McLaren F1
Three seats, a gold-lined engine bay and 240 mph.
The story
Gordon Murray set out to build the best driver's car ever, whatever it cost. It was the first road car with a full carbon-fibre body shell and had no turbos, no power steering and no driver aids. In 1998 it reached 240.1 mph, a record that stood for seven years.
Inside
The driver sits in the middle with a passenger set back on each side. Luggage goes in lockers ahead of the rear wheels, and a special lightweight Kenwood stereo was made for it.
In period colours
Tap a colour to respray the drawing.
The engine bay is lined with gold foil to reflect heat. A racing version won Le Mans at its first try in 1995.
Meanwhile, in 1992
The Premier League kicked off.
Best-selling single of 1992: I Will Always Love You by Whitney Houston
Before you buy a 1990s car
- On petrol engines, check the cooling system and any sign of head gasket trouble.
- Ask when the timing belt was last changed, where fitted.
- Parts for mass-market cars are widely available; specialist and low-volume models can be hard to find.
General notes, not specific to this model. Check the model's own history before buying.
Rivals of its day
Picked automatically: cars on sale at the same time with similar size, speed and price.
See the real thing
These open in a new tab: the car on Wikimedia Commons, the interior and the badge as Google image searches.
Today's money: the launch price adjusted for inflation to 2026, using the Office for National Statistics price index.