Niki Lauda's British GP winning McLaren

This McLaren MP4/1B-6 was piloted by Niki Lauda for the 1982 Formula 1 season, winning the British Grand Prix at Brands Hatch. Conceived by John Barnard, a gifted and perfectionist engineer at Project Four (the “P4” in MP4), Barnard wanted a narrow chassis to maximize the ground effect area of the side pods – needing a new material to replace lost strength, he turned to carbon fibre, visiting British Aerospace facilities to see its application. 

With every layer precisely calculated, Barnard said working with carbon fibre was “more like tailoring than building a car.” Today every Formula One chassis is constructed with carbon and this MP4/1 is the car that started it all, changing the sport forever.

With McLaren struggling in the late seventies, the team was merged with Project Four, the latter contributing its strong-willed engineer and his promising new design. Developed into the TAG-Turbo MP4/2, Barnard’s design with Niki Lauda would win the 1984 Formula One Drivers’ Championship for McLaren, with Alain Prost following up with further wins in 1985 and 1986, the year Barnard moved on to Ferrari. 

This beautiful 1982 McLaren MP4/1B-6 is currently available from Fiskens.

Photos © Fiskens