McLaren Automotive has teamed up with the BBC’s Blue Peter show to create a ‘Supercar of the Future’ competition.
Young viewers will be given the chance to submit their supercar designs, with the winner seeing their creation brought to life as a 3D scale model. They’ll also meet McLaren’s designers and engineers once COVID-19 restrictions are lifted.
The prize includes a passenger lap in a McLaren with the Stig at the wheel, a VIP tour of McLaren’s Woking factory, and a Blue Peter badge.
In an episode of Blue Peter being broadcast this evening, McLaren’s design director Rob Melville explains how a supercar should ‘look fantastic, have sensational performance and push the boundaries of what already exists’.
Meanwhile, materials engineer Ella Podmore explains why using the right materials to make the car lighter and faster is so important.
Entrants have been asked to consider how their vehicle is powered, its impact on the environment, and describe what materials it is made from. They should also choose one outstanding feature of their design and explain why they’re proud of it.
Mandeep Dhatt, executive director of HR at McLaren, said: “Working with CBBC’s Blue Peter on this competition to get kids to design their supercar of the future is an exciting and fun way to get them to apply all of their design, science and technical creativity.
“It’s also a great way to showcase how they can use those skills in the real-world, having to follow the same thought processes and tackle the same challenges as our designers and engineers like Rob and Ella do every day at McLaren. I’m looking forward to seeing what the Blue Peter audience comes up with and what amazing idea wins our top prize.”
Ellen Evans, editor at Blue Peter, added: “This is such an exciting Blue Peter competition with an amazing prize to see behind closed doors at McLaren.
“The judges are going to be looking for designs that are full of imagination, with a great story and we want to see that they have given some thought to the science behind the design too. I can’t wait to see what the amazing, creative Blue Peter kids come up with!”