1995 McLaren F1 Coupe

To this day, the McLaren F1 remains the fastest naturally aspirated production car, with a top speed of 240 mph. The F1 was designed by the legendary Gordon Murray, Ron Dennis, and the McLaren team as a very fast road car, but almost immediately, they were pushed to create a racing equivalent. A GTR iteration of the supercar went to Le Mans in 1995 and took first, third, fourth and fifth place. It also won the GT championship. The F1 is perhaps best known for its highly unusual three-seater configuration, with a central driver's seat plus a passenger seat on either side and slightly behind. It was powered by the 6-liter BMW S70/2 V12, delivering 618 horsepower and paired with a six-speed transmission. The F1 prototype XP5 set the world record for the fastest production car, reaching 240 mph.

This McLaren is one of sixty-eight road-going F1s built, in a total production run of 106. It is the only one that was delivered in 'Creighton Brown,' named for McLaren's Director of the Formula 1 race team. This time-capsule is a superbly preserved example of the world's fastest naturally aspirated production car.

The McLaren F1 remains the benchmark by which all other sports cars are judged. It was engineered with elegance, assembled with precision with meticulous attention to detail, and endowed with the finest materials available including titanium, carbon fiber, aluminum, and even gold. The fiber monocoque chassis housed a 6.1-liter DOHC V12 engine developed under BMW Motorsport's Paul Rosche. There was a full ground-effects undertray, a three-seat central-drive cockpit, and bespoke equipment from independent suppliers such as Brembo, Goodyear, and TAG electronics.

The road-going F1 was the world's fastest production car of its era, and it also helped McLaren capture an overall win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1995, the 1995 BPR Championship, the 1996 Global GT Endurance Championship, and later served as the foundation for BMW's own successful endurance racing program.

This particular example is chassis number 029, and has been driven less than 390 km from new. It was the 25th F1 built at McLaren's workshop in Woking, England, and the final example built in 1994, having been completed on December 23. Its exterior is finished in a metallic brown livery (named Creighton Brown in honor of the commercial director of McLaren Cars Ltd), a unique color not shared with any other F1. During Mr. Brown's time as a director for McLaren, the British team won seven Constructors' and eight Drivers' World Championship titles.

The interior is finished in light tan leather and Alcantara, with contrasting Brazilian Brown leather accents and brown carpeting. There is a four-piece fitted luggage set, handbook folio, and tool roll, all trimmed in matching light tan leather.

Chassis 029's first owner was a private Japanese collector who took possession of the vehicle in 1995. Over the following 17 years, this F1 was primarily kept in a static museum display, and driven sparingly. Most of the mileage on the odometer was added while in Japan during a promotional filming session at a test course near Tsukuba.

This McLaren remained in the care of its original owner until 2012, when it was sold to Japanese exotic car dealer Art Sports, to Shinji Takei of Tokyo. Mr. Takei sold 029 to the current American owner in 2013, with its odometer reading just 316 km. It entered the U.S. in April of that year and was imported under the Show or Display exemption. Upon arrival, the car was entrusted to JK Technologies of Baltimore, a firm specializing in EPA conversions of exotic supercars. JK Technologies serviced 029 and made it US-emissions compliant, accruing as few miles as possible and taking extra care to preserve any original components replaced during the federalization process. The work was completed in January of 2014 and since then, it has not been driven any distance, nor has it been publicly exhibited. Once a month, the current owner runs 029 to operating temperature and has carried out fluid changes on a regular basis.

This original McLaren retains its factory-applied paint and interior finishes, and its various identification plates and labels also remain intact. Even its Goodyear Eagle tires, specially designed for the F1, are the original ones supplied with the car when new. It retains its January 1995-dated Premier fuel cell manufacturer's label, and the original McLaren Track Record plaque, with the last line acknowledging the team's 104 Grand Prix wins in 1993.

The car has its original catalytic converters and heat shields removed during the federalization process, two sets of keys, McLaren mechanics gloves, car covers, roadside accessories, and a TAG Heuer 6000 Chronometer wristwatch.

By Daniel Vaughan | Nov 2021