McLaren M2
The McLaren M2 was a Formula 1 racing car , built and used by the Formula 1 team McLaren .
In its original form, the McLaren M2 was a test car and at the same time the first McLaren single-seater. Robin Herd designed the vehicle in 1965 for the US tire manufacturer Firestone, which drove tire tests with it. The car had a monocoque with bulkheads made of steel and outer walls made of sandwich panels with top layers made of half a millimeter thick duralumin sheet and a core made of balsa wood . The fibers in the wood core were directed perpendicular to the outer layers. These panels were manufactured by William Mallinson & Son in London for the aviation industry and sold under the “Mallite” brand. Herd came from the aviation industry and was familiar with the material. For the monocoque, however, the panels should not be flat and a technique had to be developed to produce panels that could be bent.
The M2 was powered by an Oldsmobile V8 engine with 3.5 liters displacement, which had been prepared by the Californian tuner Traco.
The M2B was derived from the M2 in 1966 , the first Formula 1 racing car from McLaren, which was also used in the World Championship. The monocoque with parts made of mallite was light, but still stable and stiff. The suspension was conventional on double wishbones , the front spring-damper units were on the inside and were operated via push rods and rocker arms. The V8 engine with four overhead camshafts came from Ford . These engines were primarily driven at the Indianapolis 500 in the 1960s . Although they offered around 300 hp (221 kW), they had a very narrow speed range. Therefore, in the middle of the season, McLaren opted for a more compact and lighter engine from the Scuderia Serenissima . The Serenissima V8 had less power, but the car was easier to drive.
Bruce McLaren took the team's first championship point at the 1966 British Grand Prix with the MB2-Serenissima . At the US Grand Prix there was still a fifth place, this time again with the Ford engine. McLaren built two MB2s, which were replaced by the M4 in 1967.
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Individual evidence
1966–1970: M2B | M4B | M5A | M7A | M7B | M7C | M7D | M9A | M14A | M14D
1971-1980: M19A | M19C | M23 | M26 | M26E | M28 | M29 | M29B | M29C | M30
1981-1990: M29F | MP4 / 1 | MP4 / 1B | MP4 / 1C | MP4 / 1E | MP4 / 2 | MP4 / 2B | MP4 / 2C | MP4 / 3 | MP4 / 4 | MP4 / 5
1991-2000: MP4 / 6 | MP4 / 7 | MP4 / 8 | MP4 / 9 | MP4 / 10 | MP4 / 10B | MP4 / 10C | MP4 / 11 | MP4 / 12 | MP4 / 13 | MP4 / 14 | MP4 / 15
2001-2010: MP4-16 | MP4-17 | MP4-17D | MP4-19 | MP4-20 | MP4-21 | MP4-22 | MP4-23 | MP4-24 | MP4-25
Since 2011: MP4-26 | MP4-27 | MP4-28 | MP4-29 | MP4-30 | MP4-31 | MCL32 | MCL33 | MCL34 | MCL35