McLaren MP4/1

The Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1998 celebrated 50 year of racing at Silverstone with a display featuring a car for each of those 50 years. I've shown photographs previously of cars representing some of those years, and this is the car that represented 1981.

It's the McLaren MP4/1, the first Formula 1 car to be built with a carbon fibre composite monocoque, and was powered by the 2,993cc Cosworth DFY V8 engine. McLaren used the car for 3 seasons, driven by John Watson & Andrea de Cesaris in 1981, and John Watson & Niki Lauda in 1982 & 1983. Its successor, the McLaren MP4/2, helped McLaren claim three World Drivers Championship titles, for Niki Lauda in 1984 and Alain Prost in 1985 & 1986.