rFactor 2: Historical McLaren F1 Cars Released!

Chris · Sep 18, 2018

Just days after their announcement at the 2018 Sim Racing expo in Germany, right on cue, Studio 397 have released three historical McLaren Formula One cars for rFactor 2... free of charge.

Replicated with stunning attention to detail, the three vehicles brought to the increasingly popular simulator are:

McLaren M23 - The one that carried Fittipaldi and Hunt to WDC's in 1974 and 1976 respectively.
McLaren MP4/8 - The one that helped Ayrton Senna complete the greatest opening lap ever.
McLaren MP4/13 - The one that won the 1998 Drivers and Constructors titles with relative ease.

But don't let me talk you into it, here's a little of what Studio 397 had to say about the cars:

McLaren M23
"When McLaren introduces the M23 to the world in 1973 with first test drives, they knew already that they had created something special. Feedback from the first laps had been amazing, an easy to steer car with a great balance, thanks to nearly all the weight being close to the center, where also the tank was located.

The introduction to the Formula 1 World Championship was marked as a complete success before even going into the cars first race, since McLaren managed to put their brand new M23 right on Pole Position."

McLaren MP4/8
"While the car featured innovative technology and an advanced chassis, the team was being led [sic] down by engine in the end, which didn't offer as much performance as their competition was able to produce. Nevertheless this car put up a fight for the championship, especially since it featured automatic programmable gearbox, traction control and a host of other options, leaving the driver with more resources to concentrate solely on fighting for the top spots."

McLaren MP4/13
"Designed by Adrian Newey, the new MP4/13 was a perfect fit to the new rule-set and the grooved tyres. Efficient aerodynamics teamed up with the most powerful engine (780bhp) on the grid, the car immediately dominated the series and turned the first race into a pure McLaren showcase. Every single competitor got lapped at least once during the Australian Grand Prix, just a sign of what was to come for the rest of the season."

So there you have it. Three iconic F1 cars, for free and they're available for download right now. So what are you waiting for?!

Tried the new content? Let us know what you think in the comments below, and be sure to stay up to date with all the latest simracing news here at RaceDepartment (especially once our Editor-in-Chief gets back from the Expo!)

Andy_J · Sep 24, 2018

I tried the MP4/8 last night for the first time. Great car to throw around a gp track. But by god the external engine sounds are so poor. I have better sounds from some 3rd party mod F1 cars, especially in AMS than this. It really is bad.