Return of the Mac: successor to McLaren F1 in the works
With all the resources that McLaren is pouring into launching its new road-car division, you can bet the P11 (targeted at the likes of the Ferrari F430 and Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-4) won't be the only product on offer. Back in February, reports surfaced that McLaren is working on a smaller P8 to rival the Porsche 911 and Audi R8, but the latest news sounds even more tantalizing. Frank Stephenson, the lauded designer which McLaren hired to spearhead the styling of its new line of supercars, has revealed that the company is working on a replacement for the legendary McLaren F1 supercar.
The original, powered by a BMW-sourced 6.0-liter V12 with over 600 horsepower, shattered records and quickly seized the top step of the supercar ladder in the earlier 90's, and stayed there for years. Its successor promises to be just as revolutionary, with power provided by a retuned version of Mercedes AMG's 6.2-liter V8 modified by Mahle (formerly part of Cosworth) with an eye on the Bugatti Veyron and Koenigsegg CCX in terms of price and performance. As for what it'll look like, Stephenson says he's starting from a blank sheet of paper, so we'll have to sit tight and see what he cooks up for us.
[Source: AutoWeek and Autocar]
The original, powered by a BMW-sourced 6.0-liter V12 with over 600 horsepower, shattered records and quickly seized the top step of the supercar ladder in the earlier 90's, and stayed there for years. Its successor promises to be just as revolutionary, with power provided by a retuned version of Mercedes AMG's 6.2-liter V8 modified by Mahle (formerly part of Cosworth) with an eye on the Bugatti Veyron and Koenigsegg CCX in terms of price and performance. As for what it'll look like, Stephenson says he's starting from a blank sheet of paper, so we'll have to sit tight and see what he cooks up for us.
Gallery: McLaren F1 LM
[Source: AutoWeek and Autocar]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
trevor 2:03PM (4/01/2009)
Not just big shoes to fill but Massive shoes to fill.
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Metar 2:04PM (4/01/2009)
The biggest ever.
It may not be the fastest anymore, but the McLaren F1 holds a special place of it's own in the history-books.
zamafir 2:50PM (4/01/2009)
More like impossible shoes to fill. I hate to keep saying it but the McLaren F1 was what it was because of one man, backed by McLaren, and that man does not appear to be involved with this project. I have no doubt McLaren can build a car as involving as the F430, or, halfway between the F430 and LP 560-4, But to build a car which is as focused, and unquestionably the greatest in 2009 is a much harder task given the amount of choices out there (zonda, etc) and the lack of Murray’s involvement.
I’m not holding my breath.
“It may not be the fastest anymore,”
Just for the record, it was never designed to be ‘the fastest’, Murray didn’t find that out until a while after delivering cars to customers, it was designed simply to be the best driver’s supercar on earth, and I struggle to think of anyone who would disagree even today.
Jared 7:37PM (4/01/2009)
don't all drawing start with a blank piece of paper?
Matt 10:57PM (4/01/2009)
My drawings start on a sheet of paper with lines on it, but thats cause I stole it from work lol
Chris 2:03PM (4/01/2009)
If I can have any car in the world...this would be it.
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Chris 2:09PM (4/01/2009)
Here is why:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5S7M5XpKjU&feature=related
mcampasini 3:08PM (4/01/2009)
great video,this car was so far ahead of its time it could be new today and still be top of the line,in fact it still is.
ADX 2:06PM (4/01/2009)
Let's hope it'll have the same road presence as the old McLaurens had.
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Level 5 2:08PM (4/01/2009)
Oh my goodness this sure's hell better not be an April Fool's joke.
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ADX 2:09PM (4/01/2009)
Also, let's hope this is not an April Fools joke.
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Dustin 2:10PM (4/01/2009)
Without Gordon Murray it won't be special - just another modern day overload exotic with 1000hp. There's a reason we still love the F1 17 years later, and it's a formula that has yet to be successfully reproduced.
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sonic the plumber 2:35PM (4/01/2009)
I have to agree wholeheartedly. Having seen 6 Veyrons in the last two years at the Prescott Speed Hillclimb's La vie en Bleu event, it is nowhere near as special as the one F1 I saw on London's Park Lane in 2003.
Patrick 3:27PM (4/01/2009)
Years ago while visiting London, I was in a taxi and saw the McLaren dealership. I went back the next day to check out the most awesome car in the world.
BoxerFanatic 2:14PM (4/01/2009)
I have to echo chris.
As material possessions go, if I had one price-no-object wish, it would be for a McLaren F1, with the side suitcases filled with enough money to afford to drive it occasionally and maintain it.
This successor had better be the game-changer that McLaren F1 was/is. A copy of the Big Mac is only going to be pale in comparison, a true successor has to push the envelope forward the way McLaren F1 did.
A copy would be another, albeit very nice ultra sports car in the market of ultra sports cars. Some of them have nearly caught up to a few of Big Mac's stats.
This has to be something new, something singular and visionary. The product of one mind, or the minds of a few car guys who say "we will build the best clean sheet car, no holds barred, cost no object, no conventions sacred, no compromises or complications allowed."
And please, for the love of all things automotive, I don't want to hear the word Green anywhere near this, other than me saying I *don't* want to hear it. The ultimate car should have it's own inherent ultimate efficiency balance in mind, not some artificial socio-political bullcrap baggage.
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TelegramSam 2:30PM (4/01/2009)
Agreed about the green hype. Any car designed to be green is an inherently bad design. Designers need to ask themselves, not what design can do for green technologies, but what green technologies can do to aid the design process.
I'm all for more environmentally friendly cars, but that pursuit cannot derail the design process. The means cannot be counter productive to the ends.
Rob 4:27PM (4/01/2009)
Eh.... I think you're wrong man. Anything built like the F1 is so special that people actually value it. One merit of green design is called "heirloom design". The idea is that you build something so amazing, that people take care of it. They maintain it. They repair it when it needs repairs. This means it lasts an EXTREMELY long time, much longer than most people keep anything in today's "disposable" society. That is a green feature.
Another thing is that Supercars at their very nature are inherently green, because they don't get driven very often. Even over long periods, it's rare to find a supercar with a ton of miles.... also, when they've reached the end of their life, they can still be useful as museum pieces, or project cars to become something new once again. It's about value, and creating something special enough to look after IS a green aspect of design.
BoxerFanatic 4:59PM (4/01/2009)
Rob...
You are describing engineering and maintenance that is inherent, and then you are applying "green" to that. That is a reactive justification, and different.
Some people maintain regular cars to high standards. Some people keep low-mileage cars a lot less money or spec than McLaren F1.
Those are matters of care, and personal motivation. You can call them whatever you want.
What I don't want to see is "greenie" eco-talking-points being engineered into the car, for the purpose of making the car green pro-actively.
If a hybrid drivetrain doesn't make sense, or is half-baked, or hinders other performance, including weight... then there should be no further discussion of hybrid drivetrain on this car. If recycled materials are a compromise, rather than the very best ideal material, then they shouldn't be used.
"Green" as a design, engineering, or even premise/concept level compromise, or any other compromise, should not even be entertained for this car. That sort of thing is for other cars from other makers.
The car should be light because that is the most sound engineering principle.
The car should burn it's fuel completely because that gets every last joule of energy out of it.
The car should be built out of the best materials, with the best design, the best aero, with no compromise that doesn't balance other performance aspects of the car. (Aero and bodywork considerations having to fit proper size tires and ideal mid-engined placement, etc... is necessary engineering calculus.)
The Big Mac is a work of art, because the more you understand automotive engineering, the more plainly you see the genius of every part of that car, and how it is designed to work with every other part. Aside from being plainly man-made, it actually replicates nature in that way. Everything designed specifically for a purpose, and to work the best way with everything else, as much as possible. Not compromised for cost cutting, or anything else, if at all possible.
Geekengineer 2:18PM (4/01/2009)
This better not be a damn joke.
I bought a very expensive, and very comprehensive book about the F1.
If this car is real, I intend to do the same thing again, but I don't want it to end up being a one-pager from the Onion.
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Alan 2:21PM (4/01/2009)
The reason that the F1 is better than the other supercars is the weight. That was the main thing that Gordon Murray was concerned with when building the car. It weighed 2500 lbs. The new supercars are all much heavier. (Enzo and Carrera GT were about 3,000 lbs). I hope that they can keep it light.
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