One of Ayrton Senna’s most memorable wins came at the wheel of this McLaren, chassis MP4/6/1, and it is now for sale via sealed bids through RM Sotheby’s.
This is the car that gave the Brazilian ace his first home Grand Prix win when he nursed it across the rain-soaked finishing line in 1991 despite the car suffering gearbox problems.
Chassis MP4/6/1 was the first of this new GP car from McLaren and it was tested by Gerhard Berger at Estoril, France in February 1991.
The work of Chief Designer Neil Oatley working under Gordon Murray, the McLaren used a new 3.5-litre V12 engine that could rev to 13,800rpm and produced 720bhp.
The MP4/6 also stands as the last time the World Championship would be won by a car with either a manual gearbox or a V12 engine, making it an important point in the evolution of the Grand Prix car.
Now offered for sale with an estimate of $12- to $15 million (£9.2 million-£11.5 million) by sealed bid, Senna’s former McLaren MP4/6 has been fully recommissioned by Paul Lanzante Ltd to race-ready condition. It comes with all of the required starting equipment including external starter motor, water tower, remote dash, fuel primer, and engine pre-heater.
Images courtesy of Tim Scott, Fluid Images, RM Sotheby’s
