg engine was heavier than was expected by the McLaren team's specification of a maximum weight of 250 kg. However, it produced considerably more power than was specified and this canceled out the additional weight gain.
The design and materials used for the F1 required for significant heat insulation in the engine compartment. This was solved by using gold foil to line the engine bay. Gold is the most efficient heat-reflector available. Each F1 car uses approximately 25g of gold.
Achievements
The McLaren has an official recorded top speed of 240.24 mph. It can do 0 to 60 mph in 3.1 seconds. It claims the title of “world's fastest production car” but the title is constantly in contention. Many cars are currently capable of breaking the 240.24 mph top speed of the McLaren. Recently, the Koenigsegg CCR recorded a speed of 241 mph which was then broken by the Bugatti Veyron which attained a top speed of 253 mph.
Gordon Murrey, the chief designer of the car has repeatedly stated that the F1 was never meant to break any records, but rather to perform as the ultimate driver's car.
