McLaren M6 GT
The McLaren M6 GT was a sports car that was developed by McLaren in 1969 , but never reached series production.
Development history
In 1969 Bruce McLaren , team owner and driver in personal union , suggested the construction of a sports car for selected customers. The basis was the Spider McLaren M6B , which drove in the US CanAm racing series . McLaren vehicles dominated this racing series in the late 1960s.
The M6 GT had an aluminum monocoque, complex wheel guide elements at the front and rear and, unlike the CanAm Spider, a closed body with gullwing doors. The vehicle was powered by an 8-cylinder Chevrolet engine that came from the Spider.
Racing history
After Bruce McLaren's death during test drives in Goodwood in 1970, the project was postponed for the time being and abandoned entirely in 1971. Nevertheless, four vehicles came onto the market - some of them via detours. One bought Steve McQueen , who wanted to use the vehicle in Gulf livery for his Le Mans film . Denis Hulme bought a second car . The vehicle stood for some time in the National Transport Museum of New Zealand and was given to a private collector from California in 1990.
Bruce McLaren's proposed first production car finally became a reality in 1993 with the McLaren F1 .
Web links
- The M6 GT on the McLaren website
- The M6 GT from the outdated McLaren website ( February 2, 2008 memento on the Internet Archive )
- The M6 GT in the livery of the Gulf racing car