2023 Mclaren Gt on 2040-cars

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2016 Formula 1 Chinese Grand Prix recap: another wild show on and off track

Normally we use this space to provide a lengthy recap of the weekend's Formula 1 race, but we're going to try something different since most folks reading this know what happened at the Shanghai International Circuit on Sunday. Instead, we'll alight on what we saw as the big issues in and around the race. Let us know what you think in Comments. Proper qualifying is back. Thank goodness. It only took a month of embarrassment to fix it. And so is passing! For the third race in a row, big performance improvements at the ten teams behind Mercedes-AMG Petronas and a wider tire selection at this race graced us with opening stints filled with dicing cars. Seeing the McLarens on screen doesn't make us cringe. Manor doesn't only make the global feed when it's being lapped. We've been complaining about parade races for so long that we forgot excitement was possible without rain or wholesale regulation changes. Yes, Mercedes is still the king of the jungle, but there are some other proper midfield beasts on the hunt, too. Malfunctions up and down the grid did help the show in Shanghai, like Lewis Hamilton suffering perpetual troubles, Nico Hulkenberg's runaway front wheel which red-flagged Q2, and Sebastian Vettel's and Kimi Raikkonen's flubbed hot laps in Q3 that let Daniel Ricciardo slip by into second on the grid. Come race day things went all Grand Theft Auto at Turn 1 on the opening lap, sending some of the best cars to the pits. Then came Ricciardo's puncture while leading, then came the Safety Car – all by Lap 5. Nico Rosberg got 38 seconds of airtime on the way to victory – at the start and the finish, and that happened to be his margin of victory, too – otherwise he was a ghost. Everyone else was struggling and juggling. Rosberg's win at the Bahrain Grand Prix put the German at five consecutive victories going back to last year's Mexican Grand Prix. The history books show that any driver who's won five straight contests has gone on to win the championship. With his triumph in China, the German has won the season's first three races, the history books again show that the other nine drivers who've pulled that off have gone on to win the championship. Rosberg, 36 points ahead of his teammate in the standings, is having none of it. He said of the other victors, "But they didn't have Lewis Hamilton as their team-mate." Perhaps Mercedes was right not to make an engine deal with Red Bull last season.

McLaren debuts track-only production Senna GTR after all 75 have been purchased

McLaren designed the Senna to be a track car that was just barely legal enough to drive on public streets. Hinderances such as safety restrictions keep it from being the full-out ballistic projectile it was born to be. So McLaren asked the question, "What if we took the Senna out of that box?" and the approximately $1.4M track-only Senna GTR was born. The Senna GTR Concept car debuted at the 2018 Geneva Motor Show, and McLaren has returned a year later to show off the final production model. The Senna GTR follows in the historic footsteps of the F1 GTR and the P1 GTR and sits in McLaren's throne room with other Ultimate Series cars, the base Senna and the Speedtail. The most in-your-face change between the production model and the concept is the rear wing. Somehow, it managed to get even bigger, with new side planks that extend from the left and right tips down to the rear diffuser, creating a rectangular box of aerodynamic super strength. It also has a redesigned front splitter, a downsized rear diffuser, new dive planes on the front corners, and vortex generators on both sides of the car. Slipping through the air is what the Senna is all about, as McLaren says it is "the most effective aero performance for track driving of any McLaren Automotive product." According to McLaren, the Senna GTR's downforce exceeds an astounding 2,205 pounds, compared to the road-going Senna that topped out at 1,763 pounds at 155 mph. The GTR can reach the same 1,763 pounds at about 15 percent slower speed, or at about 132 mph. The GTR is lower, wider, and slimmer than the Senna, as well. At 2,619 pounds dry, the GTR is 22 pounds lighter (the track-only version deletes the infotainment and audio system but keeps the air conditioning). It's 1.3 inches lower than the Senna, the front track is three inches wider, and the rear track is 2.7 inches wider. Further expanding the GTR's girth, fender flares were added to cover up the 19-inch centerlock wheels that are wrapped in 285/650 front and 325/705 rear Pirelli slicks. Behind the wheels are forged aluminum monoblock calipers, six-piston up front and four-piston in the back. These work with 15.4-inch carbo-ceramic discs for extreme stopping power. McLaren says, despite the design change, the rear wing air brake functions the same and can get a 20 percent greater maximum deceleration because of the slick tires. One of the most significant changes to the car can only be felt, not seen.

McLaren confirms Ultimate Series supercar with exhaust teaser shot

Late last year, McLaren announced a supercar project with a center seating arrangement, which it called the "Bespoke Project 23" — a suitably obscure codename for a British prototype. After all, this is the country whose atomic bomb project in WWII was codenamed "Tube Alloys," so there's a penchant for understatement and obscurity. But now McLaren has announced another car will join the Ultimate Series line, before BP23, and we hear its code name is P15. We even have an official photo, showing triple tailpipes surrounded by a similarly-shaped surround made of what looks to be aluminum, possibly titanium. It's obviously nestled in the rear of the P15, since side-pipes wouldn't look like this. Otherwise, there's not much to glean from it. It's nice to know, however, that the BP23 won't be alone at the top of McLaren's range. We'll be watching for updates on the P15 (and the BP23) and bring you whatever we find. Hopefully that'll include better names, the sooner the better. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. McLaren Coupe Future Vehicles Performance Supercars mclaren bp23