Without question, the BMW S70/2 V12 engine from the McLaren F1 is the greatest engine the brand has ever built. Despite being designed in the early ’90s, the S70/2 is still a masterpiece of engine design and often considered to be the best engine, of any kind, of all time. So when one is heavily used, as they all should be, it deserves a bit of a scrub down to keep it nice and clean. In this new video from Hagerty, we get to see a full engine-out cleaning and it’s therapeutic to watch.
The S70/2 is a magnificent thing to keep. For starters, it’s massive. As s 6.1 liter naturally-aspirated V12, I knew it was a big engine but it’s wild to see it out of the car, next to a human for scale. What an enormous engine it is, made even more imposing by its massive dual carbon fiber air intakes, stunning header design, and gold flake on the exhaust heat shields. I actually can’t imagine cleaning one, I’d be a nervous wreck, hoping not to damage all of the incredibly rare and expensive parts.
However, due to this engine’s high use (all McLaren F1s should be heavily used, values be damned), it actually had quite a bit of grime from the road. Interestingly, it didn’t seem to have any leaks or issues, which is impressive for such an old engine. However, the little big of grime, and some unusual mold, were cleaned up and handled, allowing the McLaren F1’s engine to do its thing without the potential future hassle dirt and grime can cause.
When Paul Rosche designed the S70/2 for Gordon Murray and his team at McLaren, he took over-engineering to an entirely different level. The S70/2 is a work of automotive art and one of the most clever engines ever made. Check it out in this video.
