Photography by Brian Bailey
Still Fastest After All These Years
June 4, 2002
; function voidFunc() { } voidFunc(); "McLaren GTR")
“Service issues were considered early in the design,” notes Dermott. “There would obviously be a limited service dealer network, so a need to download information from the car was a requirement.” McLaren’s sister company TAG Electronic Systems, in cooperation with BMW, created remote diagnostics that communicate with each of the cars’ systems. McLaren can troubleshoot any problem from its suburban London headquarters through each car’s onboard modem. “After 10 years,” Dermott adds, “it is still state of the art.” (Click image to enlarge)
An anecdote from Leno about an England-based representative who hand delivered a part to Leno’s Los Angeles home illustrates McLaren’s high level of customer service. “I imagine that this was the way it was done in the ’20s and ’30s, if you had a Hispano Suiza or a Bugatti,” Leno says. “Sure, you pay for it [in the price of the car], but the service is worthy of the best sports car in the world.”
Not long after the F1’s introduction, customers started asking for race-prepared versions. Although it was never the company’s plan, McLaren obliged in 1995 with the GTR. Even though it was only slightly modified from the road car, private teams racing the GTR swept the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1995, finishing first, third, fourth, fifth and 13th. Demand for the GTR continued, and McLaren produced new versions for 1996 and 1997, which received more substantial ministrations. By supercar standards, the GTR was already a lightweight. But engineers managed to reduce weight by reversing the chassis structure and shaving 50 pounds from the engine with hollow crankshafts, titanium exhaust systems, lighter alternators and composite crankshaft covers. By 1997 the GTR weighed only 2,020 pounds. 1995 and 1996 saw nine GTRs apiece, and 10 were sold in 1998.
advertisement
