MEMBER McLAREN MEMBER OF COOPER TEAM

Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 28979, 21 August 1959, Page 16

MEMBER McLAREN MEMBER OF COOPER TEAM

[From the London correspondent of ''The Press.”]

LONDON, August 14. r pHE young New Zealand racing I A driver, Bruce McLaren, saw the three Cooper cars off from (the works at Surbiton, Surrey, ■yesterday on their way to Lisbon. (As one of the three members of this year's highly successful iCooper works team—with Jack (Brabham and Marston Gregory—i McLaren was then able to take i his longest spell for some weeks before leaving for the Lisbon race <August 22). I “I am very glad to have the I rest,” he said. Like other drivers, (McLaren has a full programme (betwe’en meetings. Brabham, for 'instance, has begun a new job as car tester for the “News Chronicle” and recently opened a petrol business near Surbiton with crankshaft balancing as a sideline. Phil Kerr, of Auckland, with whom McLaren shares a flat at Surbiton,, is the manager. In between practice and race days and international travel, Brabham takes a share of the designing at .Coopers. Car Testing For the last month or so, McLaren’s programme has been a meeting a week, two days’ practice before it, air travel or driving his Morris Minor to and from the

circuits, car testing at the works and a part in the complete stripping and rebuilding of the cars between races. He swims and runs to keep fit. This season, though he is only 21, McLaren has climbed on to the drivers’ championship ladder. After the Avus race in Germany this stood: Brabham 27 points, Brooks 24,

'Hill 13, Bonnier 10, Trintignant 9, Moss and McLaren 82, Gurney 6. After the Lisbon race the Cooper cars will be taken to Monza. In between, the engines will probably be flown back to Britain for complete overhaul. Only Gregory, among this year’s ! drivers, has raced at Lisbon before. He holds the lap record. But •as with all tracks before a meeting McLaren is familiar with it arid the team has the technical details of the race, speeds, gear ratios and cornering, all worked out. Formula I “Driving for a Formula 1 team is very interesting,” said McLaren. “They are pretty elite company. Formula 1 racing tends to be a big happy family and they are a nice crowd to be with.” He spoke with great respect of Brabham from whom he is learning a lot, especially from his considerable engineering talent and his science on the handling side of car racing. “Brabham is regarded as the number two driver, but I think he is easier on a car than Moss because of his engineering ability. iThe British Grand Prix at Aintree was a good example. He realised | that, tyre wear was going to be 'a factor, that there would be a 1 lot of wear on the back tyres because of sliding on the corners. So he drove so that more wear was put on the front. If he has the chance, he has the mechanics making adjustments right up to the last minute. “The Avus race (won by the faster Ferraris) was a demonstration of sheer power,” said McLaren. “There are two long straights and the ’wall of death.' [lt is an interesting technical exercise to see which car is fastest but as Stirling Moss said, it was boring.”

Treacherous Corner The banking at the treacherous corner where Jean Behra was killed was unique, said McLaren. “Your speed is limited by the amount your car goes down on the springs with the G force. It presses you right down as you go out on the corner. Most cars had rubber bump-stops under the springs. Moss told me that when he was going quite slowly on a practice run he looked at his watch and he was unable to lift his hand up to the wheel again.” After the Sebring, Florida, race on December 12 (as yet an uncertain fixture) Brabham and McLaren will be off to the Ardmore race. Coopers will send two cars

t to Auckland for the New Zealand (Grand Prix. One new car will :have to be built specially to get ■(there in time. > In the “Autocar” Formula 2 i (championship which includes i i points gained at Rheims. Rouen, Mallory Park, Clermont Ferrand. ; Brands Hatch and Aintree, Moss is leading with 42 points. C. Bris- : low is second with 27j. McLaren and M. Taylor are equal fifth ; with 18 points. McLaren, though naturally and agreeably modest, ■ is plainly enjoying his experience in Europe, and his performances are attracting more and more attention among the commentators.