McLAREN 570S SPRINT TO MAKE GLOBAL DEBUT AT THE 2016 GOODWOOD FESTIVAL OF SPEED

The recently-announced McLaren 570S Sprint will make both static and dynamic global debuts at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed as part of the largest presence by McLaren to date. The track-only model will thrill crowds on the famous Hill run and be on public display in the Supercar Paddock alongside the McLaren P1™ GTR, 650S Can-Am, 570S Coupé and the 675LT Coupé which only recently set the fastest ever time around the BBC Top Gear track. A second example of the 570S Sprint will be on private view for McLaren guests at its central location, adjacent to Goodwood House.

The 570S Sprint is the most track-focused model in the McLaren Sports Series line-up.  It has been conceived purely for owners to enjoy on the track and without the restrictions of any race series. Power and torque levels have been optimised to ensure the ultimate levels of driver engagement and the best levels of noise, too, as visitors to Goodwood will soon hear. 

Below the skin, the 570S Sprint is built around the carbon fibre MonoCell II chassis shared with all Sports Series models, and also features the familiar mid-mounted 3.8-litre twin turbo V8 engine and seven speed SSG transmission.

The 570S Sprint features enhanced cooling via a front centre GT3-inspired high temp radiator, along with a more aggressive front splitter and floor assembly as premiered on the 570S GT4. As standard, the 570S Sprint is filled with New Life™ 0W-40 engine oil, developed by McLaren Automotive technology partner Mobil 1.

Based on the aerodynamic ‘shrink-wrapped’ design of the 570S Coupé, the 570S Sprint features an air piercing front bumper which separates the airflow above, below and through the bodywork, while the intricate design of the ‘floating’ door tendons channel air into the side-mounted radiators. The elegant flying buttresses are also retained. An additional aerodynamic upgrade which includes a large carbon fibre fixed rear wing and front dive planes, brings the highest level of downforce yet seen on any model in the Sports Series.

Centre-locking lightweight cast magnesium wheels shod with Pirelli racing slicks are fitted as standard, while the double wishbones and anti-roll bars front and rear are shared with the suspension system seen on the 570S Coupé. An optional motorsport air jacking system to aid wheel changes is also available.

Inside the stripped out, driver-focused cabin, an FIA-approved rollcage adds further protection to the lightweight carbon fibre MonoCell II chassis. The FIA-approved flat back driver, and optional passenger, seat are fitted with a six-point racing harness, and a fire extinguisher system is also installed as standard.

While the 570S Sprint is not homologated for any race series, a GT4 compliance pack is available as a further upgrade for the 570S Sprint. Having been developed in parallel to the 570S GT4 – currently completing its final testing phase in the live race environment of the British GT championship – the package includes all items required to meet the FIA standards for GT4 competition.

Finished in McLaren Orange as standard, the 570S Sprint can be optioned with any of the colour palette available on the Sports Series, along with a unique range of liveries through MSO Defined. Deliveries will commence in 2017 and pricing starts from £148,000 ex. works (local market pricing applies).

See a preview of the McLaren 570S Sprint in action at: 

https://youtu.be/hr-QGdQ0aIg.

CITROËN RACING’S DEVELOPMENT OF 2017 WORLD RALLY CAR ACCELERATES IN FINLAND

Citroën Racing chose the roads of Finland for the third development test session of its 2017 World Rally Car. Running at maximum speed on the famous jumps, Kris Meeke and Craig Breen were able to test the car’s aerodynamic performance.

With its large, fast and rolling roads, Finland is among world rallying’s most revered venues. Due to the high speeds and the difficulty to “read” the road, it is one of the toughest terrains to grasp, with the drivers needing to concentrate on the jump approaches that send the cars flying into the air.

It is, therefore, no surprise that this country figures among the priority destinations for the team in charge of developing the Citroën that will compete in the 2017 FIA World Rally Championship. After the rough terrain of southern France and the mud-filled tracks in Portugal, Finland was ideal to continue assessing the car’s reliability and performance.

For this test, the aerodynamics were closely scrutinised by the engineers. “The freedom allowed by the FIA regulations offers us a much larger range of possible solutions than before,” says project manager for the 2017 World Rally Car, Alexis Avril.

“The bodywork of the WRC must entirely cover that of the original model and the maximum width is set at 1875mm. In this framework, we have a lot of freedom to design the wheel arches and bumpers. We can also create air intakes for re-cooling the rear brakes and add on a diffuser. Paradoxically, there are more restrictions for the design of the rear wing than today, but its efficiency will be increased tenfold by its further backed and raised positioning.”

The aerodynamics of a race or rally car must solve the complex equation of attaining maximum down-force, minimum drag and maximum cooling. To achieve this, Citroën Racing’s engineers have adopted what is now a standard methodology.

“We started the work with the CFD calculations, which let us sift through the possible options, continues Alexis Avril. “We collaborated with the Citroën design studio in order for the race car to resemble the characteristics of the production model. From this data, we built a model that was used in the wind tunnel. Between sessions, we carried on with the CFD calculations in enriching the data from the tests, and vice versa.”

With this approach, the expertise gained during the development of the WTCC Citroën Elysée has been widely put to use: “We have made great strides in our understanding of the flow principles and aerodynamic performance since 2013 and the debut of the WTCC programme. We have saved time in utilising the proven solutions. As the disciplines are different not everything was transferable, in circuit racing, there is a form of systematisation that doesn’t exist in rallying. Thus, the compromises are more important.”

While the aerodynamic development itself was done with CFD calculations and wind tunnel tests, the test sessions were used to assess the resilience of various components. “Vulnerability is an essential point in rallying. The dirt, mud, stones and gravel can quickly tear away the element or block the air intakes,” recalls Alexis Avril. “So you have to run in all the conditions to find a compromise between reliability and performance.”

WHEN ONE McLAREN P1™ GTR IS NOT ENOUGH

• 2016 Goodwood Festival of Speed to host two different incarnations of the ultra rare McLaren P1™ GTR
• Entrants by both McLaren Automotive and Lanzante Ltd.
• Lanzante Ltd. modified McLaren P1™ GTR to attempt record Hill time for a road car

Not one, but two examples of the extraordinary McLaren P1™ GTR will be in action on the Hill over the Goodwood Festival of Speed weekend, between them producing nearly 2,000 horsepower. The first is entered by McLaren Automotive as part of the Supercar Run and is being fitted with a special livery inspired by James Hunt’s famous race helmet, in honour of the 40th anniversary of his Formula 1™ championship win. The second is entered by Lanzante Ltd. and is an extensively modified version of the original which was initially created by McLaren Special Operations (MSO). The most obvious difference between them is that the Lanzante entrant is street legal, meaning the Lanzante team will attempt to set the fastest time of the weekend for a road car with 1999 Indy 500 winner and McLaren test driver, Kenny Bräck, behind the wheel.

The McLaren P1™ GTR is the car that McLaren never intended to build. But when deliveries began of the road legal McLaren P1™, its first recipients called for an even more extreme version dedicated for track use. The bespoke division of McLaren Automotive, MSO, obliged confirming limited production of the car at the International Geneva Motor Show in 2015. For the near £2 million purchase price, their clients also had automatic entry into the ultimate McLaren ownership experience, the McLaren P1™ GTR Driver Programme, including exclusive events at international Formula 1™ circuits, access to the McLaren Racing driver simulator, and their own team of race technicians. To celebrate the 40th anniversary of James Hunt’s Driver’s Championship, as well as the fourth owners’ gathering for the McLaren P1™ GTR earlier this week at Silverstone, a one-off livery has been created by McLaren for the entry of the car in this year’s Festival. Its base colour of black teamed with red, yellow and blue stripes echo those of James Hunt’s race helmet, colours resembling his school colours. And among those gripping its Formula 1™-inspired steering wheel over the weekend will be McLaren P1™ GTR Driver Programme Mentor, Bruno Senna. 

Lanzante Ltd. has extensive history with McLaren, not least as the company that ran the semi-works McLaren F1 GTR that won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1995. 21 years later, Lanzante is renewing its link to those evocative letters with a car that it says will bring together the best of the McLaren Ulimate Series, combining the track-focused McLaren P1™ GTR and its road car sibling in one. Lanzante has so far completed an experimental prototype and it is this which will take to Goodwood’s Hill in Class 25 for Modern GT Racers.  

Visually, the Lanzante car resembles a McLaren P1™ GTR but with modifications for road use. These updates have been designed and developed by Lanzante Ltd.

In addition to a presence in both the Supercar and F1 paddocks, McLaren House will once again return to the lawns of the Goodwood Estate with iconic racers displayed alongside the full range of modern-day McLarens from across the Sports Series, Super Series and Ultimate Series. The broad selection of cars, spanning more than 50 years of the McLaren name, will be the most extensive display the company has ever showcased...including the new 570GT.