The story behind the McLaren F1 and its record-breaking 240.1mph top speed 

Obi-Wan Kannabis yes truly

Well, technically it was "beaten" back in the 80's when Callaway took a Corvette to 250mph, but people don't talk about that much...

yeah but that was turbocharged

FiveSpdStandard Because it isn't a production car😂 You can send a Fiat punto to 250mph but it won't be as reliable as a car meant to do it 😂

Obi-Wan Kannabis 2 extra litres, 2 extra turbos, 4 more cylinders and weighed twice as much 😂

Facts

Yup!

3 more years before Gordon Murray unleashes the next epoch in analog supercar wizardry - The T50! With 30 years of advances in automotive technology, materials and engineering. You can rest assured the legendary Mclaren F1 will no longer remain the fastest naturally aspirated car ever built.

completely forgot the McLaren F1 was naturally aspirated so it has that

@TheBlondie McLaren are not making the T50. Gordon Murray is doing it independently.

For only 620+-hp it goes 391km/h. No production car can do that today.

No natural aspirated car has ever done that.

No other naturally aspirated car really get's close. Remarkable achievement for the time, still is saying that.

***** The reason it can do such high speeds with relatively low power is because it's extremely aerodynamic and has a tiny aerodynamic profile. Some supercars like the GT-R are more aerodynamic but they are very wide and tall compared to the f1.

It still is the fastest car natural aspiraded. All the new cars are turbo or supercharged..

eSysman 4 turbos and 4 more cylinders and a few more litres

eSysman Exactly. F1 was a bunch of chaps with passion determination and ingenuity. Who wanted to build best driver's car ever without compromise. Meanwhile VW just threw shit load of money on engineering team and said better make it fucking work. They both kind of had a dream but McLaren actually made money on their cars, while Bugatti was supposed to be a statement and rebirth of brilliant car brand so they lost 4 mln on each car. Still like their Galibier concept wayyyy more and would take it over any other GT car. It even fits the brand better. Shame they never made it for sale.

Typical Top Gear viewers I'd say.

The F1 was also a loss for Mclaren at the time. They produced fewer of the F1s than they wanted. However, considering how much it costs to service one, they must have made up for that by now.

I respect the veyron. But it was overrated.

thats how fast the f1 is ;)

These are the comments I enjoy reading

That's because when you go that fast you get there quicker.

Martin Willett makes perfect sense. lol

I want to like your comment but I'm gonna leave it at 241 likes :)

Same! Born in 84, I was 8 when I first read about the McLaren F1, made my father buy me a scale model, I still remember the 1993 cover of australian wheels magazine and Peter Robinson getting all 4 wheels off the ground over a small hill.... that cover was epic, proof a legend had been born and the start of my obsession. I imagine that's how it started for most of us regardless of age... I don't think I'll ever love another car as much as the f1.

And crazy to think it was capable of the speed back in 1993 when it first came out

I think it would be a nice thread where people name the car that made them passionately fall in love with all of them. Having been basking in automotive-orgy for a while now, I just no longer know which car did it for me but, let's take a peek: Miura in, The Italian Job (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-cgJuVOrXv68.html) Charger in, The Dukes of Hazzard (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-UfK5HAZFk40.html) 308 in, Magnum, p.i. (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-LBIgXhiOpeQ.html) Countach in The Cannon Ball Run (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-evA3_NV7cPM.html) Testarossa in, Miami Vice (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-dF0a8ssdaDU.html) Now if you excuse me... facebook.com/jeanpierre.boucher.52/videos/702250564703039

@@stanleysimmonsreactions9056 1994 😈

I bet it was one of the reasons why they named the P1 exactly P1. ^^

exactly. the p1 always wins

But it isn't Position 1. :D

doubleutubefan5 the p1 is nothing compared to the f1

The p1 is of it's time--the f1 raised the level of the game-20 yrs on and your unlikely to meet anything faster-when you do chances are it'll be driven by a stoned out rapper

согласен на 100%

You misspelled Pagani Zonda

Fuckoff, no one cares for those other cars or how fast they take corners. If you don't understand why the F1 is a legend, you shouldn't be into cars.

@e314ds Prius driver detected

@e314ds jog on you sad twat stick with your 1.0 corsa hahahahahahahahaha

Exactly!

thee Mitchi 627bhp*

thee Mitchi and naturally aspirated

627

Was it really "so little"? Wow, even more astonishing!

Mclaren F1 is Unique!

627* bhp much less then 700.

Bit more during this record runs (rised rev limiter, prototype car), but below 700 pretty sure.

The S70/2 engine would happily rev to 8,800, I know this because at Le Mans in '95 BMW Motorsport and the genius Paul Roche told McLaren not to rev the engine over 9000 RPM as that is where it would be compromised. IF you want to know more about the S70/2 or S70/3 look at other things the engine was used in BMW's 1999 Le Mans winner the BMW V12 LMR and later on the BMW X5 V12 where it was without air-restrictions and produced 784hp still naturally aspirated!

No, max power was at 7400 rpm and original limit was 7500. So power still at 627 bhp.

+wololo10 sorry, was your reply to me? The engine could produce WAYYYY more than 627hp, but it would be totoaly mental to have much more power in a car with no driver aids and as lightweight as the F1 was. Alrhtough 627hp was great, the engine is capable of MUCH more....

german i think... but it dont really matter. i dont think there is anyone out there who can find a bad thing to say about this masterpiece...'cept of course a family member of some former mclaren owners

Shame only a handful of McLaren admirers will ever know that quote... It's short and catchy, its historic and memorable, huge blunder not using that as the company motto through the 90's and right up to the veyron.... It's just great on so many many levels that it's hard to forget that correction

Gordon Murray in the background, like, "yup!"😂

💯

Artur Zathas well germans made the engine

LOL

fidorover ......did it have the "Special Performance" package from Chevy? aka: fast flashy pinstripes, and chrome wheel covers, like mine did? :-D

***** No, mine was the basest of base models, with an AM radio (no FM) and body trim that flew off whenever I hit 50 mph.

fidorover That's nothing, I took a Citroen 2CVup to twenty seconds of downhill acceleration beyond the end stop on the speedometer. Adrenaline is brown.

I drove my old 2001 cavalier to 110. It was a frightening moment.

dont forget "more revs please"

that is why you are not a test driver :))

It is coming now

@@RS-nq8xk happy to be proven wrong! Cant wait to see it being driven hard and listen to that Cosworth V12 sing!

Dafuq are you talking about? Even back when you made the comment it was wrong. Aston Martin Vulcan? Aston Martin Valkyrie? Aventador and it's countless derivatives. Pagani Zonda? Talk about missing the mark by a long shot..

@@Orcawhale1 Gordon Murray T.50

Ryan Robin MR (mid-rear). RWD implies front-engine configuration (it's what came first). mid-awd is for girly men (though I would love an AWD Porsche to snow rally to the slopes).

RWD means rear wheel drive, people can imagine whatever else they want but nothing else is implied.

With a manual transmission

krocialblack The 720S is the new Prince here.

MrCarGuy20 currekt

krocialblack F1 has higher top speed lel

The 675LT is...?

Facundo Gonzalez the sexier, more athletic brother

Kevin K I'd say the last real driver's car is the carrera gt

Chicken Soup for the Loser You're right! I completely forgot about the CGT. It's definitely one of the last if not the last true drivers car. The clutch is so stiff that not just anyone can hop in it and be able to drive without spinning out or crashing. You must truly be an experienced driver.

Kevin K I'd much rather have the F1 over the Carrera GT, the F1 is truly the moment that supercars landed on the moon in terms of technology, this car is a true display of engineering perfection

Cottsify I'd take the F1 as well. CGT is a beast but it's not as legendary as the F1. CGT is still one of the all time greats though since it's one of the last supercars to be offered with a manual trans. Plus the roof comes off, active wing, looks great even nowadays, and my god that V10 is insane.

F1 vs CGT F1 weights less + smaller in every dimension F1 has zero driving aids, no tc, no asc, no power steering, no abs, not even a break booster F1 has v12 cgt v10 (agree it sounds crazy good) F1 has central driving position, can't beat that... F1 is much more special

S70/2, to be exact...😉😎

still is ,fastest na car in world ,not the quickest but for sure fastest

MightySavagE Dwight shrute

Bears, Beets, Badass Supercars.

MightySavagE That's how you know he's serious

came here specifically to comment that!

now the calculator watch...that was iconic

Probably the worst spend for an ungodly amount of money ever. Unless you want to keep it safely in a garage waiting for the value to rise even more and then sell it.

yes!!

For top speed yes, for acceleration no.

top speed=fastest acceleration=quickest

I agree, just pointing it out that it isn't the 0-60 MPH NA king.

The only car I can think of which is faster to 0-60 MPH NA motor is audi R8, maybe the Porsche GT3.

Ant Y LOL

They're five and it'll be more and more. The haters. :( Saddening thing. :( There's no sense of hostility. :) So many people said the same: the greatest, the first, the lightest... all these things just fleeting moments. Always be some interesting "milestones" in life. Don't hate these things. :)

Peter Hirling you are absolutely right 👍🏻

i disliked this because any ferrari could smoke any mclarens. TDF would murder a 675lt

:) Love both manufacturers... each has different. :) F12 is awesome. ;)

A recrod that will be hard to beat

Curtis Riceman nah, it is completely different

nope,silly as it sounds the Senna is a beefed up 720s,the REAL car comes in 2020,the BP23 "Speedtail"

mclaren speedtail.

Gordon Murray T.50 is currently in development! Also a 3 Seater, also n/a V12 but advanced aerodynamics!😉

Ryzza5 maybe they just finally gave it that 7 gear that some people wanted

Do we really have a long enough track to go that fast? I was like 5 at that time, I can’t remember as much 😂

On the Proving Grounds, flat out she settled down about 373kph, and would -/+ 2kph... At the time, being 10, I thought it was un-realistic. I was correct, but wrong that the real car was actually faster! I still remember the sound as well, the EA sound engineers pretty much nailed it to what I'm hearing here.

That must have been in that Monolithic Studio Track, nowhere else could it reach that speed

The power to weight ratio and the ability of the engine to make power at high revs helped a lot as well.

It didn't have much downforce, hence low drag and high top speed

At least not downforce from the upperside.

Wish granted my friend. Check out T50 set to production on 2022, by the man himslef who designed the F1

@@jijo666 gordon murray did build a new car. As a successor to the F1 but it has a bespoke cossworth engine. He wanted more parts to be from the uk.

@@jeromevet007 well almost 90 percent of it is sourced from UK itself I'm told

@@zabekhurram there must have been a good reason or else you wont pick a v12 out of a 7 series

@@jeromevet007 that engine does nothing on the 7 series though! Just shows how much modification went into it in order for it to rev so high with that power!

P1 looks good

P1 is amazing, but it really can't compare to the F1.

That fuel consumption is impossible, especially for a 90' car, it's more like +10L in each

And the cool thing is that today with just some massaging it can even make more power. Hell of an engine.

The engine is absolutely nothing without something to put it inside.

@@MichaelReznoR the f1 is the only car it ever went into, made for each other i think ha

BMW better concentrate on the mass products and i-series, because they both suck since years. Also BMW engine-pope Paul Rosche stopped working a long time ago.

I take it you guys haven't seen this then? ... www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/mclaren-and-bmw-partner-develop-new-engine-technology

lusinajt that is 1 negative kmh for you

Bond Li that is a McLaren F1 1:18 scale model, retailed for about €50 back in the day now worth much more

David C, thanks for that detail. I vaguely recall promotional models were given during this speed run.

The whole car IS AN AERO PART!!!!

Plus, No assisted steering, no power assisted brakes, absolutely no electronic gizmo drive assist whatsoever... Amazing. Simply amazing !

Correction - and *The All Time*

And the 959 and perhaps something like a Sport Quattro