McLaren: The Engine Company, Second Edition

McLaren: The Engine Company</em> is the previously untold story of McLaren Engines—an American powerhouse founded in 1969 by Bruce McLaren and his partners to support the legendary McLaren Can-Am and Indy Car programs. From a modest facility in suburban Detroit came thunderous 8-liter Chevrolet V8s that carried McLaren’s signature papaya-orange racecars to dominate the final years of Can-Am racing. The dyno rooms echoed with innovation, producing 1,000-horsepower turbo Offenhausers that twice put McLaren in Victory Lane at the Indianapolis 500 between 1972 and 1976. This updated second edition features newly added historical images and refined content that brings fresh clarity to the remarkable legacy of McLaren Engines. Though the core story remains the same, these updates enhance the reader's experience and provide richer visual context to the engineering feats described throughout. Inside, you'll explore how this unassuming shop on Eight Mile Road became a magnet for top manufacturers and racing teams. Learn how McLaren developed the turbocharged Cosworth DFV for both McLaren and Penske, helped BMW transition from IMSA to Formula 1 turbo power, and engineered race-winning powerplants for Buick, Cadillac, Porsche, and more. From offshore racing boats to dirt track Cosworth Vegas, this is a wide-ranging, inside look at the machines and minds behind decades of motorsport innovation. Author Roger Meiners brings a lifelong passion for racing and a historian’s rigor to this expanded edition, uncovering rare insights and little-known stories from McLaren’s transformation into a cutting-edge engineering firm. He also explores the company’s later transition into production vehicle development—delivering performance icons like the 1987 Buick GNX, 1989 Pontiac Grand Prix Turbo, and other secret projects that never made it to the showroom floor. Today, McLaren Engineering (now a subsidiary of Linamar Corporation) continues its legacy of innovation with world-class R&D and manufacturing capabilities. Whether you're discovering this story for the first time or revisiting it with fresh eyes, the second edition of McLaren: The Engine Company is the definitive chronicle of one of America’s most fascinating engine builders—now better than ever.