The Official: "There's no such thing as a dumb question about the McLaren F1" thread

[andybee]

Originally Posted by DocGTR

The swoosh -logo came around 1997 as the Formula One team switched the sponsor from Marlboro to West and the whole McLaren group changed their appearance. Before that there was a blockier or edgier version of the swoosh, like a red arrow head. You may have seen this version of the logo on the McLaren Formula One cars on those races where it was not allowed to advertise tobacco products. Also many of the Minichamps McLaren Formula One models of those days have that version of the McLaren logo instead of the Marlboro -logo/text.

Yeah pretty much there.

The history is.... back in the day, the graphic was a Kiwi. Then it dissapeared in the 70's and there logo was just McLaren Racing in text on two lines.

When McLaren was struggling around 79-80, Marlboro brokered a deal with Ron Dennis and his company Project 4, who were successful in F2 and built or ran (cant remember) the BMW Procar.

Project 4 and McLaren became one and a new identity was saught. MP4 originally stood for Marlboro Project Four, not McLaren.

Only when West was signed at the end of 96 did the M quietly become McLaren LOL! The early F1 (GP) chassis plates actually said Marlboro. The chassis names also changed from MP4/x to MP4-

Anyway I digres. The new identity in the 80s used a series of arrows and Marlboro roof tops at an angle.

http://www.bionicmedia.co.uk/uploads...a8f8fc5173.jpg

At the team entered the 90's all bar the last red arrow were removed... I cant find the logo, but its on the engine cover of Senna's 93 McLaren
http://www.classiccar.co.nz/wp-conte...Park-Senna.jpg

Fast forward to end of 96 and McLaren signed West. A new identity, both on the car and corporate was required. A number of design companies were approached, along with the internal team and designs submitted. The winning design was a combination of Fitch Design IIRC and iternal development.

The graphic of the F1 car has soft airbrush arc's which lead to a different interpretaion of the logo turning it into a swoosh. A few years later the font was updated. This is used now for licencing regardless of era

for some reason McLaren cars had their own logo. Used the same red and Grey as the then TAG McLaren Group logo, but with the SLR and MP4-12C, they adopted the swoosh

[SnowBawl]

Absolutely fascinating read. I'm a graphic designer so I always wondered about that swoosh. Thank you very much for sharing!

[notsofast]

Great read indeed. Thanks Andybee for your insight.

I have 2 questions-Why did 01R the LM 95 winner have the two lights on the front part of the car and no other McLarens ran them (as far as I know)?

They look a bit out of place, I bet Ron Dennis wasnt a fan but then again the car did win.

And was 01R immediately retired after the race-it never raced or tested again? Its never done a lap in anger since? (and not just in a race).

[rimato]

i AM NEW ON THIS CHAT AND i WANT TO CONTACT PELOTON 25 , I AM CRAZY ABOUT MCLAREN

[Peloton25]

Welcome to the forum. This is where the crazy people hang out.

You can use the Private Message system if you'd like, or you can post any questions or comments here.

>8^)
ER

[andybee]

Originally Posted by notsofast

Great read indeed. Thanks Andybee for your insight.

I have 2 questions-Why did 01R the LM 95 winner have the two lights on the front part of the car and no other McLarens ran them (as far as I know)?

They look a bit out of place, I bet Ron Dennis wasnt a fan but then again the car did win.

And was 01R immediately retired after the race-it never raced or tested again? Its never done a lap in anger since? (and not just in a race).

I'm not sure. I didnt see it until at the circuit, so I suspect it was a last minute thing done by Lanzante or McLaren Cars. Either way, I do remember drivers had complained about lighing during the practice weekend. Remember in 96, they had larger headlamps with blisters on the perspex the following year.

I doubt Ron or Gordon had an issue. Form FOLLOWS function and it didn't look too bad....although I always thought it did make it look a little cross-eyed LOL

[Sami Aaltonen]

What comes that #01R case after that succesfull Le Mans victory, the car hasn't run any race after that, as far I know. Of course it has been showed motor shows but not driven.

Before Le Mans it was McLaren's test car, which they needed to update for the Le Mans, because Ueno Clinic owner (if I remember right) wanted a car to run with Ueno Clinic's livery so they simply run out of the chassis that point. (If I remember right there was some accident which changed the chassis plans that time, Erik or Doc or Greg can tell this more).

So only change was that the #01R test hack was updated recent GTR parts and it went to Paul Lazante's team. Ueno Clinic wanted a Japanise driver and McLaren worked rest of the driver lineup. And rest is history.

(STILL I don't know where the heck they make up JJ Lehto on the team, who's idea that was!!)

[andybee]

it has been driven a couple of times, including Goodwood fos the week or so after the 95 event. complete with Le Mans dirt.

The 01r was already entered (and IIRC partly) updated for Le Mans pre-qualifying (late April?) weekend, in its original Silver/Orange livery.

Ueno Clinic had a logo, but no livery, as I mentioned on the scale model thread, the owner wanted to explore colours from his road car and we did that after Le Mans pre-qualifying.

All quite a rush, but it must have been in May as I did an illustration which was then printed in a Japanese magazine a week before the race. Sekiya came with the deal from the outset.

Lanzante ran the team, but prep before the race was largely (as I remember it) McLaren Cars as it was their dev car anyway.

[Sami Aaltonen]

Thanks for details!
Last night I didn't remember too much about it but something atleast.

[notsofast]

Many thanks andybee for your insight in answering my questions. Very interesting how the decision came about about to enter the car, it turned out to be a very good one.

[andybee]

Originally Posted by notsofast

Many thanks andybee for your insight in answering my questions. Very interesting how the decision came about about to enter the car, it turned out to be a very good one.

thanks, although I dont know why they entered 01R in the first place, it was as you say a good decision.

[tortoise]

Originally Posted by Le Man

The road car has to be fuel efficient and emissions friendly, remember it had surpassed the most stringent Californian emissions regulations at the time it was introduced...

Is that so?
I don't know how the regs work, but presume that a '95 car would be tested for '95 regs. An F1's engine (pre-OBD-II) has to be tweaked almost beyond recognition in order to be road legal in CA. How would that reconcile with an engine that surpassed CA regulations at the time, or was there a big change between when "it was introduced" and '95?

[tortoise]

Originally Posted by bucciali

And how do they restrict? Can the air only go through the 'rings', and is the area around then closed?

The "rings" that you see are the ends of tubes or pipes. The tubes lead into the big carbon intake chamber (airbox), which sits on the induction tracts atop the engine. The only way air can get into the cylinders is by entering through the tubes. The road cars also had such tubes, but they were designed to optimise engine performance, rather than to restrict it for a racing formula.

[tortoise]

Originally Posted by Sami Aaltonen

A question of gearboxes.
Recently I read one of the 1995 Vauhdin Maailma magazines that Ray Bellm told that after an four hour race, the GTR's gearbox starts to be quite "end".

So is that true; how long the 1995-1996 GTR's gearboxes holded on?
Changed after every four hour race or does it holded on longer?

If they ran Le Mans these same gearboxes (some things changed, as we know), then this article might be something wrong. Okey, there were lots of gearbox problems, gear selection problems and clutch problems, not just the Le Mans race, but how is this case?

I'm not sure if this answers your question, but P. Lanzante told me that, during practice before the race, he concluded that one particular component of the gearbox was its point of vulnerability. He installed a more robust version (I'm not sure whether they had to modify the casing to do this) in #01, and he advised Dave Price (running the Harrod's and West cars) to do the same. Price did not take his advice. With 2 hours left in the race, the first-place Harrod's car began to falter, as this very part began to malfunction. The time lost to try to remedy the problem, and then to drive around it, cost the yellow car the victory.

[hurstg01]

Originally Posted by tortoise

I'm not sure if this answers your question, but P. Lanzante told me that, during practice before the race, he concluded that one particular component of the gearbox was its point of vulnerability. He installed a more robust version (I'm not sure whether they had to modify the casing to do this) in #01, and he advised Dave Price (running the Harrod's and West cars) to do the same. Price did not take his advice. With 2 hours left in the race, the first-place Harrod's car began to falter, as this very part began to malfunction. The time lost to try to remedy the problem, and then to drive around it, cost the yellow car the victory.

Apparently cans and cans of WD40 had an awful lot to do with the win for #01R as well