There are few eras in racing that we’re more sad that we missed than the golden age of Can-Am in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These were some of the most drop dead sexy full bodied race cars on the planet and most of them were shoved full of big inch (for the time) V8 engines. The car you will see in this video, a McLaren M6B is powered by a 730hp Traco built 427 Chevy. That 730hp is shoving a long a car that weighs 1700lbs on a very bad day. It makes the “gixxer kart” look like a Power Wheels toy. This car is owned and driven by Jim Pace, a well known road racer who races all kinds of neat stuff, both vintage and modern. He actually ran the 24 Hours of Daytona with AC/DC’s Brian Johnson in 2012 and they fared pretty well.
We love this video because it shows the car being run very hard through the great bends at Laguna Seca and it gives an awesome perspective of the famed “corkscrew” turn at the track which, from the low slung vantage point of the McLaren makes it seem like you are about to drive straight off a cliff. Luckily, Pace has probably made hundreds of laps of the track and powers through like the seasoned pro that he is.
One of the other interesting aspects of this video is just how open and unrestricted the cockpit of the car is. Today’s race cars that have the driver in the breeze, like Formula One and Indy cars are tailored to fit the driver and nothing else. The seats are poured into the car to match the driver’s body perfectly, interior dimensions are made to fit them correctly and they essentially wear the car. As you’ll see there is almost enough room for a passenger seat in the McLaren! It literally is like a big block powered go kart.
Press play below, crank the hell out of the speakers and watch a great road racer ply the trade in an amazing historic hot rod!
My absolute favorite , hands down , all time road racing series ever !!!!
My best memory as a kid was going to Oscar Koveleskis’ Autoworld back in the day to buy some slot cars and models as a kid and having the man himself , after seeing me drooling over his McLaren Can Am car , come over and lift me into the cockpit .Add that to attending several events in the NE and I’ve Been a PRDA ( both by heritage and having raced ) Can Am fanatic ever since
Can Am …. Yeah baby . THAT was racing . More please Bangshift
Guitar…prepare to have your mind blown. This is Oscar’s old car. 100% honest to Pete, that’s the truth. You have actually sat in the car featured in the video.
Thing that thrills my willies the most about this video is there not being a single straight long enough for him to completely unleash the beast .
Holy ______ !!!!!! You just made my day Mr Lohnes . Holy ______ !!!! My skinny little kid butt , in this very cockpit back in the day . Holy ______ !!!!
Pretty freaking awesome all around!
That’s gotta be one of the best in-car vids I’ve ever watched!
Holy hell, what a noise…
Absolutely wild!!! Talk about a big boy’s go kart with suds, nice, no excellent video!!! Thanks for posting
Thanks for posting the video. Jim Pace is a buddy of mine, I’ve been begging him for years to let me put some of his on-boards online. A master of his craft. We decided that production should be nothing but the drivers sights and sounds. No music etc, just volume and HD. He has a few others up he’s been nice enough to let me produce, including this years 24 hours of Daytona and some other choice vintage automobiles. Search Jim Pace Motorsports on youtube. Great site
Craig
Useful info. Fortunate me I discovered your web site accidentally, and I am shocked why this twist of fate did not took place in advance! I bookmarked it.