Interesting McLaren Facts for Kids | (2025 Updated!)
If you’re a fan of luxury cars, then this article is definitely something you’ll want to read! McLaren Automobiles is one of the world’s most well-known and revered luxury sports car companies. It is known for the sports cars that they make, and in this article, we’re going to look more closely at this company. We’ll look at a list of fun facts about McLaren, as well as how the company got started.
Let’s get right into it.
History of McLaren
When the company was first founded, it was called McLaren Cars, and it opened in 1985. It was founded by Bruce McLaren, who was a New Zealand-born racing car designer. His interest in cars began when he was a young child working at the service station that his parents owned. When he was a teenager, he entered a hillclimb and won; the car of his choice was an Austin 7 Ulster.
By the time Bruce was in his early 20s, he went to the United Kingdom with the intention of helping New Zealand and Australian drivers compete in the European races. He went on to begin his Formula 1 career in 1958, the same year he went to the UK! Bruce’s career was off to a good start, because he won the Grand Prix the same year he entered it.
As time went on, Bruce McLaren achieved more and more success as a race car driver, and eventually started his first company in 1963, called Bruce McLaren Motor Racing. His company built the first McLaren car one year later, and the company only grew in size and success from there.
10 Fun Facts About McLaren Cars
1. McLaren’s longest-serving employee worked at the company for 50 years.
Ray ‘Tex’ Rowe was McLaren’s longest-serving employee! He worked in the company from the very beginning and even worked with Bruce McLaren himself. Ray began at the company when McLaren was working on its first Formula One Car. Some of his fondest memories came from working on cars in the 80s, when the team at McLaren were at their peak. Although they had lost Bruce some years before, Ray believed that his spirit lived on in them and inspired them to keep working.
2. McLaren’s first car was the McLaren M1.
Technically, the first McLaren car was called the McLaren M1A. The range of M1 cars were all built over the course of five years, between 1963 and 1968, but the M1A was the company’s first and official McLaren car. It was a sports car. In the years that followed, newer versions of the M1, like the M1B and M1C, were all used for competitions in the Can-Am series. Different motors were used for these cars over the years, such as the Chevrolet big-block engine and the Chevrolet small-block engine.
3. The McLaren Technology Centre is known for its innovation and design.
If you’re a car fan, there’s a good chance that you’re already familiar with the McLaren Technology Centre! If not, it might interest you to know that the MTC’s design is unparalleled. It has an artificial lake with over 50,000 m³ of water that help keep the building cool through heat exchangers. Additionally, there are more than 100,000 trees on the McLaren grounds.
4. McLaren uses over 1000 liters of paint per year.
It’s no secret that McLaren produces many cars every year, which is why it is not surprising that this company uses more than 1000 liters of chrome paint every single year. Additionally, McLaren employees have stated that the hardest logos to apply on a car are the Vodaphone roundels. Since the roundels are awkwardly shaped, they are difficult to apply, and always look distorted until they are applied!
5. David Coulthard is one of the McLaren’s longest-serving drivers.
David Coulthard’s career at McLaren began in 1996 and lasted until 2004. His interest in cars and driving began as a child after he started racing karts as an eight-year-old! Fast forward to 1994, and Coulthard became an official test driver for the squad at Williams-Renault. In 1996, he went on to partner with the experienced Mika Häkkinen at McLaren, and won the Grand Prix every year except for 2004, when he lost to Michael Schumacher.
6. Ayrton Senna da Silva earned McLaren its highest number of wins.
Ayrton Senna was one of the most prolific race car drivers in the world until his death in 1994. He joined the McLaren team in the late 80s, after establishing a rapport with the team at Honda. He earned eight wins during his first season with McLaren and continued to stay with the company for two more seasons after that. Over the years, he continued to win a number of titles and eventually earned McLaren 35 wins in total, the highest out of all their drivers.
7. McLaren had one of the longest sports partnerships of all time.
It’s interesting to note that while it isn’t the longest sports partnership in all of history, McLaren’s partnership with Hugo Boss lasted for over 30 years. Although this partnership ended in 2014, it lasted from 1981!
8. McLaren’s logo has changed over time.
Ever since this company was launched, its logo has changed over time. Michael Turner designed the very first McLaren logo in 1964. It featured a kiwi, the bird from Bruce McLaren’s hometown of New Zealand. As time went on and the McLaren company got bigger, its logo was altered to reflect the new car models and the progression of the company’s success.
9. McLaren’s technology has been ahead of its time ever since the company was first started.
It’s no secret to Formula 1 fans that McLaren’s cars are some of the lightest on the road. This is because the company has been ahead of the game for several decades now, thanks to the intelligence of their developers and engineers who focus on building cars with a light chassis. They are also considered to be pioneers of racing technology.
10. The McLaren team takes a lot of equipment to races.
Some of the equipment that they take to races includes a spare chassis, floors, gearboxes, front and rear wings, a timing stand, spare wheels, and shelving units of car parts. They also take rear brake ducts and drive shafts.
Conclusion
In this article, we took a look at one of Formula 1’s most iconic car brands, McLaren. This car company has been around for several decades now, and has made its mark in the world of car racing. We encourage you to do more research into its drivers and founder, and we hope you learned something newnad exciting today!