The head of this project is Gordon Murray a South African.
I love some british cars, like Aston Martin, Jaguar and others, but this car does no reflect the actual British industry, or in better words, contemporary brit Ind.
Anyway it is a Superb machine. Much more impressive then the new version.
@ruddypeasant - Someone in the UK encoded it into MPEG format back in 2005 and shared it on the F1 forum. Then a year or so later I uploaded the clips to YouTube so more people could enjoy them.
The thing I find funny is that some of the clips have tremendously more views than others which means quite a lot of people have missed watching the whole thing. When I originally uploaded them you couldn't link them to run concurrently the way you can now.
@Peloton25 thanks for the quick reply and for uploading too! It was a good programme even if Quentin gets a bit rule britannia at the end. I always chuckle when I see part 2 and he's running down the competition. Look! The big cat's done a wee!
Engine may be german but it was Gordon Murray's idea on how the engine should be so you can say it is an all British car. If this was BMW's own idea then surely a better engine would have appeared in the M3.
McLaren F1 is for cars industry something like a Michael Jordan to the basketball - It's not the greatest in the every way, but it's best in few ways, that gives you a win over the rest, and that other cars could dream of. Simply the best car created ever.
Definitely, without any doubt the greatest car in the world!
I laugh when I hear the so-called "petrolheads" that the Bugatti Veyron is the greatest of them all.
No disrespect for the Bugatti but a two-ton car with a massive 8.0 litter engine quad-turbo doesn't appeal to me. It's all brute force while the McLaren is fine engineering with the greatest engine of all times, that BMW V12
Plus, the Veyron won´t be appreciating in prices like the McLaren because it doesn´t have any racing history!
When the McLaren F1 was launched I purchased any car magazine I could find an article about the car. On one of them it said that he bought 3, one for him and two for his sons. Later on he purchased 2 of the 5 LM cars.
When you have too much money like the Sultan of Brunei, and at the time (1994) he was THE richest man in the world, you can indulge yourself with these amazing toys.
@lovejessica5 - Gordon Murray felt there were three companies with the technical expertise and credibility to build the F1's engine. One was Honda, one was BMW and the third was Ferrari. The last one was out for obvious reasons. Honda was not interested in building a large displacement V12 - they preferred to build something more similar to their 3.5L Formula One V12 and Murray decided that wasn't going to meet his needs.
@Peloton25 - Murray had a previous connection from his days at Brabham with Paul Rosche who was running BMW Motorsports. Paul suggested he had a 550hp V12 from the stillborn M8 project that could be used but when Gordon saw the engine he decided it was too large and too heavy. Paul then suggested that they could build exactly what Gordon wanted. In the end they exceeded his ideal weight target of 250kg by 16kg, but they also eclipsed Murray's HP target of 550 by 14 percent.
@Minomoro - There is nothing "Mercedes" about the McLaren F1. The F1 was developed before McLaren had partnered with Mercedes Benz and uses a engine sourced from BMW Motorsports as one component of a great package.
In fact, it was predominantly because of this conflict of interest that McLaren stopped producing the F1 when they partnered with Mercedes Benz.
@nativepride84 - That is true - in October 1999 he did have a small accident with his car that damaged the nose of the car. He's hardly the only owner to have such an unfortunate experience, but probably the one of just a few who made the newspapers because of it. His car was repaired by McLaren and is as good as new - he still owns it today.
It is chassis #061 and it was the Dark Burgundy F1 that Richard Hammond raced against the Stig in a Bugatti Veyron on Top Gear a couple of seasons ago.
@PeteVanBock - It was a temporary plate to make driving it legal in Abu Dhabi. I can assure you Atkinson still owns his F1.
TopGear's race was filmed prior to June 2009. In November 2009 Atkinson wrote his own article for Octane magazine comparing his F1 to a Veyron at Rockingham circuit in the UK. In mid-2010 he loaned his car to EVO magazine for an article that appeared in their July issue. He also appeared with the car at the 20th anniversary gathering at the MTC in March 2010.
@XXXblackgoatXXX - Actually the gearbox is American. It was designed by the Weismann family in Costa Mesa, California to meet Gordon's strict specifications.
Go to Weismann-dot-net and click on 'Street Machines' and then 'McLaren F1' to read more about its development.
@DevilNietzsche - Keep in mind this video was made in 1999 and there wasn't an Italian car on the road that could hold a candle to the F1 at that point. Some might say there still isn't but that's obviously their opinion.
I think Pagani is doing pretty well these days. I just wish they'd get more serious with a racing version that actually competes in something.
this car is as British as - ah fuck it i have nothing clever. it just isn't British, forget it, its German, get over yourselves. Saab is built in Canada, but its still Swedish, Volkswagen in Mexico, and it's still German.
@Ji99i3 the rest of the car is british only the engine was german... the suspension was japanese... and on top of that the manufacturer is british which makes it a british car... just like the tata indica for example, it uses fiats engine but its still an indian car...
@clarkinusn - he used to do the accouting for the publisher McGraw-Hill until he was arrested for embezzling funds from them by using some shell companies he and his wife had set up.
Google his name and you will find a few news articles on the matter. Basically he was a total fraud and his appearance on this program was part of the reason he was caught.
I guess he was being prophetic when he said that "Boys will do stupid things for their toys."
I wonder what the brief will be for the next most expensive McLaren. Best drivers car or fastest roadcar? I hope its the former. Idiots judge a high performance road car only by its 'numbers'. The great difference between British and American/European car design is that to the latter the engine is everything. Its why the former make the best handling cars and are the best at motorsport and the latter win the hearts of consumers with big noise and hp figures.
Why does a man so scared of a super car, BUY ONE? I bet he barely drives it. Loool. Oh well he got the money might as well waste it on something he wont use. Like he got the road car, and a long tail racing version. He should take the Mclaren umbrella that he mentioned I'll take the car and make good use of it Lool :P And what kind of accountant makes so much money?? To buy 2 Mclaren's ?? Neat
@Joel0277 - The kind of accountant who is embezzeling money from their employer, who gets arrested for doing so, who goes to jail because of it, and who loses everything they've purchased with that stolen money in the process.
Google - Formula 1 fantasy fuelled £3m fraud - to read the story.
Oooh, I think QW may have been abit ott with that final statement. Yeah Mclaren is a British company (founded by an Aussie) but the guy who designed the car Gorden Murrey is from South Africa.. .so it's not strictly speaking a fully British design. I think it's a wonderful car but shouldn't blow smoke if it's not wholly true
mclaren cars are finally starting to build a successor to this legendary f1. is called mclaren mp4-12c and will have mclaren own v8 engine with a top speed around 320 kmh
@kevoreka Not exactly a 'successor'. The MP4-12C will be the first of three models they have planned and falls in the middle of the new company's range. It's not clear which will come next, but they intend to build a car that competes in the lower end of the exotic car spectrum (think Porsche Turbo) and also build something at the hypercar end of the spectrum that should do well to fill the shoes of the F1.
By successor I meant first production car by Mclaren after this legendary car.Yes, I know that Mclaren cars are planning a whole range of different types of sports cars, but this is the first one.
@SSR2k6 It's an interesting thought. Would they have too much integrity and flatly say no or would someone with very deep pockets be able to move them a little? I wonder what the rainbow sheik's phone number is. He probably already has a few though,
If Ferrari(italians) wanted to do something under these lines, I'm sure they would and could've. I don't think Ferrari ever lost money on their supercars. McLaren lost money on the F1 and Bugatti lost money on the Veyron. Even though the F1 LM is probably the best car ever. It's pride, and it's also a financial game.
In the video, produced a decade ago, Quentin Wilson notes that McLaren managed to break even on production of the F1.
There was an article in CAR magazine, Jan '97, titled "Out of the red and into the black" that explained how this was achieved.
They've also run the F1 Customer Care program providing after-sales support for all F1 owners - performing all the routine maintenance, as well as complete refits and resprays of F1s to suit a new owner's prefereneces. It doesn't come cheap.
Very good point, you bring up. I merely forgot all about it. I read an article about that in the past. How they go back and adjust everything, from the peddles to the shifter, to the seat, etc. to meet your specs. It must cost a lot.
If you ever get the chance, order a copy of "driving ambition." My friend owns a copy. It's expensive, but it let's you know absolutely everything there is about the F1, GTR, GTR LM, GT, etc. It sounds like you already have it. lol.
I actually have 4 copies of DA already, and quite an extensive physical library of other things on the McLaren F1 as well.
Collecting F1 related items has been a hobby of mine for about the past 9 years, but of course I have been interested in the car since it was unveiled as it was truly the greatest in my opinion.
Add this string "yb3z4mf" to TinyURLdotcom for a photo of my diecast F1 collection including a real "McLaren" badge from the nose of a GTR among the bits on the top shelf.
lol your all forgeting the noble m600 which is a pure british car and it does 0-60 in 3 sec. it has 650 bhp from a V8, so british are good, and no im not a brit...
@joyfulvulture yes bruce mclaren may have started the company, but ron dennis brought this company along long way in acheivement than bruce mclaren could have ever thought possible
You seem to be forgetting, that straight line power means absolutely nothing unless it can be used. What I mean by that, is there's no point in putting that engine in a BMW 3 series, it would be utter dog shit. The buttugly veyron is also utter dog shit!
The engine is the one of the most important components of the car, this man cant speak about british cars being so superiorly great when the one of the cars bigest components is built by the German champ BMW. If anything BMW is amongst the greatest to build an engine that could deliver this car to the status it held. Why bring in nationalist pride in to a car anyway? Sure the origin of the cars build matters but not to the extent thats its dependent upon the builders ethnics makeup.
@cheemooo its cuz the engine wasn't gonna be built by BMW in the first place... murrey wanted honda to do it, but everything else was basically british so sure the engine was german but it could have been japanese too, so i guess their considering the rest of the car..
Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche, Pagani Zonda, Bugatti.....all wonderful cars in their own right.
But the McLaren F1 is in a class by itself. If Gordon Murray had to do it all over again, he would most probably do it almost exactly as he had done it first time out.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, this car will indeed go down in history as one of the greatest supercars of all time.
It was 170 and I don't think he can afford it! He was imprisoned for five years after defrauding his employers of almost £3m. He only makes £51,000 a year (I say only). It was this interview which got him caught, tw*t!
He should be out of prison by now. I often have wondered what he might be up to these days and whether he's noticed things like this clip and some of the articles are still out there on the web. Hopefully its a lesson learned.
I kind of feel sorry for him - he allowed his passion for cars to make him do some unfortunate things.
His quote in the video about how "you do stupid things because of cars" is just incredibly ironic - very telling.
gordon murray "i only wanted to build a three seater with lots of storage space, i had a bunch of carbon fiber laying around so i just used it, i know i said i was going to make the most extreme road car ever but i was obviously joking, the fast part was just some weird side effect" lol
Nah - the proper 3 words are "Impressive Engineering Feat"
Credit is certainly due for their efforts and the achievement. The vehicle itself just isn't appealing to me, at least not in comparison to the McLaren F1. However, I would certainly love to take a Veyron for a joyride. :D
McLaren should do some MKII version of this car, with today's technology it would kick that Veyron's sorry ass. Im sure there would be enough people willing to buy it... I am willing to buy it, it's just that I dont have de money :'(
The price he was quoting was in British Pound Sterling or £ or GBP. Average for the GBP to USD conversion in 1999 was 1.61, so his "over 600,000 pounds" comment was equal to $966,000 USD at the time, which roughly equates to the retail price of the F1 when it was released.
Present day values for the F1 reguarly put above $2 Million USD just for the standard road car.
Indeed Ferrari has a lot of awesome cars but this is one fucking amazing kickass awesome car (all of its versions), this is worth an FXX evoluzione, F50GT, Enzo and F50 all together
Copyright on this episode of "The Car's the Star" is MCMXCIX or 1999 so the CLK-GTR was well developed by then.
Wilson's comment was just a little over-exhuberant form of national pride. As it is, it took a German engine to make the F1 as special as it was. Certainly there were no other manufacturers who were both capable and eager to satisfy McLaren's request and Gordon Murray's exacting standards for packaging, power output and low weight when it came to sourcing an engine except for BMW.
i hate it when journalists make such stupid and racist final comments. i really liked all the parts of this documentary and i adore McLaren F1 but this final comment was just stupid.there was no reason for him to tell such thing. don't call me a british car hater or something like that,the cars of my dreams were always Astons and TVRs.
racist? are people German or Italian because of the genes then? "In recent news, scientists have isolated the illusive Italian gene, which is known to cause vocal enlargement and frantic arm waving in adulthood." I think not. Proud, I think is a better description. I hate the pc brigade who accuse everyone of being racist when they don't even understand the meaning of the word.
Oh Yes traveling through France it was stopped in a service area we spoke to the driver who told us he was taking it down to the south of France where Rowan was filming a couple of years ago. Send you a photo if you would like??
Its not been done,because the rumor about the bugatti beating the f1 to 200 is a jeremy clarkson lie. The f1 needed only 21.8s from 100-200, the bugatti needed 22.4 s to 200.They're resorting to lyng to beef up the veyron's appeal, lol very underhand indeed.
anyway, if a yeron raced the f1 to topspeed it would lose anyway becoz it needs to go into topspeed mode first, thats takes 10s, while the mclaren can juz zip off.
i agree that the ending is amazingly stupid. a guy like murray could've spawned in any country. moreover, i very much doubt his team of engineers we're strictly british. finally, as some of you pointed out, the germans made the engine, and to a lot of people thats the most impressive part of this car. funnily enough its the same thing in formula 1: no germans, no engine! (mercedes). stupid quentin.
Oh my god that was the dumbest ending I have ever seen. The british didn't perfect anything. We all now the singal most important thing determining how a car drives is the engine which thanks to BMW M POWER, made it happen. And I wanna know what kind of freiking accountant is this guy?!?! Maybe I should have never switched to finance...
You might want to read through the comments as that accountant was convicted of fraud and embezzlement for taking the money he used to pay for his McLarens from the company he worked for. Appearing on this program was one of the things that helped to unravel his scheme.
Google ("James Munroe" fraud) for more information.
Even Bugatti Veyron which is a bit faster had many aerodinamic and engine overheating problems while it was under development. To produce all that power it has 4 turbos and a W16 engine which means 16 cylinders!!! Volkswagen which ownes Bugatti had a lot of money selling the VW Golfs and Touaregs! when you have money you can make more research! IF the F1 was manufactured the same year with Bugatti it would be even more FASTER! If I had to choose between those cars I would choose the F1 :)
This is my favourite car. I think McLaren F1 is the best because they had the longest top speed record for 11 years. Even Ferrari enzo after so many years couldn't beat McLaren. I respect this car! McLaren wanted to make the fastest car in the world! They didn't care the money because after all theese years they could have made more McLarens. If McLaren F1 was designed today in 2008 it would still be a very impressive car, Even the design is very cool. McLaren F1 will always be my favourite car!
If the british people c an build better cars then the germans and italians...why they don`t spent the mclaren a BRITISH engine? maybe from a landrover lol
The LM at the factory is the prototype, not a production car. McLaren have sold all the production F1s and variants.
They retain posession of the 1995 LeMans winner, GTR #01R; the LM prototype, XP1 LM; the longtail F1 GT prototype, 56XPGT; and the last F1 road car prototype, XP5.
Also the longtail F1 GTR #20R is often displayed at the factory as well, but may be owned by one of the McLaren execs (Ron Dennis or Mansour Ojjeh).
Ive had the pportunity to not only see Two McLarens, but ride in a F1 GTR. The car is absolutely jaw droping in not only looks, but performance. I was at LimeRock when BMW brought one, and I got the cahnce to ride in it, Im still lost for words today on its acceleration, and bracking, as well as cornering characteristics. I also got to see a road version, but I am not allowed to say the name due to a promise not to say what cars are in his collection. hopefully one day he'll take me for a ride.
You might want to read through the comments as that accountant was convicted of fraud and embezzlement for taking the money he used to pay for his McLarens from the company he worked for. Appearing on this program was one of the things that helped to unravel his scheme.
Google ("James Munroe" fraud) for more information.
No there's nothing wrong with the speech, it's just cheezy as hell HAHAHAAHAAH! Lesse though: Veyron, Audi engineering. Mc F1, German engine. Koeningsegg, German engine. Seems like Germans are just about everywhere you look and turn though. HAHAHAHAAHAH! BTW, there's nothing wrong with being a nationalist, just make sure you can spell your name in your mother tongue and point to your country on a map! lol
Ralph Lauren has 2 I believe. One stock and one LM. Why Gran Turismo doesn't have this car in the game is beyond me. The racing version is in GT4, but no road car. Hopefully it will be included in GT5.
RL actually has a pair of F1 road cars that look quite similar - #055 & #074 - in addition to the LM, which is LM3. Both his road cars are silver and have a rather rare factory option - outside mirrors mounted high on the a-pillar like the original F1 concept. Chassis #055 was shown at the MOCA in Boston a few years back - you can find pics on the web. Chassis #074 was featured in a recent article in Road&Track and also some photos published by Automobile Magazine as well.
one english guy had one, put it in to a tree killing himself and his 2 friends, he was a very wealthy man had about 50 cars, something like fifteen ferraris, he was up on a charge of rape thats why it was in the papers, he never made it to court.
Yes, but the damage was not severe and the car has been fully repaired. He still owns it, and it is chassis #061. TopGear used the car in a recent episode when the Enzo was released, comparing '90's supercars to the latest ones.
I watched this and so curious about the owner of the F1, who is this guy?
Too bad, it turned out he was a scammer.
krirks 4 weeks ago
The head of this project is Gordon Murray a South African.
I love some british cars, like Aston Martin, Jaguar and others, but this car does no reflect the actual British industry, or in better words, contemporary brit Ind.
Anyway it is a Superb machine. Much more impressive then the new version.
Carlonepapa 4 months ago
Peleton25, I remember watching this back in the day when it was broadcast. How did you get hold of it in the states?
ruddypeasant 4 months ago
@ruddypeasant - Someone in the UK encoded it into MPEG format back in 2005 and shared it on the F1 forum. Then a year or so later I uploaded the clips to YouTube so more people could enjoy them.
The thing I find funny is that some of the clips have tremendously more views than others which means quite a lot of people have missed watching the whole thing. When I originally uploaded them you couldn't link them to run concurrently the way you can now.
Peloton25 4 months ago
@Peloton25 thanks for the quick reply and for uploading too! It was a good programme even if Quentin gets a bit rule britannia at the end. I always chuckle when I see part 2 and he's running down the competition. Look! The big cat's done a wee!
ruddypeasant 4 months ago
Peleton25, I remember watching this back in the day when it was broadcast. How did you get hold of it in the states?
ruddypeasant 4 months ago
Im sorry but Veyron > F1
branger94 6 months ago
@branger94 - No need to apologize for your opinion. We all have our preferences. :)
I appreciate the Veyron, but it doesn't move me the way the F1 does.
Peloton25 6 months ago
@Peloton25 McLaren F1 is purity, and the Bugatti Veyron is, as someone said here on Youtube, a VW Beetle with steroids :D
TheElite1102 5 months ago
Engine may be german but it was Gordon Murray's idea on how the engine should be so you can say it is an all British car. If this was BMW's own idea then surely a better engine would have appeared in the M3.
TheTornado4000 7 months ago
McLaren F1 is for cars industry something like a Michael Jordan to the basketball - It's not the greatest in the every way, but it's best in few ways, that gives you a win over the rest, and that other cars could dream of. Simply the best car created ever.
Mercedes600SEL 9 months ago
I don't know if it was posted, but the only owner they found JAMES MUNROE the accountant, was actually sent to prison for:
"transferring funds by deception and procuring the execution of a valuable security". HAHA. He never had the money in the first place!
jepley100 9 months ago
@jepley100 - Yes - already covered in great detail here in the comments.
Peloton25 9 months ago
Definitely, without any doubt the greatest car in the world!
I laugh when I hear the so-called "petrolheads" that the Bugatti Veyron is the greatest of them all.
No disrespect for the Bugatti but a two-ton car with a massive 8.0 litter engine quad-turbo doesn't appeal to me. It's all brute force while the McLaren is fine engineering with the greatest engine of all times, that BMW V12
Plus, the Veyron won´t be appreciating in prices like the McLaren because it doesn´t have any racing history!
PeteVanBock 11 months ago
The sultan of Brunei has 5 ??? What a greedy asshole. What, does he really need all of them? Prick...
hanl9889 11 months ago
@hanl9889
When the McLaren F1 was launched I purchased any car magazine I could find an article about the car. On one of them it said that he bought 3, one for him and two for his sons. Later on he purchased 2 of the 5 LM cars.
When you have too much money like the Sultan of Brunei, and at the time (1994) he was THE richest man in the world, you can indulge yourself with these amazing toys.
Enough to say... LUCKY BASTARD!!
PeteVanBock 11 months ago
@lovejessica5 - Gordon Murray felt there were three companies with the technical expertise and credibility to build the F1's engine. One was Honda, one was BMW and the third was Ferrari. The last one was out for obvious reasons. Honda was not interested in building a large displacement V12 - they preferred to build something more similar to their 3.5L Formula One V12 and Murray decided that wasn't going to meet his needs.
Peloton25 11 months ago
@Peloton25 - Murray had a previous connection from his days at Brabham with Paul Rosche who was running BMW Motorsports. Paul suggested he had a 550hp V12 from the stillborn M8 project that could be used but when Gordon saw the engine he decided it was too large and too heavy. Paul then suggested that they could build exactly what Gordon wanted. In the end they exceeded his ideal weight target of 250kg by 16kg, but they also eclipsed Murray's HP target of 550 by 14 percent.
Peloton25 11 months ago
i think this man doesn't rembember where the engine is made !! :)
"it proofs that this country can still do , and can do it much much better than the germans and italians...and that is the best bit of all"
Oh yes i forgot the engine is german ahahahhaha ... i'm italian and i should say that this man is a little bit conceited.... BYE
chebello90 11 months ago
it calls mclaren mercedes (mercedes= german? ) so not british its german technoligy and otherway, german cars are the best one on the world ;)
Minomoro 11 months ago
@Minomoro - There is nothing "Mercedes" about the McLaren F1. The F1 was developed before McLaren had partnered with Mercedes Benz and uses a engine sourced from BMW Motorsports as one component of a great package.
In fact, it was predominantly because of this conflict of interest that McLaren stopped producing the F1 when they partnered with Mercedes Benz.
Peloton25 11 months ago
@Peloton25 How unfortunate for us future potential McLaren F1 buyers...
bmw318racer 9 months ago
mr.bean crashed his f1
nativepride84 1 year ago
@nativepride84 - That is true - in October 1999 he did have a small accident with his car that damaged the nose of the car. He's hardly the only owner to have such an unfortunate experience, but probably the one of just a few who made the newspapers because of it. His car was repaired by McLaren and is as good as new - he still owns it today.
It is chassis #061 and it was the Dark Burgundy F1 that Richard Hammond raced against the Stig in a Bugatti Veyron on Top Gear a couple of seasons ago.
Peloton25 1 year ago
@Peloton25 thank god, its not like theres alot of these cars out there you know
nativepride84 1 year ago
@Peloton25
But in that video, that F1 has an arabe plate (Dubai or U.A.E)
I don't think that Atkinson owns it anymore...
PeteVanBock 11 months ago
@PeteVanBock - It was a temporary plate to make driving it legal in Abu Dhabi. I can assure you Atkinson still owns his F1.
TopGear's race was filmed prior to June 2009. In November 2009 Atkinson wrote his own article for Octane magazine comparing his F1 to a Veyron at Rockingham circuit in the UK. In mid-2010 he loaned his car to EVO magazine for an article that appeared in their July issue. He also appeared with the car at the 20th anniversary gathering at the MTC in March 2010.
Peloton25 11 months ago
very british indeed, brakes italian, engine german, gearbox german, tires french, design by an african
XXXblackgoatXXX 1 year ago
@XXXblackgoatXXX - Actually the gearbox is American. It was designed by the Weismann family in Costa Mesa, California to meet Gordon's strict specifications.
Go to Weismann-dot-net and click on 'Street Machines' and then 'McLaren F1' to read more about its development.
Peloton25 1 year ago
@XXXblackgoatXXX
"very british indeed, brakes italian, engine german, gearbox german, tires french, design by an african"
lol yeah, and a huge part of what gave this car its reputation is the german engine...
among other things, if it had been 550 hp like specified the car wouldnt have been as fast and therefore not as special.
the patriotism of brits is so fucking delusional sometimes that it becomes hilarious. we've seen it again with the MP4-12C (steven sutcliffe).
joyfulvulture 8 months ago
Better than the Italians?Hahahahaha!
DevilNietzsche 1 year ago
@DevilNietzsche - Keep in mind this video was made in 1999 and there wasn't an Italian car on the road that could hold a candle to the F1 at that point. Some might say there still isn't but that's obviously their opinion.
I think Pagani is doing pretty well these days. I just wish they'd get more serious with a racing version that actually competes in something.
Peloton25 1 year ago
this car is as British as - ah fuck it i have nothing clever. it just isn't British, forget it, its German, get over yourselves. Saab is built in Canada, but its still Swedish, Volkswagen in Mexico, and it's still German.
Ji99i3 1 year ago
@Ji99i3 the rest of the car is british only the engine was german... the suspension was japanese... and on top of that the manufacturer is british which makes it a british car... just like the tata indica for example, it uses fiats engine but its still an indian car...
jack390 1 year ago 2
what an idiot ending. that is a german engine bozo
zeropm1 1 year ago
exactly whos accounts does this james munroe do?
clarkinusn 1 year ago
@clarkinusn - he used to do the accouting for the publisher McGraw-Hill until he was arrested for embezzling funds from them by using some shell companies he and his wife had set up.
Google his name and you will find a few news articles on the matter. Basically he was a total fraud and his appearance on this program was part of the reason he was caught.
I guess he was being prophetic when he said that "Boys will do stupid things for their toys."
Peloton25 1 year ago
@clarkinusn nice1 man
clarkinusn 1 year ago
I wonder what the brief will be for the next most expensive McLaren. Best drivers car or fastest roadcar? I hope its the former. Idiots judge a high performance road car only by its 'numbers'. The great difference between British and American/European car design is that to the latter the engine is everything. Its why the former make the best handling cars and are the best at motorsport and the latter win the hearts of consumers with big noise and hp figures.
ruddytechnik 1 year ago
1st Le Mans 1995
pdebe1 1 year ago
HE FORGOT --> JAY LENO AS A OWNER OF A McLaren..
GOUGOUNETTE 1 year ago
I haven't been able to break away from this vid to comment until now that its over...and I still don't know what to say...
prodriver1 1 year ago
They should've talked to Jay Leno since he has one
Suprahampton 1 year ago
@Suprahampton - Very late reply on this comment, but I just noticed it and the light bulb came on.
Jay purchased his F1 in early 2000 and so he wouldn't have been an owner yet when this program was produced.
Peloton25 9 months ago
Why does a man so scared of a super car, BUY ONE? I bet he barely drives it. Loool. Oh well he got the money might as well waste it on something he wont use. Like he got the road car, and a long tail racing version. He should take the Mclaren umbrella that he mentioned I'll take the car and make good use of it Lool :P And what kind of accountant makes so much money?? To buy 2 Mclaren's ?? Neat
Joel0277 1 year ago
@Joel0277 - The kind of accountant who is embezzeling money from their employer, who gets arrested for doing so, who goes to jail because of it, and who loses everything they've purchased with that stolen money in the process.
Google - Formula 1 fantasy fuelled £3m fraud - to read the story.
Peloton25 1 year ago
@Peloton25 But this accountant apparently didnt get caught Lol
Joel0277 1 year ago
@Joel0277 He was upon release of this interview on TV..
europeandancer 1 year ago
I can now see where Clarkson got his inspiration from
mrjost55 1 year ago
Oooh, I think QW may have been abit ott with that final statement. Yeah Mclaren is a British company (founded by an Aussie) but the guy who designed the car Gorden Murrey is from South Africa.. .so it's not strictly speaking a fully British design. I think it's a wonderful car but shouldn't blow smoke if it's not wholly true
Suprahampton 1 year ago
mclaren cars are finally starting to build a successor to this legendary f1. is called mclaren mp4-12c and will have mclaren own v8 engine with a top speed around 320 kmh
kevoreka 1 year ago
@kevoreka Not exactly a 'successor'. The MP4-12C will be the first of three models they have planned and falls in the middle of the new company's range. It's not clear which will come next, but they intend to build a car that competes in the lower end of the exotic car spectrum (think Porsche Turbo) and also build something at the hypercar end of the spectrum that should do well to fill the shoes of the F1.
Peloton25 1 year ago
@Peloton25
By successor I meant first production car by Mclaren after this legendary car.Yes, I know that Mclaren cars are planning a whole range of different types of sports cars, but this is the first one.
kevoreka 1 year ago
I mentioned it because it seems that has not been very clear to quite a large number of people. :)
Peloton25 1 year ago
mclaren f1 rules! looks good
zingo258 2 years ago
Why are the brits always trying to make themselves look good in the auto world???
Dakoder 2 years ago
Finally someone with a good sense of humor about the whole thing. :-)
Peloton25 2 years ago
I wonder how much money McLaren would be prepared to take, if at all, to make another one of those.
SSR2k6 2 years ago
@SSR2k6 It's an interesting thought. Would they have too much integrity and flatly say no or would someone with very deep pockets be able to move them a little? I wonder what the rainbow sheik's phone number is. He probably already has a few though,
hunghuge12 1 year ago
f1 is the best looking car ever made
volcom13xx 2 years ago 2
F1 LM is one of the sexiest cars ever crafted. Ever.
fi7thy 2 years ago 3
WTF? The engine is German.
If Ferrari(italians) wanted to do something under these lines, I'm sure they would and could've. I don't think Ferrari ever lost money on their supercars. McLaren lost money on the F1 and Bugatti lost money on the Veyron. Even though the F1 LM is probably the best car ever. It's pride, and it's also a financial game.
Pininfarina777 2 years ago
In the video, produced a decade ago, Quentin Wilson notes that McLaren managed to break even on production of the F1.
There was an article in CAR magazine, Jan '97, titled "Out of the red and into the black" that explained how this was achieved.
They've also run the F1 Customer Care program providing after-sales support for all F1 owners - performing all the routine maintenance, as well as complete refits and resprays of F1s to suit a new owner's prefereneces. It doesn't come cheap.
Peloton25 2 years ago
Very good point, you bring up. I merely forgot all about it. I read an article about that in the past. How they go back and adjust everything, from the peddles to the shifter, to the seat, etc. to meet your specs. It must cost a lot.
If you ever get the chance, order a copy of "driving ambition." My friend owns a copy. It's expensive, but it let's you know absolutely everything there is about the F1, GTR, GTR LM, GT, etc. It sounds like you already have it. lol.
Cheers, Pininfarina777.
Pininfarina777 2 years ago
I actually have 4 copies of DA already, and quite an extensive physical library of other things on the McLaren F1 as well.
Collecting F1 related items has been a hobby of mine for about the past 9 years, but of course I have been interested in the car since it was unveiled as it was truly the greatest in my opinion.
Add this string "yb3z4mf" to TinyURLdotcom for a photo of my diecast F1 collection including a real "McLaren" badge from the nose of a GTR among the bits on the top shelf.
Peloton25 2 years ago
lol your all forgeting the noble m600 which is a pure british car and it does 0-60 in 3 sec. it has 650 bhp from a V8, so british are good, and no im not a brit...
jack390 2 years ago
haha mate settle down on the brittish patriotism. i think he forgot that Bruce Mclaren, founder of the company, was a New Zealander....
nickos88gt 2 years ago
@nickos88gt
"haha mate settle down on the brittish patriotism. i think he forgot that Bruce Mclaren, founder of the company, was a New Zealander"
or that gordon murray, the chief designer of this car, is from south africa.
and if you ask me the most impressive part of this car is the engine, which has been made by BMW.
joyfulvulture 2 years ago
@joyfulvulture yes bruce mclaren may have started the company, but ron dennis brought this company along long way in acheivement than bruce mclaren could have ever thought possible
kinkaid25 2 years ago 3
english better than german?? the most importan thing in this car was made by germans(BMW), the engine.
Maybe the new McLaren Mp4-12C will be the New King!!!!
alexuin 2 years ago
yes, and thats where the soul is: the engine
rallymaniac92 2 years ago
MP4-12C wont be king, it's just going to be a compeditor for ferrari's and lambo's. F1 will always be king!!!!
Vezm99 2 years ago
@alexuin
You seem to be forgetting, that straight line power means absolutely nothing unless it can be used. What I mean by that, is there's no point in putting that engine in a BMW 3 series, it would be utter dog shit. The buttugly veyron is also utter dog shit!
cliolord 2 years ago
english still can do it and better than german or italian????
u must be joking ...
xxxsde 2 years ago 4
British can do it best, but not as consistently.
NinjaRunningWild 2 years ago 4
Best car ever, and British!...shame about the engine. Surely Rover could've knocked up a 630bhp K-Series engine..
Racky105 2 years ago
The engine is the one of the most important components of the car, this man cant speak about british cars being so superiorly great when the one of the cars bigest components is built by the German champ BMW. If anything BMW is amongst the greatest to build an engine that could deliver this car to the status it held. Why bring in nationalist pride in to a car anyway? Sure the origin of the cars build matters but not to the extent thats its dependent upon the builders ethnics makeup.
cheemooo 2 years ago 17
@cheemooo its cuz the engine wasn't gonna be built by BMW in the first place... murrey wanted honda to do it, but everything else was basically british so sure the engine was german but it could have been japanese too, so i guess their considering the rest of the car..
jack390 1 year ago
All the veyron has is its speed, nothing else and its only 10mph faster anyway
billiumffc123 2 years ago 2
The Luxury too!
SuperCarMania 2 years ago
Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche, Pagani Zonda, Bugatti.....all wonderful cars in their own right.
But the McLaren F1 is in a class by itself. If Gordon Murray had to do it all over again, he would most probably do it almost exactly as he had done it first time out.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, this car will indeed go down in history as one of the greatest supercars of all time.
krislyttle 2 years ago 14
Its funny at the end he say that english still can do it and better than german or italian.... the F1 have a BMW engine so its not 100% english
icemen40 2 years ago 5
yes but what car comes 100% from ONE country? ..BMW takes parts for the engine from other countries too.. (:
so for me is the mclaren a pure british car.. greetings from germany (:
foensx 2 years ago
0:35 - 1:25 = paradise?
dideldidudadada 2 years ago
he did 140 on the M40 - fine hime (he can afford the bill :-)
manns101101 2 years ago
It was 170 and I don't think he can afford it! He was imprisoned for five years after defrauding his employers of almost £3m. He only makes £51,000 a year (I say only). It was this interview which got him caught, tw*t!
moggie16 2 years ago 4
I'm impressed - few know that story. :-)
He should be out of prison by now. I often have wondered what he might be up to these days and whether he's noticed things like this clip and some of the articles are still out there on the web. Hopefully its a lesson learned.
I kind of feel sorry for him - he allowed his passion for cars to make him do some unfortunate things.
His quote in the video about how "you do stupid things because of cars" is just incredibly ironic - very telling.
Peloton25 2 years ago
You british have just rubbish cars. But one you have is the best on that planet. I must admit, the F1 is the best of the best. Regards from Italy.
Ferrorschini 2 years ago
Mclaren F1 was never build to be the fastest car. but yet it is still the fastest N/A car.
imadude85 2 years ago 3
gordon murray "i only wanted to build a three seater with lots of storage space, i had a bunch of carbon fiber laying around so i just used it, i know i said i was going to make the most extreme road car ever but i was obviously joking, the fast part was just some weird side effect" lol
venomviper32 2 years ago
3 words: Veyron = Volkswagen
GerwinChita 2 years ago
Nah - the proper 3 words are "Impressive Engineering Feat"
Credit is certainly due for their efforts and the achievement. The vehicle itself just isn't appealing to me, at least not in comparison to the McLaren F1. However, I would certainly love to take a Veyron for a joyride. :D
Peloton25 2 years ago
omg fuck bugatti it was only biult to go fast not beautiful
MMMMMMLLLLLLGGGGGG 2 years ago
still the fastest normally aspirated car in the world after nearly 20 years, one sold last year for £2.3 million
ascoughc 2 years ago 2
Your guess is correct.
However, many would still choose the F1 over a Veyron even a decade later.
Peloton25 2 years ago
I certainly would, any day!
alexanderdb9 2 years ago 5
I'm one of them, definetly! :D
sh080 2 years ago 2
hell yeah i would too!!! fuck the Veyron
Owns94n 2 years ago 3
McLaren should do some MKII version of this car, with today's technology it would kick that Veyron's sorry ass. Im sure there would be enough people willing to buy it... I am willing to buy it, it's just that I dont have de money :'(
imguitarguy183 2 years ago 2
the germans CAN do it better!!!!!!
Hunderasierer 2 years ago
Who made the engine...the germans made the best part!
breakfromyou 2 years ago
600 grand how old is this ..add 1 million to that
thegoatelpaso 3 years ago
The price he was quoting was in British Pound Sterling or £ or GBP. Average for the GBP to USD conversion in 1999 was 1.61, so his "over 600,000 pounds" comment was equal to $966,000 USD at the time, which roughly equates to the retail price of the F1 when it was released.
Present day values for the F1 reguarly put above $2 Million USD just for the standard road car.
Peloton25 3 years ago
Now think of how much an LM version or a "Long tail" would cost 0.o
I really love dis car my very favorite
imguitarguy183 2 years ago
Indeed Ferrari has a lot of awesome cars but this is one fucking amazing kickass awesome car (all of its versions), this is worth an FXX evoluzione, F50GT, Enzo and F50 all together
imguitarguy183 2 years ago
...british car [design :) ] , better than... wtf the main part of the car is the bmw engine ...cope with it island monkeys!!!!
chicane787 3 years ago
he said better than italians and germans???ma ke stamo a skerzà??
albybest100 3 years ago
maybe the CLK GTR wasn't made yet, lol
Jace1283xmod 3 years ago
Copyright on this episode of "The Car's the Star" is MCMXCIX or 1999 so the CLK-GTR was well developed by then.
Wilson's comment was just a little over-exhuberant form of national pride. As it is, it took a German engine to make the F1 as special as it was. Certainly there were no other manufacturers who were both capable and eager to satisfy McLaren's request and Gordon Murray's exacting standards for packaging, power output and low weight when it came to sourcing an engine except for BMW.
Peloton25 3 years ago
i will make a mclaren f1 on my garage, with a EVO8 engine+2turbo=750hp, 4x4, and other
GLR26591 3 years ago
I am saving up for this car! Should have enough money sometime in 2039...
jeff1surfs 3 years ago
i hate it when journalists make such stupid and racist final comments. i really liked all the parts of this documentary and i adore McLaren F1 but this final comment was just stupid.there was no reason for him to tell such thing. don't call me a british car hater or something like that,the cars of my dreams were always Astons and TVRs.
xXturbo86Xx 3 years ago 3
yeah i agree - that guy is such a penis. he's very alan partrige
kkpb8061 3 years ago
racist? are people German or Italian because of the genes then? "In recent news, scientists have isolated the illusive Italian gene, which is known to cause vocal enlargement and frantic arm waving in adulthood." I think not. Proud, I think is a better description. I hate the pc brigade who accuse everyone of being racist when they don't even understand the meaning of the word.
UKChris012 3 years ago 3
Oh Yes traveling through France it was stopped in a service area we spoke to the driver who told us he was taking it down to the south of France where Rowan was filming a couple of years ago. Send you a photo if you would like??
lotuselanplus2 3 years ago
Congrats on getting to see his F1. Sending me that picture would be very cool. My account name at Hotmail will do the job there. Thanks!
Peloton25 3 years ago
Actually, the best bit of all, is that Mclaren was started by a guy from Auckland, New Zealand.
McLaren, a Kiwi's dream turned into reality.
sirnicolai 3 years ago
what a greedy bastard that sultan is!!!
james munroe got done cos e was a swindler
henrymarkstewart10 3 years ago
woulndt that be cool to see a race between this car and the bugatti? from a stand to top the speedo? i would pay to see that....
07SiPOWER 3 years ago
It's been done. I remember reading that the McLaren could accelerate to 100 MPH before the Veyron turned a wheel and it'd still decimate it to 200...
That said I'm still a much larger fan of the F1 - speed and power aren't everything and it's not as if the F1 is lacking in either respect anyway.
alna1287 3 years ago
Its not been done,because the rumor about the bugatti beating the f1 to 200 is a jeremy clarkson lie. The f1 needed only 21.8s from 100-200, the bugatti needed 22.4 s to 200.They're resorting to lyng to beef up the veyron's appeal, lol very underhand indeed.
anyway, if a yeron raced the f1 to topspeed it would lose anyway becoz it needs to go into topspeed mode first, thats takes 10s, while the mclaren can juz zip off.
ASSHOLELA 3 years ago
yes but round the track the veyron is shit,the mclaren would kill it,
stuntman2600 3 years ago 4
I call that british modesty at the end o_O
Demonhunter777 3 years ago
better than enzo ferrari and bugatti veyron
d9vj6e 3 years ago 3
Brings a tear to the eye dosent it?..
vaiolust 3 years ago
THE LEGEND
69lol69 3 years ago
i agree that the ending is amazingly stupid. a guy like murray could've spawned in any country. moreover, i very much doubt his team of engineers we're strictly british. finally, as some of you pointed out, the germans made the engine, and to a lot of people thats the most impressive part of this car. funnily enough its the same thing in formula 1: no germans, no engine! (mercedes). stupid quentin.
drake10987 3 years ago 4
In fact, Gordon Murray was born and raised in South Africa. He didn't move to England until the age of 23.
Peloton25 3 years ago
well lol, thanks for the info.
drake10987 3 years ago
Oh my god that was the dumbest ending I have ever seen. The british didn't perfect anything. We all now the singal most important thing determining how a car drives is the engine which thanks to BMW M POWER, made it happen. And I wanna know what kind of freiking accountant is this guy?!?! Maybe I should have never switched to finance...
OhmiGodd 3 years ago
You might want to read through the comments as that accountant was convicted of fraud and embezzlement for taking the money he used to pay for his McLarens from the company he worked for. Appearing on this program was one of the things that helped to unravel his scheme.
Google ("James Munroe" fraud) for more information.
Peloton25 3 years ago
LMAO...That kind of makes sense now. Him being the only one that reveals he is a Mclaren owner. He probably cant believe it himself lol...
OhmiGodd 3 years ago
This is the GOD of supercars.
It will never be beaten.
upset4 3 years ago
The McLaren F1 will remain, for the foreseeable future, the finest car ever made.
Ferrari tried valiantly with the Enzo to match it...and failed.
Porsche has a marvelous GT. But it's still not a McLaren F1
Perhaps in the post-petroleum era, this magnificent machine will never be equaled and
it will remain forever the highest expression of hydrocarbon-driven artwork.
It brings tears to my eyes.
methylamine 3 years ago 3
Try to hold it together there buddy. It will be okay. ;)
Peloton25 3 years ago
Even Bugatti Veyron which is a bit faster had many aerodinamic and engine overheating problems while it was under development. To produce all that power it has 4 turbos and a W16 engine which means 16 cylinders!!! Volkswagen which ownes Bugatti had a lot of money selling the VW Golfs and Touaregs! when you have money you can make more research! IF the F1 was manufactured the same year with Bugatti it would be even more FASTER! If I had to choose between those cars I would choose the F1 :)
Dice166 3 years ago
This is my favourite car. I think McLaren F1 is the best because they had the longest top speed record for 11 years. Even Ferrari enzo after so many years couldn't beat McLaren. I respect this car! McLaren wanted to make the fastest car in the world! They didn't care the money because after all theese years they could have made more McLarens. If McLaren F1 was designed today in 2008 it would still be a very impressive car, Even the design is very cool. McLaren F1 will always be my favourite car!
Dice166 3 years ago
Mr. Bean has a McLaren F1!
Quite an upgrade from his little mini lol.
aleckermit 3 years ago 3
McLaren F1 LM.....
mmmmmmmmmmmmmm.......
aleckermit 3 years ago
the engine is nothing without the car or vehicle so don talk
wrnr8393 3 years ago
Sultan.... You Greedy Bastard, wadda you need 5 for! If I ever got rich i might wanna but a Macca, but it seems you have them all already!
tomcornwall83 3 years ago
He has EIGHT of them now!
behahve1 3 years ago
i have no idea how that fatty has 2 mclaren f1's...sob
ibbu4eva 3 years ago
If you read the comments here you'd find he embezzled it.
Peloton25 3 years ago
The F1 is good, the F1 LM is better, the Long tail is unbeliveable!
Mikelaren101 3 years ago
What a stupid arrogant British!! :P
prodrivebrasil 3 years ago
If the british people c an build better cars then the germans and italians...why they don`t spent the mclaren a BRITISH engine? maybe from a landrover lol
Cheyennenonhalema 3 years ago 4
Its not true that all mclaren f1s have been sold.
There is 1 mclaren f1 LM in the mercedes mclaren garage
And lewis hamilton has been promised to get the car for free if he wins the 2008 formula1 world championship title.
mstt1010 3 years ago
The LM at the factory is the prototype, not a production car. McLaren have sold all the production F1s and variants.
They retain posession of the 1995 LeMans winner, GTR #01R; the LM prototype, XP1 LM; the longtail F1 GT prototype, 56XPGT; and the last F1 road car prototype, XP5.
Also the longtail F1 GTR #20R is often displayed at the factory as well, but may be owned by one of the McLaren execs (Ron Dennis or Mansour Ojjeh).
Peloton25 3 years ago
You knob, dont hate his game cos he has something that most people want!!!!!!!!
Venger25 4 years ago 3
WTF????!!!!! that guy looks like a total noob, and has such a car??!!!
Vete1991 4 years ago
shut it yank why are most f1 cars built in uk then??????wanker
teeheehee5 4 years ago
lol arrogant englishmen.
england gave up making cars
its in the hands of germans and japs
saejoon 4 years ago
Ive had the pportunity to not only see Two McLarens, but ride in a F1 GTR. The car is absolutely jaw droping in not only looks, but performance. I was at LimeRock when BMW brought one, and I got the cahnce to ride in it, Im still lost for words today on its acceleration, and bracking, as well as cornering characteristics. I also got to see a road version, but I am not allowed to say the name due to a promise not to say what cars are in his collection. hopefully one day he'll take me for a ride.
blacdout96 4 years ago
I'm becomming an accountant!!!!!
discoqueenNL 4 years ago 2
You might want to read through the comments as that accountant was convicted of fraud and embezzlement for taking the money he used to pay for his McLarens from the company he worked for. Appearing on this program was one of the things that helped to unravel his scheme.
Google ("James Munroe" fraud) for more information.
Peloton25 4 years ago
No there's nothing wrong with the speech, it's just cheezy as hell HAHAHAAHAAH! Lesse though: Veyron, Audi engineering. Mc F1, German engine. Koeningsegg, German engine. Seems like Germans are just about everywhere you look and turn though. HAHAHAHAAHAH! BTW, there's nothing wrong with being a nationalist, just make sure you can spell your name in your mother tongue and point to your country on a map! lol
maugustyniak 4 years ago 2
Ralph Lauren has 2 I believe. One stock and one LM. Why Gran Turismo doesn't have this car in the game is beyond me. The racing version is in GT4, but no road car. Hopefully it will be included in GT5.
Jelsick 4 years ago
RL actually has a pair of F1 road cars that look quite similar - #055 & #074 - in addition to the LM, which is LM3. Both his road cars are silver and have a rather rare factory option - outside mirrors mounted high on the a-pillar like the original F1 concept. Chassis #055 was shown at the MOCA in Boston a few years back - you can find pics on the web. Chassis #074 was featured in a recent article in Road&Track and also some photos published by Automobile Magazine as well.
Peloton25 4 years ago
one english guy had one, put it in to a tree killing himself and his 2 friends, he was a very wealthy man had about 50 cars, something like fifteen ferraris, he was up on a charge of rape thats why it was in the papers, he never made it to court.
Doo0ne 4 years ago
I also heard Rowan Atkinson crahed his F1. Is that true?
richboy900 4 years ago
Yes, but the damage was not severe and the car has been fully repaired. He still owns it, and it is chassis #061. TopGear used the car in a recent episode when the Enzo was released, comparing '90's supercars to the latest ones.
Peloton25 4 years ago
The LMs fucking gorgeous but my best one is the F1 GT. The standard F1 or preferably the F1GT is my dream car
richboy900 4 years ago
what kind of jobs do they have ??
speeder741 4 years ago
i love them, But im still a Bugatti veyron man!
chriscoupe 4 years ago 2
2 mclaren f1s?!!!!!!!!! wtf!!!!!!!
IID 4 years ago
one had 5!!!
bulletkip 4 years ago
i want one .
maltadude 4 years ago
Oh who cares about the end speech? Nothing wrong with proud of something your countrymen built. In any case, the F1 is a magnificent car.
Eatinbritches 4 years ago