Thursday 31st January 2013

McLaren reveals MP4-28 amid birthday celebrations

Woking shows off its latest racer - and brings out a few old ones to celebrate 50 years in the business

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McLaren invited us over to its rather splendid – and, now, rather well-known – Technology Centre near Woking where, against the backdrop of the building’s modern glass curve, the landscaped grounds and, of course, the lake, the team’s new MP4-28 Formula 1 car was unveiled for the first time.

The M8D - a bittersweet milestone

To the untrained eye, the new car looks vastly similar to its predecessor – as is to be expected with regulations that remain largely unchanged. Of course, the MP4-28 is entirely new, with minute – but very significant – changes. So much so that, according to Martin Whitmarsh, the 28 is already quicker than the car that McLaren finished the 2012 season with, and that’s before the weeks of testing that lay ahead before the first race in Australia on March 17^th.

Of course, a new Formula 1 reveal doesn’t tell us an awful lot about how good the car is – the proof of that particular pudding will come when the MP4-28 hits the track. However, there’s further cause to celebrate as this year marks a half century in the business for McLaren – indeed, on the 2^nd September 2013 it’ll be 50 years to the day since Bruce McLaren first established his own Formula 1 team. And, as they put it, what better way to start the celebrations  than by wheeling out some of McLaren’s most significant racers in a parade through the Technology Centre’s atrium, complete with obligatory throttle blips?

Senna's MP4/4: for many, the greatest McLaren

So this morning, we’ve been treated to the sight and sound of, in order, the M8D Can-Am car, in one of which McLaren himself lost his life testing at Goodwood in 1970; the M23 that, in Emerson Fittipaldi’s hands, took the 1974 championship; Ayrton Senna’s MP4/4, again a championship-winning car that provided epic some of the Brazilian’s most famous battles with Alain Prost in 1988; the iconic F1 GTR; the MP4/13 that took Mika Hakkinen to his maiden world championship in 1998; and Lewis Hamilton’s MP4-26, McLaren’s most aerodynamically-complex F1 car ever. The parade ended with Checo and Jenson entering stage left in an MP4 and a disguised P1 - the latter quickly wheeled away before prying eyes could get too close a look.

Scrof’s blog of earlier highlights the importance of racing teams like McLaren preserving their heritage, not only for their own commercial reasons but also to give historical context to those F1 fans who weren’t around for their glorious past. It seems that McLaren is planning to make a big deal about that past this year, so you can expect to hear much more about it in the coming months. With a heritage this good, that can only be something to look forward to.

[pagani1]

Thank god they have not gone for the broken nose look. I hope you win guys!

[BoxsterEtype]

I would so love to take my motor vehicle students to this place at the end of their course as a reward for all their hard work. Anybody any idea who to contact? Knocking at the front door with nice letters never worked for here or Aston Martin. It's one of those places that would truly inspire any budding motorsport fan/engineer.

[RockDoctor]

So many changes, it might take time for them to get on top of it. Hopefully not going to do a Ferrari this year.

Also, here's they're stepped nose uncovered, courtesy of Ted Kravitz on Twitter:

Edited by RockDoctor on Thursday 31st January 14:02

[Cyder]

RockDoctor said:

So many changes, it might take time for them to get on top of it. Hopefully not going to do a Ferrari this year.

Also, here's they're stepped nose uncovered, courtesy of Ted Kravitz on Twitter:

Edited by RockDoctor on Thursday 31st January 14:02

He will be a popular chap!

[suffolk009]

I think I can see a couple of mismatching floor tiles in that first photo.

[FWDRacer]

Is the none return valves on the soap dispenser in the bogs at McLaren an urban legend? No Mess. Anywhere.

[Greg 172]

BoxsterEtype said:

I would so love to take my motor vehicle students to this place at the end of their course as a reward for all their hard work. Anybody any idea who to contact? Knocking at the front door with nice letters never worked for here or Aston Martin. It's one of those places that would truly inspire any budding motorsport fan/engineer.

Sorry, no idea. But maybe angle it as a learning experience during the course (rather than just a jolly at the end ) to try and get a bit more leverage! Engineers of the future and so forth.

[RenesisEvo]

FWDRacer said:

Is the none return valves on the soap dispenser in the bogs at McLaren an urban legend? No Mess. Anywhere.

In my experience the soap dispensers tend to make more mess than necessary - you press it, wait, wait, give up, move your hand away, and then suddenly it whirs and deposits soap all over the sink. Smells nice though.

I can't repeat them here but I've heard numerous tales about floor tiles.

[Alfanatic]

Is it just my eyes or the photo, or is the colour scheme on the MP4/4 a bit wrong? Too orange and the borders between the orange and white aren't quite the right shape or place?

[NGK210]

Pisshh, looks boring, just like last year's, McLaren are so dull, not a patch on the 458... Oops, wrong thread.

[Antj]

I thought it was quite good, watching Perez nervously rocking back and forth as he realised he was totally out of his depth.

From a Mclaren PR point of view the Team does not look great, Button solid as ever but losing LH just at tha press conference looked like a big loss.

Perez will be out by end of season,

[madmarkb]

yes but can it do the business against the Red Bulls?

[Amirhussain]

madmarkb said:

yes but can it do the business against the Red Bulls?

I fking hope so.

[AlexKing]

So, which of the drivers turned up in the P1 and which in the MP4/12C?

[DanielSan]

AlexKing said:

So, which of the drivers turned up in the P1 and which in the MP4/12C?

Jenson in the P1 obviously. The new kid gets the slower car

[RealSquirrels]

madmarkb said:

yes but can it do the business against the Red Bulls?

Do you think button would have beaten vettel in Texas last year?

[ZX10Ben]

RealSquirrels said:

madmarkb said:

yes but can it do the business against the Red Bulls?

Do you think button would have beaten vettel in Texas last year?

They "may" have the car for it, but I don't think they have the driver line up for it. I'll wait to be proven wrong. Jenson has his moments, but only if the car is set up perfectly. Unsure about Perez, Don't think too much of him to be honest, let's see if he can handle the pressure of being in a front running team...

Mercedes AMG (yes, I'm a Hamilton fan) should (hopefully) be able to close the door a bit, as (I think) it's easier to close the bigger gaps (if you have the budget / resources) than it is to find those last few tenths that the front runners are constantly fighting over.

Actually quite looking forward to this season, just a refinement of the rules rather than an outright change like next season; meaning it should be VERY competitive right from the start, rather than one or two teams dominating the first quarter of the season while the others catch up. Always wondered why they don't have a rule freeze for at least two seasons? This would allow all the teams to get much more development and performance out of their packages and save a shed load of money and development on an entirely new package every season.

Anyway, here's to the upcoming season!!...

Edited by ZX10Ben on Thursday 31st January 22:06

[Exar Kun]

Alfanatic said:

Is it just my eyes or the photo, or is the colour scheme on the MP4/4 a bit wrong? Too orange and the borders between the orange and white aren't quite the right shape or place?

You'd be surprised just how 'orange' the Marlboro red was in real life. Made it stand out on TV much better.

[anonymous-user]

"Minute" changes? New front suspension, new nose, new rear bodywork, new underbody airflow, it's an incredibly aggressive update for what was supposed to be an evolutionary season. I just hope it pays off.

[P K Wright]

I tuned into the live reveal online expecting it to be a bit slow and dull like the Lotus one earlier in the week, this one however, with the historic cars up to the P1 hypercar, I thoroughly enjoyed. Wishing the team the best of luck this season and in achieving the sub-2 second pit stops they're after!