“Well, I’ve never had this before,” says McLaren ambassador Kris. He is our guide for an afternoon at the McLaren Technology Centre and just as he clears his throat to introduce the MP4/13 from 1998 in all its monochrome glory, Mika Hakkinen unexpectedly wanders into earshot. No pressure, then, to remember that the Finn standing only five yards away won eight grands prix aboard this car to lead a drivers’ and constructors’ Formula 1 championship double.
Kris doesn’t miss a beat before Hakkinen steps into one of several cylindrical glass lifts, as conceived by ex-McLaren boss Ron Dennis and the MTC’s pre-eminent architect Norman Foster to mimic the pistons of an engine rising and falling. As it climbs, our guide notes that you won’t see any dangling wires since Dennis also specified the lifts operate hydraulically to banish anything that might be taken for mess or clutter.
