McLaren unveils orange and black MCL32

McLaren has finally unveiled the MCL32, with its 2017 car featuring an orange and black livery.

After a number of hints from the team that it would revert to a livery featuring its traditional "Papaya Orange" color, McLaren took the covers off the MCL32 at its base in Woking on Friday morning. The new car actually features "Tarocco Orange" – a different shade to that previously used on McLaren cars – with the front and rear wing and nose predominantly orange while there is more black on the engine cover and sidepods.

The Honda-powered chassis features a very intricate nose solution, with a number of slots to improve airflow under the car. There is also a shark fin as employed by the majority of teams this year, while a "T-wing' – a small wing in front of the rear wing – is currently missing. However, with Ferrari and Mercedes running the concept on its new cars, chief engineer Peter Prodromou admits McLaren are likely to follow suit during pre-season testing.

Chief operating officer Jonathan Neale says McLaren is unlikely to be winning races this season but has set its sights on another clear improvement after finishing sixth in last year's constructors' championship.

"The journey ahead isn't going to be easy, and I've emphasized that to everyone," Neale said. "We've made progress in the past 12 months, but we're not where we need to be and we expect on-track competition to be fierce. To win in Formula 1 requires any competitor to be good at everything. Thoughtful but relentless pursuit of excellence is required.

"So, do I believe we'll be back at the front this year? Realistically, probably not quite yet, no. But do I think we'll continue to make meaningful improvement as a team? Absolutely. And that's our aim: to make progress by establishing the proper and correct, if sometimes difficult, changes that are needed to go forward.

"We can't predict where that will leave us – particularly on the eve of a new season of regulatory upheaval and uncertainty – but as a team we have many talented and driven individuals and we're restless about continuing to do whatever is needed to make us competitive."

Click on the thumbnails below for larger images from the launch.

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