The McLaren F1 was the British brand’s first road-going car that really made an impact, and is still considered the ultimate road-going car by many. It was a car that shattered many of the norms in the automotive industry.
Its creator, Gordon Murray, had already had an illustrious career in Formula 1 for McLaren and Brabham, and had a deep understanding of adding lightness to vehicles. His view was that “Top Trumps” style power to weight figures are meaningless if it comprises the dynamics of a vehicle.
The low weight of the F1 was achieved through the use of high-tech and expensive materials such as carbon fibre, titanium, kevlar, magnesium and gold, and the F1 was the first production car to use a carbon-fibre monocoque chassis. It also required an obsessive focus on removing weight from the design, for example the steering column position was not adjustable but simply tailored for buyer before it left the factory.
Murray also insisted that insisted that the engine for this car was naturally aspirated to increase reliability and driver control. It remains virtually unmatched for performance after 30 years, and the few cars that are faster use forced induction.