Check out McLaren Elba's speedster, Gulf, in classic colors.
The famous blue and orange Gulf Oil colors are iconic in the history of racing. They have been worn by several brands, including the historic McLaren racing cars. McLaren's new street car in its Gulf colors was unveiled on Friday, a one-off Elva Speedster.
The car, which was unveiled at Goodwood Speedweek via a "private" broadcast, marks a partnership between McLaren and Gulf Oil. The oil company signed a multi-year sponsorship deal with the McLaren F1 team in July. As part of the agreement, McLaren customers can order cars in Gulf Oil livery through McLaren Special Operations (MSO), McLaren's personalization division.
McLaren and Gulf have a long history of cooperation: from 1968 to 1973, McLaren's Formula One, Can-Am, and Indy racing cars were Gulf branded, McLaren said in a press release. However, these cars were not in the full colors of Gulf, but were clad in McLaren's then trademark papaya orange.
More recently, the MSO painted a Senna GTR LM in Gulf colors to commemorate the number 24 McLaren F1 GTR that finished fourth in the 1995 24 Hours of Le Mans. The car was one of five Senna GTR LM models built for each of the F1 GTRs that completed the race (one from each of the seven cars entered).
The elle va itself evokes McLaren's history. Derived from the French "elle va," or "she goes" in English, the name comes from the McLaren Elva sports racer of the 1960s. This was the McLaren M1A racing car, built by the British manufacturer Elva at a time when McLaren did not have the capacity to build its own cars.
The latest addition to the Ultimate Series, along with the Senna, Speedtail, and P1, the Elva is distinguished by its open-air design. McLaren's Active Air Management System (AAMS)-a series of channels that direct air around the passenger compartment-allows the Elva to travel at high speeds in comfort without a windshield.
Like other McLaren models, the Elva is built around a carbon-fiber center tub and is powered by a twin-turbo V-8 engine. The 4.0-liter V-8 engine, shared with the Senna and 720S, delivers 804 horsepower and 590 pounds of torque in the Elva. According to McLaren, it accelerates from 0-60 mph in less than 3 seconds and 0-124 mph in 6.7 seconds (top speed not yet announced).
McLaren originally planned to produce 399 units, but reduced the production quota to 249 earlier this year. McLaren's head of road car operations, Mike Flewitt, said in April that this was done to appease customers who felt the Elva was not upscale enough. The Elva's $1.69 million price tag apparently was not a deterrent.
