The car that last took McLaren to greatness

Concept

On the back of being rocked by the 2007 Spygate scandal, in which leaked Ferrari documents found their way into the hands of McLaren, the MP4-23 was born under high scrutiny.

Subject to inspection by the FIA, which wanted to ensure the car included none of Ferrari's intellectual property, the governing body was satisfied enough for it to be pressed into service for 2008.

As an evolution of 2007's MP4-22, the car featured a longer wheelbase to make the most of the 'crazy aero' that was in vogue at the time.

A refined version of the bridge wing appeared at the front, pairing up with a marginally higher nose that could make use of a greater front wing pressure surface.

The engine package was settled as Formula 1 introduced an engine freeze to cut costs. Hence, the focus was on optimising complex aerodynamics for one last time, before new regulations took everything back to basics in 2009.

Innovation

A lot of the MP4-23's detail is featured at the rear wing, as McLaren's engineers tried to draw the maximum downforce from it.

The outboard ends of the mainplane were raised and blended forwards to develop more performance at the point at which it meets the endplates.

This was combined with more dramatic endplate cutouts, seeking to create more space for expansion on the suction side of the wing.

The aperture below the main airbox inlet was also expanded for greater cooling, meaning that the team could trim the sidepods in a little to try to improve aerodynamic performance.

Traction control was banned during the off-season leading in to 2008, but McLaren aimed to cover for its loss by allowing the drivers to adjust the torque between corners - minimising wheelspin to boost traction on corner exit.

Evolution

One of the strengths of the MP4-23 was its adaptability.

Remember, this was McLaren in its pomp, with the resources and the personnel to tack new parts to the car on a regular basis.

At Silverstone, the car ran with asymmetrical sidepod inlets in deference to the predominantly right-handed corners, and sprouted 'Dumbo wings' at the front - large 'ears' that swept airflow downwards to clean up the supply to the rear of the car.

BMW and Honda had previously introduced the 'Dumbo wing' design, but McLaren put its own stamp on it.

The engineers at Woking were able to innovate and react to contemporary trends.

The MP4-23 was the last of its lineage, and the following year's car - the MP4-24 - developed for the new regulations suffered from a difficult birth as the aerodynamicists sought to mitigate what would ultimately prove to be a flawed concept.