EVO's buying guide to a McLaren...

[F1 monster]

Latest EVO newsletter had this:

McLaren F1 GTR

Exclusivity and a buoyant resale value guaranteed if you buy a 'Mac'. But they don't come cheap

By Roger Green
August 2009

There can’t be many opportunities to drive to Le Mans in a car that competed there, but that’s exactly what you could be doing next year if you have a spare £1.6million kicking around. DK Engineering of Chorleywood have this former Team Bigazzi F1 GTR for sale (chassis number 016R), which after finishing 11th in the world’s greatest sportscar race was converted into a road car.

In 1996 this was the number 38 Fina/BMW-liveried car driven by Steve Soper, Jacques Laffite and Marc Duez, and it would have finished significantly higher up the order had the gearbox not needed replacing. The car was converted for road use by Paul Lanzante (who also prepared the GTR that won Le Mans in 1995) and it was then repainted ‘Historic Orange’ by McLaren for its new owner.

Many of the original parts that were removed during the conversion come with the car, but unlike the regular road cars there is only room for one passenger as the space for the seat to the driver’s right is taken up by a fire extinguisher, the engine management system and the race panel crammed with switches and fuses. A pair of ear defenders on the seat highlights just how raw it’s likely to be inside, but this has to be the ultimate trackday toy, although it is still eligible for the GT90 series if you fancy racing it.

F1 prices continue to remain strong, but this particular example has been with DK Engineering for several months now and, as they would like to move it on, the price has recently been dropped by £400,000. If you look at it that way it makes this car a comparative bargain.

With thanks to vendor: DK Engineering, Chorleywood (01923 287 687, www.dkeng.com)

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This was followed by a small table of basic specs, including Mileage: Unknown.

All in all, a fairly superficial, crap analysis. Still, it was McLaren related so I thought it would be worthwhile to post it here. To advance the topic, let's put up our own tips of what to look for and the pros and cons of owning each of the variants.

Personally, I would only buy a GTR if I already had a roadcar or GT. I prefer the three seats, I prefer comfortable interiors, I prefer to not wear headphones, I prefer to get a true version of GM's vision, I prefer a somewhat discreet appearance, and I can live with the slightly slower steering response and more roly-poly nature of the beast, or the slightly less exclusive nature of the roadcar (64 of them running around, versus 18 of the short-tailed GTRs). And I think all the variants would have equally eye-watering maintenance bills.

What do you think?

[carbuilder2002]

Have we not already been through this scenario?

[mini magic]

Well, on the plus side, i don't think rust should be too much of an issue

[hurstg01]

It's somewhere on here before, but it's always good to re-visit it.

[carbuilder2002]

What are the corrosion issues with some of the many exotic metals used in the running gear?

[F1 monster]

None, I would think, as they would be treated/rustproofed before being used and certainly they would be replaced if necessary. Shocks, springs, etc. are all fairly well rustproofed--brake discs would be the only items and they can easily be cleaned up or replaced. It's the chassis you gotta worry about, and with a carbon chassis, you don't have to worry about any treatment rubbing off and exposed metal underneath oxidizing (rusting).

[carbuilder2002]

I was thinking more allong the lines of electrolytic corrosion with dissimilar metals in contact.

[F1 monster]

Yeah, that hasn't been a problem on the McLaren F1 so far as I know. I guess they are so well-cared for, these problems are nipped in the bud. The one in Mexico seems to be fairly neglected--it would be interesting to see if there is any corrosion on that. I have only heard of this happening on suspension, brake, and chassis pieces, and where electric lines are grounded into the chassis, not in the engine area.

[ST62382]

Originally Posted by F1 monster

Yeah, that hasn't been a problem on the McLaren F1 so far as I know. I guess they are so well-cared for, these problems are nipped in the bud. The one in Mexico seems to be fairly neglected--it would be interesting to see if there is any corrosion on that. I have only heard of this happening on suspension, brake, and chassis pieces, and where electric lines are grounded into the chassis, not in the engine area.

I've seen a couple mentions of that car here and there, but no one seems to either have any details on the car, or wants to share the details. I'd like to see some pics of it, to see how it may be neglected

[Peloton25]

You'll find the discussion on the F1 in Mexico and the only two photos we have of the car in this thread:

How often do I see a photo of an F1 I can't identify?

It doesn't look too bad off in those shots, but they may not be all that recent. A lot of cars, like a lot of women, look good from 10 feet.

I think the stories of neglect are based primarily on speculation, but any car that sits for long periods of time unused is going to suffer.

>8^)
ER

[F1GTRUeno]

Did you ever find anything else out about the Mexico car Erik?

[ST62382]

Erik, thanks for that link. I did read the whole thread last night before I fell asleep. It looks to me like that whole conversation just died. Anything else ever come to light on that car?

[Peloton25]

jgcferrari sent me another PM in the beginning of July of this year asking if anything else had surfaced on the car. He hasn't come across anything new in his own efforts so far; I told him the same. I was certainly hoping that we'd get some quick answers on the car once some of the people in Mexico started to investigate, but that hasn't proven to be true. I think it's one of those things that will just take a while to resolve itself.

= = = = = =

Back on topic: There are three good shots of GTR #16R that went along with the story to be found on EVO's website:

http://www.evo.co.uk/buying/buyinggu...en_f1_gtr.html

>8^)
ER