The future of F1 racing? McLaren unveil startling new concept car

McLaren have provided a tantalising glimpse of what Grand Prix cars could look like in the distant future by releasing images of an avant-garde new concept car - the MP4-X.

“With the futuristic McLaren MP4-X concept racecar, we wanted to peer into the future and imagine the art of the possible,” said John Allert, Group Brand Director, McLaren Technology Group.

“We have combined a number of F1’s key ingredients - speed, excitement and performance, with the sport’s emerging narratives - such as enclosed cockpits to enhance driver safety, and hybrid power technologies.

“Formula 1 is the ultimate gladiatorial sport, and the future we envisage will be a high tech, high performance showcase that excites fans like no other sport.”

Whilst completely hypothetical, the visually striking single-seater was designed to exploit known solutions such as ground effect to the full, as well as to utilise the most cutting-edge solutions that exist in the world today, even if some of the technology is still in its earliest stages of conception.

For example, MP4-X is designed to harness alternative power sources (such as solar and inductive coupling built into the track); the chassis changes shape to adapt to different aerodynamic demands; and the car can communicate in the event of a failure or a problem.

In the enclosed cockpit meanwhile, McLaren envisage the drivers benefitting from cameras that feed imagery back to their helmets, effectively giving them a 360-degree view of surroundings and allowing them to ‘see through walls’ - much like the systems employed in modern fighter jets.

Furthermore, expanding on technology that has been developed by McLaren Applied Technologies in partnership with GSK to improve understanding and quality of life in neurological diseases such as ALS, vehicle system control could be achieved by monitoring the electrical signals within the driver’s brain.

Pie in the sky or a vision of the future? Only time will tell…

For more information on the concept, click here.