The McLaren M16 was a race car designed and built by McLaren between 1971 and 1976 for American open wheel racing. It is the most successful car of the 1970s at the Indianapolis 500 with three wins in 1972, 1974 and 1976 and the last one to win with the Offenhauser engine.

In various guises, the McLaren M16 saw frontline service as a works entry in IndyCar, racing for five seasons, and in effect mirroring the long career of the M23, the F1 car that was a born a couple of years later.

The fifth and final iteration of the M16 theme, the McLaren M16E was introduced for Johnny Rutherford to drive in 1975. Due to delays to the new McLaren M24, Rutherford drove it again in 1976 and won the Indy 500.

Aug 12, 2020 · Designed by Gordon Coppuck, the M16 was clearly inspired by the wedge shaped Lotus 72. The first chassis was rolled out in early 1971 and featured a turbo Offy with a 3-speed Hewland gearbox. Coppuck moved the radiators from the nose to the side, enclosing them in fiberglass shrouds.

McLaren M16E [002] (Johnny Rutherford): New in 1975 for McLaren Cars and raced by Lloyd Ruby at the Indy 500 as the #7 Allied Polymer car. Johnny Rutherford took over this car after crashed M16E-1 at Pocono and used it for the rest of the season as his #2 Gatorade entry.

Mar 4, 2018 · Coppuck embarked on a brand new design for 1971. The M16 (or M16A as later versions caused it to be known) borrowed its wedge shape from the Lotus 72 which had proved so successful in Grand Prix racing in 1970, taking Jochen Rindt to a posthumous World Championship title.

Encouraged by Donohue's success, McLaren reworked the M16 once more. Such was the confidence in the basic design that a Formula 1 version was also constructed, which would ultimately win two world titles.

McLaren built a further evolution of their M16 series, the M16E being driven by Johnny Rutherford to second place in the title race - again - but no new Eagles were built for 1975 and this started a rethink in many team owners' minds about building their own cars.

The McLaren – Offenhauser M16E is a car that participated at the 500 Miles of Indianapolis 1976. The car was designed by Gordon Coppuck and John Barnard. The British Hy-Gain McLaren team with Johnny Rutherford at the wheel of the McLaren – Offenhauser M16E n.2 winner the 500 Miles of Indianapolis 1976.

Chassis M16E/1 was the first of just two examples built for the 1975 season due to Penske's temporary withdrawal from USAC racing. Liveried in sparkling Gatorade colours, it was driven at Indy that year by Johnny Rutherford.