The McLaren M8B was developed for the1969 Can-Am season, where it was to totally dominate, with McLaren team drivers Denny Hulme and Bruce McLaren winning 11 out of 11 rounds! It became known as the “Bruce and Denny Show”.
The most noticeable difference in the 1969 car was that the rear wing was now mounted high on pylons.
The wing mounting pylons passed through the bodywork to attach directly to the suspension uprights.
This arrangement allowed McLaren to run softer springs than would have been required had the massive rear wing been attached to the bodywork.
The body was also widened in order to fit one-inch wider wheels, now 15 x 11 front and 15 x 16 rear.
The 1969 engine was a shorter stroke, larger bore version of the 1968 engine. It was built by George Bolthoff and developed 630bhp from 7,046 cc (430.0 cu in).
Two complete M8B race cars and one spare tub were built using parts from the three M8As.
