Google Streetview adds McLaren Technology Centre

2013 F1 season

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The McLaren Technology Centre, headquarters of the Formula One team and their car manufacturing operation, can now be explored using Google Streetview.

Google mapped out part of the team’s headquarters to allow people to virtually explore it as part of the team’s 50th anniversary celebrations.

“We?óÔé¼Ôäóre pleased to be able to open our doors to the public, with the help of Google,” said team principal Martin Whitmarsh. “While we sadly can?óÔé¼Ôäót allow everyone to visit in person, working with Google lets our fans tour our legendary cars and have a good look around.”

“I hope people are as inspired as I was when I saw the MTC for the first time.”

A selection of McLaren F1 cars from the seventies up to the present day can be seen in the MTC’s boulevard. You can also inspect the cabinets which contain hundreds of trophies won by the team in Formula One and other championships.

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Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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24 comments on “Google Streetview adds McLaren Technology Centre”

  1. Profile Photo

    Neil (@neilosjames)
    26th November 2013, 13:53

    Visited the old McLaren place back in 1999. Was quite impressed.

    Now I’ve seen the inside of this (Paragon as they called it back then, wonder what happened to that name)… it makes their old factory look rather stone age.

  2. Profile Photo

    matt90 (@matt90)
    26th November 2013, 14:04

    Fantastic. I hope to have a tour one day, but, failing that, this is great. Could do with more Can-Am on display though! Also surprised with the lack of Indy cars.

  3. Profile Photo

    barkun (@barkun)
    26th November 2013, 14:19

    MTC is quite impressive.

    I am however disappointed that I could not find Mansell’s moustache in the trophy cabinet (should be there: saw it on tooned) :P

    1. Profile Photo

      Strontium (@strontium)
      26th November 2013, 16:37

      Were the “K”s there though? :o

  4. Profile Photo

    Diceman (@diceman)
    26th November 2013, 14:34

    This is fantastic idea. It was nice to go around and search for Häkkinen’s 98 & 99 cars.

    1. Profile Photo

      Diceman (@diceman)
      26th November 2013, 14:37

      But it’s a bit limited, I tried to go down the stairs but I couldn’t :-(

      1. Profile Photo

        Tomsk (@tomsk)
        26th November 2013, 15:05

        That’s the secret underground test track down there – I remember it from that Tooned documentary.

        I like the view from upstairs, looking down on all the cars. But I bet they don’t put this year’s car on display…it’ll be out the back somewhere, next to Nigel Mansell’s one.

      2. RFB
        26th November 2013, 18:38

        Nothing interesting down the stairs, just white corridors, which are mostly used for normal people (employees, suppliers, people coming for job interviews…) to get in and out of the building, or go to the canteen when the main section is used for events.
        Normal employees are also not usually allowed to use the path above, which is for guests and VIP.

  5. hello kitty
    26th November 2013, 14:46

    Ron, there’s a loose tile beside the mp4-13, get it fixed please!

  6. Profile Photo

    Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
    26th November 2013, 16:32

    McLaren is rumoured to have, what?, 600 people working at the MTC? 200 must be window cleaners. Unless they created a horribly complicated window cleaning device that not only makes the glass as transparent as it can be but also reduces drag for the whole facility and makes the Earth spin 0.02 secs faster round its axis.

    1. Profile Photo

      Palle (@palle)
      26th November 2013, 18:54

      A window cleaning robot with KERS, DRS, F-Duct, Coanda-exhaust, adaptive suspension, flexible front wing and ground effect to make it stick to the vertical window pane while cleaning:-) Even Newey would be impressed.

  7. Profile Photo

    Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
    26th November 2013, 16:44

    Also, wonder why they took the F-duct out of the MP4-25… that car looked better with it and also, it probably was the latest technical innovation by McLaren…

    1. Profile Photo

      matt90 (@matt90)
      26th November 2013, 19:13

      I agree that it’s odd they removed it, but I disagree about the aesthetics- I abhor sharkfins.

      1. Profile Photo

        Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
        26th November 2013, 19:16

        @matt90 same ! I generally didn’t like them but that one I liked ! maybe because of it’s purpose being far greater than its looks…

        1. Profile Photo

          matt90 (@matt90)
          26th November 2013, 19:25

          @fer-no65 Actually, I just thought, I think in Hamilton’s short-lived Monza race he didn’t use the F-duct. So at least it did race like that once.
          http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?espv=210&es_sm=93&biw=1517&bih=713&tbm=isch&tbnid=cvBqWXnjVKg04M:&imgrefurl=http://www.f1technical.net/forum/viewtopic.php%3Ff%3D12%26t%3D14274%26start%3D90&docid=ZSBtKP6ZoC9XvM&imgurl=http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_6ekeZsieInA/TJKJ0GKTuPI/AAAAAAAACfs/90mhjr70KfY/s1600/Hamilton.jpg&w=720&h=480&ei=ZvWUUsGyAoSzhAf8jYGIDg&zoom=1&ved=1t:3588,r:4,s:0,i:93&iact=rc&page=1&tbnh=182&tbnw=245&start=0&ndsp=16&tx=58&ty=85

          1. Profile Photo

            Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
            26th November 2013, 20:25

            @matt90 Yup ! correct, he didn’t use it… but he regretted it ! not that it’d have mattered much considering he completely messed up his WDC chances trying to overtake Massa on lap 1…

  8. Richard
    26th November 2013, 18:16

    OMG – They have already fired everyone!
    Maybe Red Bull should build a bottling factory on the other side of lake?
    That would give Ron something to think about when looking out the window ;-)

  9. Profile Photo

    MtlRacer (@mtlracer)
    26th November 2013, 20:26

    Where are the tobacco company logos?
    Obviously, I know about advertising restrictions, but I did not think they went as far as having to sanitize championship winning liveries.

    1. Profile Photo

      Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
      26th November 2013, 20:52

      @mtlracer yeah, they corrupt every single tobacco livery these days. I think it’s a shame, it’s not like it’s advertising anymore… one can google images of those F1 cars and see the “West”, “Marlboro” and all that… specially at a museum, why would you cover the logos of tobacco companies?

    2. Profile Photo

      Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
      26th November 2013, 21:30

      @mtlracer @fer-no65 They say they don’t leave the tobacco liveries on the cars because from time to time they have school parties in or other groups of children, and don’t want to be seen marketing tobacco to children.

      Which I think is reasonable though I do wish they’d use the original liveries when they go to classic events like Goodwood. Or at least the period non-tobacco liveries.

  10. Nikander Pellonpaa
    26th November 2013, 22:49

    Can anyone ID the orange vehicle tucked away in the far right corner (SW?) of the building behind the spiral staircase? Looks like a 3-wheel electric endurance vehicle or equivalent. Neat.

    maps?q=mclaren+technology+centre&ll=51.34518,-0.547203&spn=0.003351,0.008202&fb=1&gl=uk&hq=mclaren+technology+centre&cid=1158993677060234665&t=m&layer=c&cbll=51.345146,-0.547154&panoid=8j0XKQTQ1ngZxmGUmA40gw&cbp=13,190.27,,1,7.37&z=18

    1. Johnny Five
      27th November 2013, 13:02

      3-wheeled? Orange?? Could it be a McLaren / Bajaj technology partnership prototype?

    2. AH
      27th November 2013, 14:08

      That is the McLaren MP4-T5.

      fact #19
      http://www.mclaren.com/formula1/inside-the-mtc/50-interesting-facts/

      1. nikander Pellonpaa
        5th December 2013, 7:47

        Good catch AH. That vehicle is a curious beast:

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