LE BIG MAC

In 1995 McLaren’s F1 GTR made its stunning Le Mans debut. Significant to the enduro car’s genesis was Peter Stevens – who tells its story

- Peter Stevens

Much has been written about the McLaren F1 road car; it is now 30 years since five McLaren F1 GTRs finished first, third, fourth, fifth and 13th at Le Mans in June 1995. The F1 had been launched at the Monaco Sporting Club in May 1992. During those 33 years, myth, hearsay and rumour have both enhanced and clouded the history of a sports car that continues to fascinate enthusiasts.

Memory is, of course, an unreliable tool when writing or reading an article or book. We edit our recollections and find it difficult to recall complete conversations, even though they can give veracity to a tale. But luckily, I had got into the habit of writing copious notes in many A5-size notebooks.

The team at McLaren Cars was small for a project of such complexity as the F1, but some were friends from Lotus, where I was before McLaren, and with the others we gelled into an enthusiastic team, who are still good friends today. Although there was nota suggestion that this might be a racing car, I couldn't help trying a few things in the wind tunnel to see how tuneable it might be should that next step occur.

It was never my objective with the road car to produce a high-downforce design. With an expected top speed of around 220mph you really want a safe and stable car, but not one that needs springs as stiff as a pick-up truck at normal road speed to cope with the loads at over 200mph. I had used both McLaren's preferred wind tunnel at the National Physical Laboratory in Teddington and the very old tunnel at what was the Brabham factory. And finally, the MIRA full-size tunnel to confirm our results.