McLaren M23

McLaren M23

Emerson Fittipaldi in the McLaren M23 at the 1974 British Grand Prix.
Category	Formula One
Constructor	McLaren Racing
Designer(s)	Gordon Coppuck
Predecessor	M19C
Successor	M26
Technical specifications
Chassis	Aluminium monocoque.
Suspension (front)	Double wishbone, with inboard coilover shock absorbers.
Suspension (rear)	Double wishbone.
Axle track	62 in (157 cm)
Wheelbase	101 in (257 cm)
Engine	Ford-Cosworth DFV 2,993 cc (182.6 cu in) 90° V8, naturally aspirated, mid-mounted.
Transmission	Hewland FG400 5/6-speed manual gearbox.
Weight	575 kg (1,268 lb)
Competition history
Notable entrants	Yardley Team McLaren Marlboro Team Texaco Marlboro Team McLaren
Notable drivers	Denny Hulme Peter Revson Jochen Mass Mike Hailwood Emerson Fittipaldi James Hunt
Debut	1973 South African Grand Prix
Races Wins Poles F/Laps 83 16 14 10
Constructors' Championships	1 (1974)
Drivers' Championships	2 (1974: Fittipaldi; 1976: Hunt)
n.b. Unless otherwise stated, all data refer to Formula One World Championship Grands Prix only.

The McLaren M23 was a Formula One racing car designed by Gordon Coppuck, with input from John Barnard, and built by the McLaren team. It was a development of the McLaren M16 Indianapolis 500 car. A Ford Cosworth DFV engine was used, which was prepared by specialist tuning company Nicholson Engines. This helped push the DFV's horsepower output to around 490 bhp.

Chassis

M23-1

The first of four McLaren M23s built for the 1973 season, this car was raced exclusively by Denny Hulme that year. He used it to win the Swedish Grand Prix and also finished on the podium at the British Grand Prix and the Race of Champions. For a select few races in 1974, M23-1 was campaigned by Mike Hailwood, with a third in the South African Grand Prix as the best result. Restored to its 1973 configuration and colors, it is today owned by an enthusiast from New Zeeland.

M23-3

First presented into service in the summer of 1973, this is the third M23 built and the one with the fewest race starts. Entrusted to Jody Scheckter, M23-3 debuted at the French Grand Prix where an accident ended the South African's race early. A fortnight later, during the British Grand Prix, the exact same happened and Scheckter did not race an M23 again until later in the year. Restored to Peter Revson's colors, the third M23 is today owned by and American historic racer.

M23-4

The final M23 completed in 1973, this cassis debuted in the hands of Jacky Ickx at the German Grand Prix, where the Belgian placed third. It was then raced by McLaren regular Peter Revson, who went on to win the Canadian Grand Prix, while also placing third in the Italian Grand Prix. Chassis M23-4 continued to serve into the 1975 season with Emerson Fittipaldi, Denny Hulme, David Hobbs and Jochen Mass all having a go. The best result in a World Championship event in 1974 came at the Swedish Grand Prix where Fittipaldi placed fourth. Restored to the car's 1974 colors and configuration, it was owned and raced for several years by Brazilian Abba Kogan. It is believed to have changed hands since then.

M23-5

Reportedly Fittipaldi's favorite M23, chasis 5 was the first new car built for his 1974 World Championship winning campaign. He used it to score wins at the Brazilian Grand Prix and Belgian Grand Prix, while he also won a non-championship event in Brazil. In addition Fittipaldi also placed M23-5 on the podium at Jarama and Zandvoort. Following an engine-related retirement int he French Grand Prix, the fifth McLaren M23 was not raced again. Chassis M23-5 was subsequently part of the hugely impressive Jacques Setton collection but now has been re-acquired by McLaren.

M23-6

One of the most extensively raced McLaren M23s, this example was driven to a debut victory at the 1974 Argentine Grand Prix by Denny Hulme. He continued to race this chassis throughout the year but could do no better than a second in Austria and a quartet of sixth-place finishes. Chassis M23-6 was then one of the cars used by Jochen Mass during the 1975 season. Updated to 1976 specification, with a low airbox, it was also used by James Hunt in 1976 with victories at Paul Ricard and the Nürburgring as the best results. At the end of the year it was sold to Emilio de Villota, who continued to campaign the car for two more seasons both in Grand Prix and non-championship events. It has since been restored to its most successful specification as used by James Hunt in 1976.

Competition history

It was introduced for the 1973 season, and scored pole position with Denny Hulme on its very first outing. Hulme and Peter Revson took three wins between them that season, while rookie Jody Scheckter nearly added a fourth. Scheckter was responsible for one of the biggest accidents Formula One has ever seen, at the 1973 British Grand Prix, when he spun his M23 in front of the pack. Emerson Fittipaldi joined McLaren from Lotus in 1974. His knowledge of the Lotus 72 helped McLaren develop the M23 and that season Fittipaldi gave McLaren its first drivers' and constructors' world championships, beating Ferrari, Tyrrell and Lotus.

A McLaren M23 with much of its bodywork and front wing removed, Cosworth DFV visible in the rear. Note the exposed pedals between the front wheels and minimal upper-body crash protection, very different from today's F1 cars.

Further development in 1975 – including a 6-speed gearbox, a novelty for the time – helped Fittipaldi to second in the drivers' championship behind Niki Lauda, who had the benefit of Ferrari's 312T chassis and McLaren to third in the constructors' championship, behind Ferrari and Brabham. The team experimented with different bodywork styles, including aerodynamic kickups in front of the rear wheels, different nose profiles and extended bodywork in front of the rear wheels, housing the oil coolers. Most of these changes were adopted for the M23 and its successor, the McLaren M26. At the end of 1975 Fittipaldi left the team to join his brother's Copersucar-sponsored Fittipaldi Automotive team. He was replaced by James Hunt, who went on to win a dramatic and controversial 1976 season with the final evolution M23, the M23D.

When the replacement McLaren M26 proved troublesome, Hunt and Jochen Mass relied on the M23 in the early part of the 1977 season, and even though the car was now four years old it was still competitive.

The M23 was never the most technically advanced F1 car, but sound preparation and continual development helped it win 16 Grands Prix, two drivers' and one constructors' world championships in its lifetime.

The M23 was also modified for use in Formula 5000 racing. Australian driver John McCormack drove a Leyland powered M23 to win the 1977 Australian Drivers' Championship. McCormack also put his M23 on pole for the 1978 Australian Grand Prix.

Complete Formula One World Championship results

Works team entries

(key) (results in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Chassis	Engine	Tyres	Drivers	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	Points	WCC
1973	M23	Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G		ARG	BRA	RSA	ESP	BEL	MON	SWE	FRA	GBR	NED	GER	AUT	ITA	CAN	USA			58*	3rd
				Denny Hulme			5	6	7	6	1	8	3	Ret	12	8	15	13	4
				Peter Revson				4	Ret	5	7		1	4	9	Ret	3	1	5
				Jody Scheckter								Ret	DNS					Ret	Ret
				Jacky Ickx											3
1974	M23B	Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G		ARG	BRA	RSA	ESP	BEL	MON	SWE	NED	FRA	GBR	GER	AUT	ITA	CAN	USA			73 (75)	1st
				Emerson Fittipaldi	10	1	7	3	1	5	4	3	Ret	2	Ret	Ret	2	1	4
				Denny Hulme	1	12	9	6	6	Ret	Ret	Ret	6	7	DSQ	2	6	6	Ret
				Mike Hailwood	4	5	3	9	7	Ret	Ret	4	7	Ret	15
				David Hobbs												7	9
				Jochen Mass														16	7
1975	M23C	Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G		ARG	BRA	RSA	ESP	MON	BEL	SWE	NED	FRA	GBR	GER	AUT	ITA	USA				53	3rd
				Emerson Fittipaldi	1	2	Ret	DNS	2	7	8	Ret	4	1	Ret	9	2	2
				Jochen Mass	14	3	6	1	6	Ret	Ret	Ret	3	7	Ret	4	Ret	3
1976	M23D	Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G		BRA	RSA	USW	ESP	BEL	MON	SWE	FRA	GBR	GER	AUT	NED	ITA	CAN	USA	JPN		74 (75)	2nd
				James Hunt	Ret	2	Ret	1	Ret	Ret	5	1	DSQ	1	4	1	Ret	1	1	3
				Jochen Mass	6	3	5	Ret	6	5	11	15	Ret	3	7		Ret	5	4	Ret
1977	M23E	Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G		ARG	BRA	RSA	USW	ESP	MON	BEL	SWE	FRA	GBR	GER	AUT	NED	ITA	USA	CAN	JPN	60*	3rd
				James Hunt	Ret	2	4	7		Ret
				Jochen Mass	Ret	Ret	5	Ret	4	4	Ret	2	9
				Gilles Villeneuve										11
				Bruno Giacomelli														Ret

* 12 points in 1973 scored using the M19A and M19C
* 39 points in 1977 scored using the M26

Non-works entries

(key)

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	Tyres	Driver	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17
1974						ARG	BRA	RSA	ESP	BEL	MON	SWE	NED	FRA	GBR	GER	AUT	ITA	CAN	USA
	Scribante Lucky Strike Racing	M23	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G	Dave Charlton			19
1975						ARG	BRA	RSA	ESP	MON	BEL	SWE	NED	FRA	GBR	GER	AUT	ITA	USA
	Lucky Strike Racing	M23	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G	Dave Charlton			14
1977						ARG	BRA	RSA	USW	ESP	MON	BEL	SWE	FRA	GBR	GER	AUT	NED	ITA	USA	CAN	JPN
	Iberia Airlines	M23	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G	Emilio de Villota					13		DNQ	DNQ		DNQ	DNQ	17		DNQ
	Chesterfield Racing	M23	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G	Brett Lunger							DNS	11	DNQ	13	Ret	10	9	Ret	10	11
1978						ARG	BRA	RSA	USW	MON	BEL	ESP	SWE	FRA	GBR	GER	AUT	NED	ITA	USA	CAN
	Liggett Group/ B&S Fabrications	M23	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G	Brett Lunger	13	Ret	11	DNQ
					Nelson Piquet												Ret	Ret	9
	Centro Aseguredor F1	M23	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G	Emilio de Villota							DNQ
	Melchester Racing	M23	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G	Tony Trimmer										DNQ

References

• F1 Racing magazine, January 2001
• Motor Sport (magazine), August 2002