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McLaren F1...almost powered by Isuzu!! 
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Joined: Thu Sep 11, 2008 9:15 am
Posts: 1991
Car(s): 1965 Wasp, 1966 Bellett, 1967 Bellett, 1969 Florian, 1973 Bellett GTR, 1976 Buick Opel by Isuzu, 1978 Gemini van
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Hey guys,

I came across this article the other day:

https://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/201 ... refer=news

If you can't be bothered reading it, here's the basic rundown.

Essentially the condensed history of the mighty McLaren F1 supercar, it goes through McLaren's engine choices while they prototypes the car. They first approached their Formula One partner Honda; the Honda-powered McLaren MP4/4 racecar had won 15 of the 16 races for the 1988 F1 season after all; however Honda declined to be involved.

Apparently Isuzu were also working on their own F1 engine! And they were quick to contact McLaren and ask to be considered! However, McLaren rejected Isuzu, citing their lack of a racing pedigree as the reason.

What a shame; it's true Isuzu hadn't done a billion races compared to Honda's motorcycling and F1 heritage, but they had a lot more experience in touring cars and the DOHC GTR engine was known for being peaky and reliable, albeit 20 years old by that stage. Dammit! What a combination that would have been!

History shows that BMW's engine was amazing and it's possible the McLaren F1 may not have been the car that it was with anything lesser.

But still, an irresistible 'what-if' to consider!

Cheers,


Dave

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Fri Jan 20, 2017 10:56 am
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Joined: Sun Jun 14, 2009 8:44 am
Posts: 348
Location: central coast
Car(s): 1967 bellett gt, wasp trayback , 2018 d-max 4x4 dual cab LSU, 2016 Focus, 1996 GQ Patrol
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Wow, that would have been so cool.
I wonder what engine they would have used ?
I believe that Isuzu was developing a ceramic engine back then, V8 I think ?


Sun Jan 22, 2017 2:56 am
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Joined: Tue Sep 16, 2008 11:54 am
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Isuzu built a V12 engine for Formula 1 back in the day too. Lotus wanted it, said it was the best engine they'd ever had, but still didn't use it.
$$$$$$$$$$$$$......


Sun Jan 22, 2017 4:31 am
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Joined: Sun Jun 14, 2009 8:44 am
Posts: 348
Location: central coast
Car(s): 1967 bellett gt, wasp trayback , 2018 d-max 4x4 dual cab LSU, 2016 Focus, 1996 GQ Patrol
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Would make an interesting conversion into a Bellett or Wasp.


Mon Jan 23, 2017 9:46 am
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Joined: Thu Sep 11, 2008 9:15 am
Posts: 1991
Car(s): 1965 Wasp, 1966 Bellett, 1967 Bellett, 1969 Florian, 1973 Bellett GTR, 1976 Buick Opel by Isuzu, 1978 Gemini van
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"interesting"

Balls-out batshit crazy!!!

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Tue Jan 24, 2017 12:12 pm
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