It’s the best car ever built. Simple as that! It’s the McLaren F1 of course, and where to begin? The world’s fastest production car from 1998-2005. A top speed of 240 mph. The first production car with an carbon monocoque chassis. Electric windows and a 10 CD changer! It’s the Ultimate Road Car.

Gordon Murray had wanted to build a three-seater, driver-centered car since he was a young lad in short trousers. One day, while waiting for a flight home from the Italian Grand Prix, he sketched his dream car and showed it to McLaren Formula One boss Ron Dennis. Ron was naturally impressed and they got to work, using the ride quality and handling of Murray’s Honda NSX as a target. The new car would need to be faster than the NSX, and Murray approached Honda to ask for a 4.5 litre V10 or V12 with a specific size and weight. Honda didn’t think this was worth their time and the job ended up going to BMW who built Mr. Murray a 6.1 litre V12 with 618 horsepower. It was heavier than he had wanted but it was also a good bit more powerful.

The resulting car is a masterpiece of design. The F1 marries technology and performance that’s still very respectable today with everyday usability that makes it deserving of the title I’m giving it: the Ultimate Road Car. A naturally aspirated engine is used because it’s simpler, more reliable, and more communicative than engines with turbos or superchargers. Everything is made of carbon fibre, aluminium, and magnesium. The gearbox is bespoke, as are the tires mounted on the magnesium wheels. The F1 even has a high downforce mode with driver-controlled fans under the car that decrease air pressure and help it stick to the road.

Every F1 comes with a driver’s seat, pedal box, and steering column tailor-made for the customer that are fixed in position once they’re installed. Kenwood made the aforementioned CD changer and built the lightweight stereo system to suit the individual customer’s musical tastes, but there was no radio. There are also no airbags. Simplicity!

The F1 was, for a 240 mph supercar, easy to live with and safe to boot. During testing in Namibia a prototype was rolled at speed and the driver walked away unhurt. Who needs airbags with that kind of quality? McLaren still looks after all its F1s, a feat made possible by the modem installed in every car that allows HQ to remotely read data from the ECU. It’s a stunning achievement even 20 years later and it just might be the most special car of ’em all.