McLaren Spyder, page #3

Auto blog

One of only two McLaren F1s in LM-Specification headed for auction in Monterey

Of all the McLaren F1s out there (106 of them, including racecars and other variants), this 1994 F1 in LM-Specification is about as special as they get. Incredibly, it’s going up for auction in Monterey at the RM SothebyÂ’s auction house during Monterey Car Week. Why a McLaren F1 owner would ever want to sell their car is beyond us, but weÂ’re sure the millions of dollars on the other side of the gavel look pretty alright. This F1 happens to be one of two in existence in LM-Specification. In case you werenÂ’t familiar with the model, McLaren upgraded two standard F1 road cars to this particular specification at the factory after the production run had finished. That means the engine was upgraded to the unrestricted 680-horsepower GTR spec. An extra-high downforce kit was also added, consisting of a huge rear wing, revised nose and different front fender vents. Other differences between this and a normal F1 include race-spec dampers and springs adjusted to their softest settings, 17-inch wheels, a transmission cooler, two more radiators and a modified exhaust system. What it doesnÂ’t have is the barren interior from the hardcore LM. Instead, McLaren gave it an upgraded air conditioning system, radio, new headlights and a different steering wheel. That means you have the more aggressive performance with a slightly more comfortable living space, a combination we like. McLaren says it made all these changes over two rounds of modifications in 2000 and 2001. The car was also repainted from its original blue to the silver you see now in that timeframe.  This particular F1 has 13,352 miles on the odometer, and it has been given a full written history and evaluation by MSO. WeÂ’re sure itÂ’s going to nab many millions of dollars. To whoever ends up purchasing this fine McLaren, we envy you greatly.

'Top Gear' episode 1 recap | A new beginning, again

Season 27 of "Top Gear" kicked off Sunday night, and we were there on our couches for the premiere to see everything Chris Harris, Freddie Flintoff and Paddy McGuinness had to offer. With only five episodes in this season, this new group of characters doesn’t have much time to get it right. They started with a bang, on a massive road trip through Ethiopia in cars identical to their first vehicle purchases. Before that, though, the hosts recognized the rebirths and numerous changes "Top Gear" has gone through since Clarkson, Hammond and May left the premises. Good on "Top Gear" for not brushing over any sort of controversy and unrest, then getting on with the show as itÂ’s meant to be. As is typical for "Top Gear," the adventure/story portion of the show was definitely the most entertaining. We wholeheartedly approve of all the vehicles these guys bought as their first transportation — watching Chris Harris toss his little Mini around the sand and rocks was especially joyful. The boys get on rather well together for just starting off, and while the interludes for challenges didnÂ’t feel totally natural, the challenges themselves were still fun to watch. Being in Ethiopia with such a vast array of alien-to-us shooting locations definitely helped keep us entertained from a visual standpoint. We werenÂ’t surprised to see Chris Harris handling the “serious car review” portion of the show where he pitted a Ferrari 488 Pista against a McLaren 600LT — the others aren't traditional automotive journalists. We wonÂ’t give away who won, but the Ferrari did manage to surprise us in one particular area. Perhaps the most important aspect of the whole episode is how the three hosts got on with each other (Sabine Schmitz was nowhere to be seen). ThereÂ’s no Captain Slow or American car maniac amongst the group, but a comedian (Paddy) and cricketer (Freddie) certainly do bring fresh voices and perspectives. WeÂ’ll give them time to warm up to each other as the season goes on, with a new episode this coming Sunday. One thing we know for sure after this first go: Chris Harris really does not like the hot desert as much as he loves hot, burning rubber.

McLaren shoehorned the F1's V12 into a BMW M5 wagon test mule

Automakers are known to utilize preexisting vehicles as test beds for major research and development purposes. But some of the zombie mashups produced in-house can result in pretty interesting combinations. Case in point, when McLaren was developing its BMW-sourced naturally-aspirated 6.1-liter V12 for the legendary F1, the company put the engine in … a BMW M5 wagon? Yup, you read that correctly. ItÂ’s no mystery that the legendary F1 came with a BMW-sourced V12. That "M70" V12 originated from its placement in the E32 7 Series and E31 8 Series “50” models in the 1980s up through the 1990s. The version that went into the F1, however, is more closely related to the M-tuned "S70" V12 found in the E31 850CSI, which was the pseudo M-variant to the 8 Series that wasnÂ’t officially designated an M model. But it did feature full-fledged tuning from the M Division. On "Top Gear" presenter Chris HarrisÂ’ podcast, "Collecting Cars", Harris interviewed David Clark, the former director of McLarenÂ’s cars for both the road and motorsports between 1994 and 1998. Clark revealed that they took an E34 BMW M5 wagon and shoehorned the S70 V12 into its engine bay as the mule for testing the F1Â’s engine. Clark even said he drove the car himself as they were fine-tuning the V12Â’s engine output. YouÂ’re probably wondering, how the heck did that thing fit? But it isnÂ’t that surprising. The E34 5-Series was designed to house either the BMWÂ’s venerable straight-six or the new-at-the-time V8. And there was room enough to house the V12 as well, particularly since BMWÂ’s V12 was essentially two of its “M20” straight-sixes bolted together at the crank in a vee. When Clark was testing the S70 V12 in the wagon, he and his team ended up with the 627 horsepower and 479 pound-feet of torque the F1 became known for. ThatÂ’s nearly twice the power the production M5's 311 hp and 266 lb-ft at the time. Clark also divulged that the actual prototype mule still exists, but itÂ’s in BMWÂ’s secret collection of prototypes, and itÂ’s never been revealed to the public. He does, however, hope that one day, BMW will open its doors and show off the incredible mashup of an automobile. Until then, youÂ’ll have to rely on the few custom engine swaps done by owners to get a taste of what a V12-powered E34 M5 is like. Rumor also has it that McLaren could be working on a new direct F1 successor with help once again from Gordon Murray.

Watch the McLaren GT run up the hill at the Goodwood Festival of Speed

We first saw the McLaren GT back in May, but now we have a good view of the car in motion, having made its “dynamic debut” at the hill during the Goodwood Festival of Speed. The car that ran up the hill appears to be the same one (or at least, the same color) as the one shown at its static reveal. It sounds appropriately bubbly, too. Recall, this one uses a 4.0-liter, twin-turbo V8 with smaller turbos for a punchier, flatter torque curve. While its 612 horsepower puts it in the middle of the range, the GT seeks a balance between performance, comfort and luxury. ItÂ’s something that was previewed to some extent by the earlier (and lower-tier) 570GT, trading some outright performance for more sophisticated comfort. In motion, the GTÂ’s more mature design, with longer overhangs and smoothed-out lines, looks slinkier. ItÂ’s a bit like a McLaren 720S took off its workout clothes and changed into a sharp suit. It also seems to allow more of its V8 nature to emerge from the tailpipes, whereas other Maccas like the 720S sound more like high-strung race cars. This video gives us a taste of the range of driving experiences that Woking would like to offer buyers, broadening its scope a bit. From what we see, weÂ’re very keen to drive the GT and see if itÂ’s as successful from behind the wheel as it appears to be from behind the camera.

McLaren 600LT gets impounded minutes after new owner drives it off the lot

Canada doesn't mess around with excessive speeding, as a McLaren 600LT owner just found out the hard way. The West Vancouver police department caught the 39-year-old McLaren owner doing 161 km/h (100 mph) in a 90 km/h (56 mph) zone. Unfortunately for the owner, Canada impounds cars for speeding that much, and so police impounded the McLaren. The real kicker? This guy had taken delivery of the brand-new car only 10 minutes prior, according to a police statement and local news reports. Tough luck. Getting up to 100 mph in a 600LT takes only about 6 seconds from a dead stop. Yeah, cars are fast these days — the 600LT and 600LT Spider are especially fun to drive. Though we're guessing any sort of plea along those lines would not have worked on the officers in charge of this decision. West Vancouver police took the liberty of photographing the car, using it as an example to other would-be supercar speeders. They also ticketed the driver $368 Canadian for the infraction. Frankly, the $368 fine can't be much of a deterrent for folks who can afford an over-$240,000 car. It's the weeklong separation from the car and dinged license that probably hurt the most. Under British Columbia law, speeding at 40 km/h over the posted speed limit results in the immediate impoundment of the car. That's equivalent to about 25 mph over the limit. This McLaren was doing 70 km/h over. So, anyone driving through British Columbia not wanting their car to be impounded, make sure to keep your speed in check. Even more so if you happened to just pick up a brand new supercar.

McLaren's kiddie 720S has butterfly doors and can play movies

There's an inherent problem with car-related kids toys: The adults buying them want to play with them too, especially if it's as cool as a miniature 720S. Luckily, McLaren might have found a way to mitigate this issue with its newest ride-on. While the toy is aimed at toddlers, it is equipped with remote controls, perfect for child and grown-up to share play time. This 720S might be the most advanced and most accurately replicated Power Wheels ride-on ever. It will be offered in several real McLaren colors, including Azores Orange, Belize Blue, Lantana Purple, Onyx Black, Mauvine Blue, Silica White, Saros Grey, and the famous Papaya Spark. The toy also has carbon-like plastics (we're kinda surprised McLaren didn't go over-the-top and opt for real carbon fiber), fake exhaust tips, five-point star wheels, and functioning lights. Plus, McLaren designed the toy to have functioning dihedral doors. Because every 3-,4-,5-, or 6-year-old deserves to flex on the entire neighborhood. Following up McLaren's 2016 release of the kids P1, the mini car has a key, a real accelerator pedal and engine noises, but it gets its motivation from an electric powertrain. Parents can play driving instructor with complete control over the car through a remote. Inside, the car has an infotainment system that can play music or even a movie. A small playlist of songs is pre-programmed into the car, and the videos can be accessed by plugging in a USB or an SD card. The McLaren 720S ride-on will set parents back about $400 and they can be ordered now. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Veneno Roadster, One:1, One-77, LaFerrari, P1, Veyron headline 25-car Bonham's auction

Bonhams is holding a no-reserve auction in fall 2019 that includes some of the most valuable and sought-after supercars of the past decade. The lot of 25 beautiful collector items includes a Lamborghini Veneno Roadster, a Koenigsegg One:1, an Aston Martin One-77, a Ferrari LaFerrari, a McLaren P1, and a Bugatti Veyron. The collection, which was seized from a corrupt politician from Equatorial Guinea, is valued at roughly $13 million. If selling off future classics that are still in their infancy as collector items seems strange, it's because this is not a straightforward situation. These cars will be sold off by the State of Geneva, not a person. The collection was previously owned by the vice president of Equatorial Guinea, Teodoro Obiang, but the cars were seized when he was placed under investigation for money laundering and unfair management of public interests. These 25 cars, which were located in Geneva, were first sequestered in fall 2016. A trial court ordered them sold off, and the money earned from the sales would be invested in social programs that benefit Equatorial Guinea. And so, Equatorial Guinea is about to see an influx of cash, as every vehicle is valued in the hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars. The rarest might be the Koenigsegg One:1. One of only six remaining, it has 371 miles on the dial, and is valued at roughly $1.8 million. The Lamborghini Veneno Roadster, one of nine in the world, is a close second. It has 202 miles logged, and is valued at about $5.1 million. The Aston Martin One-77 is another rare bird. It is example No. 35 of 77, holds a 7.3-liter V12 engine, and is valued at about $1.4 million. A McLaren P1, Ferrari LaFerrari, and Bugatti Veyron 16.4 round out the top of the list. The remaining cars are not fully detailed, but they include examples from Mercedes-Maybach, Bentley, Maserati and Porsche. The auction will take place on Sunday, Sept. 29, at the Bonmont Golf & Country Club near Lake Geneva. For more photos and information, visit Bonhams.

MSO's Defined High Downforce Kit gives your McLaren wing

McLaren Special Operations, or MSO, can build anything a customer desires, but sometimes buyers don't even know what that is. So McLaren's bespoke division offers a variety of preconceived accessories and options to choose from. The new MSO Defined High Downforce Kit is for those who want to take the performance of their 570S up a notch, or maybe just give it the look of a track car. MSO is technically split into two entities in regards to new cars: MSO Bespoke and MSO Defined. Bespoke is for any extreme special-order customization, and Defined offers ready-made choices. On Sports Series cars, MSO Defined features include a carbon fiber front splitter, a carbon fiber roof, carbon fiber exterior door inserts, a carbon fiber rear bumper, and colored seat belts. The newest addition to the order book is the High Downforce Kit. The High Downforce Kit, available on the 570S Coupe and Convertible, includes a pedestal carbon fiber wing, drag-reducing "guide vanes" on the underside of the car, and a high-mounted center stop light to accommodate rear visibility. The gloss wing has contrasting end plate inserts painted in Palladium Grey with Silver Chromatic MSO branding, while the pylons are painted Satin Black with Palladium Grey inserts. According to McLaren, the High Downforce Kit adds 165 pounds of additional downforce. The company says it was tested for 10,000 miles at the Applus IDIADA test track in Spain. McLaren made no mention of how much the High Downforce Kit costs, but it can be configured now. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

F1 eyes may have been opened to IndyCar's challenges after McLaren flop

INDIANAPOLIS — Alexander Rossi had no idea what he was getting into when he moved from Formula One to IndyCar. Turning left the whole race? Looks easy. But as Rossi soon found out — and as two-time world champion Fernando Alonso and his McLaren team learned in failing to qualify for the Indianapolis 500 last weekend — getting around Indianapolis Motor Speedway at speeds eclipsing 230 mph is a lot tougher than it looks. "I didn't understand what oval racing was. I didn't understand what IndyCar racing was, because there is no exposure to it in Europe," said Rossi, an American who moved there as a teenager and made his F1 dreams come true with seven starts during the 2014 and '15 seasons. "So when guys haven't been a part of it," Rossi said, "they don't understand how difficult it is, how unique it is to everything they've done. On TV, let's be honest, it doesn't look that challenging, so being a European driver, in your mind you're at the pinnacle of the sport. You think, 'Of course I can go over there and do that and it wouldn't be a problem.'" That inherent arrogance was underscored two years ago, when Alonso showed up at the Indy 500 for the first time. He ran near the front all race, only for his Honda engine to let him down. Naturally, many F1 drivers were quick to pounce on their rival open-wheel series, claiming it must not be too difficult to win in IndyCar if Alonso could be competitive right out of the gate. "I looked at the times and, frankly, for his first-ever qualifying for Fernando to be fifth — what does that say about Indy?" five-time F1 champion Lewis Hamilton mused to L'Equipe shortly afterward. "A great driver," he said, "if he cannot win in Formula 1, will look for other races to win." In other words, Hamilton was calling IndyCar second-rate. That's part of why so many eyebrows jumped at McLaren's spectacular disappointment. "Fernando may have done well in 2017, so there may have been a feeling like all he has to do is show up and take it over," said Mark Miles, the chairman of Hulman & Co., which owns Indianapolis Motor Speedway. "I think this causes that sense of, 'Hey, this is harder than we thought.'" The team that bumped the well-funded, England-based team with the rich racing heritage from this year's field? None other than Juncos Racing, the tiny team founded by Argentina-born Ricardo Juncos and to this day run on such a shoestring budget that it was still signing up sponsors on Wednesday .

McLaren vows to learn from their Indy blunders and return stronger

McLaren boss Zak Brown shouldered the blame on Thursday for the team's failure to qualify Fernando Alonso for this weekend's Indianapolis 500 and said he would do things very differently next time. Speaking to reporters at the Monaco Grand Prix, the American was confident there would be a return to The Brickyard but the post-mortem into what went wrong this year was still being carried out. Brown said the reasons why McLaren felt they should be at Indianapolis had not changed and highs and lows were part of the sport. "I think you have to dust yourself off, learn by your mistakes and come back fighting. So that's what we intend to do," he said. "To not do something is easy but that's not what winners do. "There's very good reasons why McLaren should be in Indianapolis, it's a big market and partners want to be there. Our motor business is strong there." Spaniard Alonso, a double Formula One champion and Le Mans 24 Hours winner who is chasing the so-called 'Triple Crown of Motorsport', failed in regular qualifying and then finished fourth in a shootout for the last three grid positions. A list of errors made by the team emerged subsequently, from having to scrounge a steering wheel at short notice to missing vital track time because the spare car was the wrong shade of orange and was elsewhere being resprayed. Mechanics even confused inches with centimeters. Brown said there had been "a lot of mistakes that snowballed". Bob Fernley, the man in charge of the McLaren Indy program, left immediately after the failure but Brown said that "ultimately it was a people issue, starting with myself, of not having all the bases covered and we just were unprepared. "I got a variety of my decisions wrong. I think it would be unfair to blame Bob for us not qualifying. I put that on me because I put the team together." He said he had not wanted to cover anything up but some context was needed. "It's not like we showed up to the test and went 'someone forgot the steering wheel'," he said. "We were going to do our own steering wheel and we didn't get it done in time. And you need a steering wheel. "At Cosworth you can buy them off the shelf, they didn't have any on the shelf. And so I had to pull some favors and (partners) Carlin helped to get us a steering wheel." After qualifying was over, there was talk about possibly buying Alonso a place with another team but that was not felt to be the right thing to do.