MCLARENF1 LM 1995

　　After winning the 1995 edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans race, the British automaker made a limited edition of the F1 model, named F1 LM.

　　The British race car manufacturer McLaren launched the F1 model in 1992, and it was later considered the first hypercar in history, even though that term didn’t exist back then. By 1995, the car was already a sensation, and it ruled the supercar industry with its astonishing performance. But unlike Ferrari, Jaguar, or Porsche, it needed a victory in the famous French race to become special. So, in 1995, McLaren entered the race and won. It took the first, third, fourth, fifth, and thirteenth position in the final standings, and the F1 became a legend since it won the famous, grueling race at its debut. That’s why the automaker made a very limited edition to celebrate the result, creating six units of the F1 LM, five of which were sold, and one was kept in the automaker’s museum.

　　The car came fitted with a body kit that mimicked the one from the GTR racer, featuring rectangular side scoops at the front that cooled the brakes. In addition, the hood sported a larger air intake. Since McLaren made it for higher speeds than the regular F1, it also dropped the ground clearance by 10 mm (0.4 inch). McLaren delivered three of the customer vehicles in a special paint named Historic Orange, while the other two sported black color with blue, yellow, and silver stripes.

　　From its profile, the car exposed its large disc brakes behind the 18” magnesium OZ wheels that were significantly wider than the regular ones. These were 10.85” at the front and 13 inches at the back compared to the 9” and 11.5-inch ones fitted on the standard McLaren F1, respectively. At the back, the automaker had to install a fixed wing on the deck, even though Gordon Murray, who penned the vehicle, didn’t like it. Since the automaker tried to create a road-going version of the vehicles that raced at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, it had to install that aerodynamic element, which was not just for decoration.

　　Inside, the F1 LM was stripped of all the unnecessary elements, such as carpeting, stereo, and air conditioning. The center-mounted driving sports seat was upholstered in black and orange suede and was flanked by two other seats covered in gray leather. Like any other F1 car, the dashboard was wrapped in gray Alcantara that reduced glare. Since the vehicle was very loud inside, the automaker added an intercom system fitted with race-spec headphones for all three occupants that could sit in the cockpit.

　　However, the most significant improvement over the standard F1 was found under the car’s orange skin. While it was built on the same carbon fiber structure, it featured major upgrades. The car featured 380 mm brake discs at the front and 355 mm at the rear, compared to the regular version that wore 332 mm rotors at the front and 305 mm out back, respectively. The engine was supplied by BMW, and since it ran unrestricted by the FIA’s regulations, it produced 80 hp (81 PS) more than the standard McLaren F1. Despite all these upgrades, the car’s top speed was actually slower than the one offered by its sibling, reaching 225 MPH (362 kph) instead of 241 MPH (388 kph).