McLaren

Auto blog

Race recap: 2016 Hungarian Grand Prix was the pits

The Hungarian Grand Prix hasn't seen a race this calculated since 2012, when Lewis Hamilton – driving for McLaren – led from pole position to the checkered flag. We don't expect massive action from the Hungaroring, but Hamilton's first win for Mercedes in 2013, the thrilling wet mess in 2014, and Ferrari's surprising dominance in 2015 made us hope for more on-track commotion this year. Hungary denied us that. Hamilton parked his Mercedes-AMG Petronas in second on the grid but stole the lead through Turn 1 and never looked back. Teammate Nico Rosberg yo-yoed behind him in second place, getting into DRS range on a few occasions but never close enough to pass. Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo kept the leading duo honest, but the Aussie couldn't put genuine fear into the German team and finished third. This is the third year in a row for Ricciardo on the Hungary podium. The pits provided our few scraps of excitement. During a stretch when Ricciardo managed to close on Rosberg, Mercedes told Hamilton to speed up. When Hamilton said he couldn't go faster, Mercedes said they'd pit second-place Rosberg first instead. Suddenly, Hamilton found the extra pace. Ricciardo pitted in early, hoping that fresh tires and fast laps could allow him to pass one or both Mercedes drivers when they pitted, but once Hamilton hit the throttle the Red Bull couldn't respond. Further down the lineup, Jenson Button came in on Lap 5 so McLaren could fix his brake pedal problem. The radio exchange before the stop included one forbidden instruction to Button, though, so the Englishman had to return to the pits for a drive-through penalty. Renault's Jolyon Palmer beat Force India's Nico Hulkenberg in a straight-up pit stop battle on Lap 40, but threw the good work away on Lap 49 with a spin on track that cost him three places. A pit wall miscommunication meant the Force India pit crew wasn't ready for Sergio Perez when the Mexican arrived for his second stop on Lap 43. And Daniel Kvyat's regrettable run at Toro Rosso continued, first with car issues, then a drive-through penalty for speeding in the pit lane. Sebastian Vettel brought his Ferrari home fourth, sniffing Ricciardo's gearbox at the flag but unable to get around the Red Bull. Max Verstappen enacted a replay of the final stages of the Spanish Grand Prix, finishing fifth by holding Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen behind for 19 laps.

Watch a skateboarder smash a McLaren's windshield

A skateboarder in Colorado took his revenge on the driver of a McLaren by using his board to shatter the $250,000 car's windshield. YouTube user Paul Gonzo was filming the exceedingly long line at Denver's popular Little Man Ice Cream when the attack occurred. An orange McLaren 570S rolled through a stop sign and into a cross walk, pushing down a skateboarder attempting to cross. The driver then added insult to injury by honking at the young man. Off camera, there's a quick pop, followed by the young man running down the street with his board under his arm. The McLaren's passenger ran after the skater, who left a huge gash in the middle of the supercar's windshield. The driver simply closed the passenger side door and took off down another street. Many people thought the skateboarder was in the right, according to CBS4 Denver. Denver police told CBS they have seen the video, but nothing illegal has happened since neither party reported the incident. The McLaren is owned by a car rental company. It's unknown who was driving the car during the attack. The video of the event is currently going viral, with over 4.1 million views as of this writing. Related Video: News Source: CBS4, YouTube Government/Legal Weird Car News McLaren Driving Videos rental car mclaren 570s denver skateboard

McLaren F1 may be resurrected as a three-seat, 700-hp GT car

Nearly 25 years ago, the McLaren F1 was unrivaled on the streets. A screaming BMW V12 pushed that three-seat car to a record-breaking 243 mph. The F1 was faster, more expensive, and more exclusive than any other production car of the era. Even today, few cars have eclipsed it. Now, McLaren is rumored to be working on a successor to what some consider the greatest road car ever built. According to Autocar, McLaren Special Operations, or MSO, is working on building the fastest GT car in the world. The car will draw influence and some cues from the original F1, but it won't be an exact recreation or retro-styled version of that car. The goal is to build the fastest vehicle in the world with three or more seats. It won't be P1 fast, but it also isn't meant to be. The MSO division works on bespoke vehicles for customers. It deals with custom designs, from unique paint colors to one-off models. Autocar reports that a number of customers have requested something a little softer and more luxurious than what McLaren currently offers, and some have asked after a three-setup like the on the original F1. While McLaren's current offerings are fast, they lack some of the more premium touches of some competitors. Since returning to the road-car business, McLaren has been met with both critical and commercial success. All of its vehicles use a shared carbon-fiber crash structure, modified slightly for each vehicle. All are powered by a twin-turbocharged 3.8-liter V8, tuned differently for each vehicle. All of their current cars have traditional a two-seat layout. The new F1 will make use the same 3.8-liter V8, without the hybrid system of the P1, cranking out more than 700 horsepower. That would make it McLaren's second most powerful vehicle. MSO has reportedly been tasked with adapting McLaren's basic carbon-fiber monocage/monocoque for use on a three-seater, with the driver placed directly in the middle. The suspension would be a shared McLaren system, though set a little softer than in other models. The interior, Autocar claims, will be unique to this car. Dihedral doors, bespoke switchgear, and a custom set of luggage will all be present. Every car is expected to be tailored to each owner's preferences. It's not clear when the vehicle would go on sale, though Autocar believes it will be before the end of the decade. Supercars take years to design, and McLaren has an ambitious plan for its future.

Question of the Day: What's the greatest British car ever?

The British automotive industry has produced everything from high-production econo-commuters to staggeringly luxurious oligarch-wagons, along the way winning plenty of races and building plenty of beautiful machines. The original Mini led directly to the past half-century of transverse-engine, front-wheel-drive cars built everywhere, the MGB put the sporty little convertible into everyone's reach, and the Morris Oxford became the most beloved motor vehicle in India. So many to choose from, but we want you to pick one. What will it be? Related Video:

2016 British Grand Prix kept mostly calm and carried on

Three bursts of chaos decided the course of the British Grand Prix. The first was a literal cloudburst a dozen minutes before the race, which poured water on the Silverstone Circuit while drivers sat on the grid. Six minutes before the lights-out, the race director decided to start the race behind the Safety Car. The field loped around the wet track for five laps. When the Safety Car pulled off, the three leaders – Mercedes-AMG Petronas' Lewis Hamilton, followed by teammate Nico Rosberg and Red Bull's Max Verstappen – stayed out. Behind them, the second chaotic moment occurred: a big group of drivers made pit stops for intermediate tires. When Manor's Pascal Wehrlein spun at Turn 1 on Lap 7, officials issued a Virtual Safety Car. With the rest of the field slowed down, the three leaders ducked into the pits on Lap 8 for intermediates. The fortuitous timing meant all three drivers rejoined the track in their original positions. By Lap 9, with racing resumed, Hamilton had a 4.9-second lead on Rosberg. From that point, even as the track dried, no one bothered Hamilton during what one commentator called "a measured drive." The Brit won his home grand prix, taking the checkered flag seven seconds ahead of Rosberg. Rosberg had to earn second place on track. The German's car didn't respond well to the intermediate tires, so Verstappen excecuted an outstanding pass on Rosberg on the outside through Chapel on Lap 16. After everyone switched to slicks, Rosberg's Mercedes reclaimed its mojo and the German hunted Verstappen down, passing the Dutchman on Lap 38. The final touch of chaos happened when Rosberg's gearbox threw a tantrum on Lap 47 of the 52-lap race. Rosberg radioed his engineer, "Gearbox problem!" His engineer replied, "Affirm. Chassis default zero one. Avoid seventh gear, Nico." The race stewards allowed the engineer's first two statements, but stewards said the instruction about seventh gear contravened the rule that "the driver must drive the car alone and unaided." After the race, officials added ten seconds to Rosberg's time, demoting him to third behind Verstappen. Rosberg's is the first penalty arising from radio communication restrictions. Unsurprisingly, Mercedes will appeal. At this year's Baku race the radio controversy stemmed from engineers refusing to tell drivers what to do. Now we know what happens when the pit wall gets loose lips.

Race Recap: 2016 Austrian GP is mishaps from start to finish

At the 2015 US Formula 1 Grand Prix, rain mixed up the grid and a first-lap incident cast the die for the race. The Austin, Texas event made highlight reels for those reasons and because it decided the Driver's Championship. At the 2016 Austrian F1 Grand Prix, rain mixed up the grid and a last-lap incident cast the die for the race. The Spielbergring race will feature in this year's highlight reel because it might force Mercedes-AMG Petronas to make some hard decisions about the rest of the season. For the first time this season, Lewis Hamilton converted pole position into a lead through Turn 1, and began slowly pulling away from the field. Teammate Nico Rosberg started from sixth because of a gearbox penalty, but was up to third when he pitted on Lap 11. Mercedes normally pits the lead driver first, in this case being Hamilton, but Mercedes wanted to get Rosberg ahead of the two Ferraris. Hamilton pitted on Lap 22, emerging behind Rosberg because of a slow stop. Sebastian Vettel led the race for Ferrari on Lap 27 when his right rear tire exploded coming down the start-finish straight – an eerie reminder of the 2015 Belgian Grand Prix. The Safety Car rolled out, yet when racing resumed Rosberg stayed ahead. After the two Mercs came in for second stops everyone expected Hamilton to lead, but Hamilton had messed up his in-lap and lost a cumulative 3.3 seconds during his actual stops compared to Rosberg's pit-stop times. The Brit remained second. Hamilton chased his teammate for the final 15 laps. At the beginning of the last lap Rosberg messed up Turn 1 and Hamilton closed in. Rosberg took the inside line into Turn 2 as Hamilton pulled up on the outside, then Rosberg appeared to drive straight on as if he simply wasn't going to turn. Hamilton turned in, colliding with Rosberg and driving over the German's front wing. By the end of Turn 2, Hamilton had the lead and Rosberg had a broken car. The Brit won, the German puttered home to finish fourth. The incident promoted Max Verstappen to second and Kimi Raikkonen to third. Verstappen scored his second podium for Red Bull after his victory in Spain. Conversely, Raikkonen's third place for Ferrari was more gifted scraps for the scuderia. Daniel Ricciardo came fifth in the second Red Bull, Jenson Button delivered a terrific sixth for McLaren- Honda, Romain Grosjean got Haas back in the points, Carlos Sainz, Jr. secured eighth for Toro Rosso, and Valtteri Bottas in ninth for Williams.

Watch the McLaren P1 LM break Goodwood FoS roadcar record

The McLaren P1 LM and driver Kenny Brack have snapped the road-legal car record at the Goodwood hill climb like a twig. And, of course, it's all on video. Brack ran the hill in a scant 47.07 seconds in the ultimate street-legal version of the P1, a GTR converted for road use. Goodwood has run road cars up the hill since 2000, but timed runs only started in 2014. That year Jann Mardenborough managed 49.27 seconds in a Time Attack-spec Nissan GT-R Nismo. The P1 is even a hair faster than a pre-production BAC Mono that ran last year and recorded an unofficial 47.9-second run. But Brack's record-breaking run didn't come easy. Just watch the video. The McLaren oversteers in the first bend, and then looks more like a bucking bronco than a hypercar as it runs up the track. Brack stretches out an ever-increasing lead through each section of the track before crossing the line seconds ahead of any other road-legal vehicle's time. Related Video: News Source: Goodwood Road & Racing via YouTubeImage Credit: Goodwood Road & Racing Motorsports McLaren Coupe Hybrid Racing Vehicles Performance Videos Goodwood mclaren p1

The UK votes for Brexit and it will impact automakers

It's the first morning after the United Kingdom voted for what's become known as Brexit – that is, to leave the European Union and its tariff-free internal market. Now begins a two-year process in which the UK will have to negotiate with the rest of the EU trading bloc, which is its largest export market, about many things. One of them may be tariffs, and that could severely impact any automaker that builds cars in the UK. This doesn't just mean companies that you think of as British, like Mini and Jaguar. Both of those automakers are owned by foreign companies, incidentally. Mini and Rolls-Royce are owned by BMW, Jaguar and Land Rover by Tata Motors of India, and Bentley by the VW Group. Many other automakers produce cars in the UK for sale within that country and also export to the EU. Tariffs could damage the profits of each of these companies, and perhaps cause them to shift manufacturing out of the UK, significantly damaging the country's resurgent manufacturing industry. Autonews Europe dug up some interesting numbers on that last point. Nissan, the country's second-largest auto producer, builds 475k or so cars in the UK but the vast majority are sent abroad. Toyota built 190k cars last year in Britain, of which 75 percent went to the EU and just 10 percent were sold in the country. Investors are skittish at the news. The value of the pound sterling has plummeted by 8 percent as of this writing, at one point yesterday reaching levels not seen since 1985. Shares at Tata Motors, which counts Jaguar and Land Rover as bright jewels in its portfolio, were off by nearly 12 percent according to Autonews Europe. So what happens next? No one's terribly sure, although the feeling seems to be that the jilted EU will impost tariffs of up to 10 percent on UK exports. It's likely that the UK will reciprocate, and thus it'll be more expensive to buy a European-made car in the UK. Both situations will likely negatively affect the country, as both production of new cars and sales to UK consumers will both fall. Evercore Automotive Research figures the combined damage will be roughly $9b in lost profits to automakers, and an as-of-yet unquantified impact on auto production jobs. Perhaps the EU's leaders in Brussels will be in a better mood in two years, and the process won't devolve into a trade war. In the immediate wake of the Brexit vote, though, the mood is grim, the EU leadership is angry, and investors are spooked.

McLaren P1 LM is the world's most extreme, exclusive supercar

As fast as it is, and as deep as its manufacturer's roots may run in motor racing, the McLaren P1 was designed from the get-go as a road-going supercar. The subsequent P1 GTR adapted it for use exclusively on the track, but now Lanzante has put it back on the road in the form of the new P1 LM. For those unfamiliar, Lanzante is the outfit that campaigned the original McLaren F1 GTR to such great success at Le Mans back in 1995. Following the 28 examples of the F1 GTR, McLaren built another six examples of the F1 LM, kept one and sold the other five – each based on the GTR's specs but modified for road use. Now Lanzante has unearthed that playbook again with the release of the new McLaren P1 LM. Among the steps Lanzante took in transforming the P1 GTR to road spec involved retuning the hybrid powertrain to keep the output at 986 horsepower while running on 99-octane pump gas and at higher temperatures. The automaker saved a good 130 pounds compared to the GTR by ditching the onboard air-jacking system, fitting polycarbonate windows, refabricating the exhaust and cat pipes out of lightweight Inconel and the bolts out of titanium. It even insulated the engine bay in gold leaf – just like the original F1. Lanzante also fitted an exposed carbon-fiber roof, new rolling stock and steering wheel (replete with switchgear like a modern grand prix racer's). It trimmed the interior in Alcantara, and mounted a bigger front splitter and rear wing to increase downforce by 40 percent. The result ought to make for one frighteningly extreme ride, likely to be capable of embarrassing just about anything else on the road or track. We'll try not to be too tempted, though, as Lanzante – mirroring the original – will only make six examples and sell five: one in dark gray (like the prototype pictured) and another four in orange. Given the extensive modifications and the $2 million or so McLaren charged for the P1 GTR in the first place, we don't even want to know how much it would cost to put one in our driveway. We'll be watching, though, to see it run up the hill at Goodwood tomorrow at the hands of McLaren factory driver (and former Indy 500 winner) Kenny Brack, who'll also set up each of the customer examples at the Nurburgring. Related Video: THE McLAREN P1 LM Background Lanzante Ltd. first became globally synonymous with the McLaren name when it ran the semi-works McLaren F1 GTR that won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1995.

McLaren 570S Sprint is both track day weapon and bargain

If you've ever dreamed of getting behind the wheel of a McLaren engineered specifically for the race track, this could be your best shot. It's the new 570S Sprint, and it's set to debut at the Goodwood Festival of Speed tomorrow. Like the P1 GTR and the Sprint versions of the 650S and 12C before it, the new McLaren 570S Sprint is meant to be a track toy for gentlemen racers, without the limitations imposed by any specific racing class regulations. It's based on the 570S coupe at the heart of McLaren's entry-level Sports Series, but takes the opposite approach from the softer 570GT. The team in Woking has installed a new radiator behind a reshaped front bumper. The front splitter and underbody are borrowed from the 570S GT4, and there's a giant rear wing made of carbon fiber to give it more downforce than any other model in the series. Naturally the cockpit is all stripped out, and fitted with an FIA-spec roll cage, racing bucket with six-point harness, and a fire extinguisher. The suspension carries over from the road-going model, but comes mounted here to center-locking mags wearing Pirelli slicks. Though it didn't provide any concrete details, the manufacturer says that "power and torque levels have been optimised to ensure the ultimate levels of driver engagement and the best levels of noise." You can get an idea about the latter in the short video clip below. Deliveries are set to begin next year, with pricing in the UK starting at the equivalent of $218k – which you could easily on a road-going model without running out of boxes to tick on the options list. Sprint buyers, meanwhile, will be able to spec options like an onboard air jacking system, a passenger seat, various livery options from McLaren Special Operations, and even a GT4 compliance package. The one option they won't have, however, is driving it home at the end of the track day. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. McLAREN 570S SPRINT TO MAKE GLOBAL DEBUT AT THE 2016 GOODWOOD FESTIVAL OF SPEED 22 Jun 2016 The recently-announced McLaren 570S Sprint will make both static and dynamic global debuts at this year's Goodwood Festival of Speed as part of the largest presence by McLaren to date.