David Silva
A long white corridor of racing cars: one car on the floor in front, another behind it, a papaya car mounted high on the wall.

McLaren Technology Centre · open day, March 2024

Made to be used

Part one

The boulevard

Race cars from the 1970s to now, and the people who came to see them.

A white and red McLaren Honda racing car with Shell and Goodyear markings, close to the camera in a dark hall.
A young girl in a pink jacket reaches into the cockpit of a papaya racing car.
Seen from above, families gather round a big slot-car track; a man races while two children watch from the rail.
A bright glass atrium full of visitors walking between cars and displays.
A man in a blue shirt leans over the cockpit of a white and red racing car from the 1970s.
A hand holds up a phone, photographing the corridor of racing cars.

Part two

Up close

Every part was made to be used.

A bright papaya spring tucked inside the white bodywork of a car.
The worn leather steering wheel and the black harness straps in an old racing cockpit.
The papaya and black front wing of a current racing car, its stripes catching the light in a dark hall.
A Pirelli P Zero racing tyre with red, blue, green and yellow rings on the wheel cover.
A Michelin racing tyre and silver wheel on a grey and black car.
A full-size clay model of a sports car, seen head-on.

Part three

Where they are made

The factory floor, open for the day.

A car body shell, without doors or engine, sits on a frame on the factory floor under a sign that reads Paint.
A rack of painted body panels in white, papaya, green, blue and black on the factory floor.
Hands in blue gloves work on a carbon fibre tub on the factory floor.
Robot arms and white machines on the assembly line.
Three finished sports cars, pale blue, papaya and green, waiting in a row on a white tiled floor.

Part four

Outside

Rare cars belong on the road, not in a museum.

A still lake under a grey sky, trees on the far bank reflected in the water, a small car parked at the water's edge.

At the end of the day, a car parked by the lake outside. That's where they belong.

For brands

A day like this, told as a story.

I photograph open days, launches and factory floors, and the people at them. What you see on this page is what you get: one day, in the order it happened, in one look.

Commission a story

davidslv.london@gmail.com · @davidslv.photography

Photographed as a visitor at the McLaren open day, March 2024, on a Nikon D5500 with a 35mm lens. Not affiliated with or endorsed by McLaren.