We all know road trips are a lot of fun, but this one is pretty special

Any motor racing fan knows the journey to Le Mans is one of the most underrated parts of attending the great race.

Once you're onto the remarkably smooth and quiet French motorways, you're often met by fleets of supercars travelling in tandem, their exotic speed then contrasted with packs of old modified bangers covered in amusing (and often rude) stickers posing as sponsors.

But no Le Mans road trip story can compare to the one enjoyed by Matthew Carter and Ray Bellm in 1997, driving a McLaren F1 GTR that competed in the race the previous year.

Standing out: The F1 GTR boards the channel tunnel Standing out: The F1 GTR boards the channel tunnel

In '96, Bellm finished ninth at Le Mans in this very car, and went on to win the BPR Global GT Endurance Series alongside his team-mate James Weaver.

At the end of that year, the BPR series morphed into the FIA GT Championship. Crucially, the rules changed, forcing McLaren to update its F1 GTR to a bespoke racing car rather than a modified road car, resulting in the revered 'Longtail' F1 GTR.

Quick pit-stop: Taking a well-deserved break just 82km from Le Mans Quick pit-stop: Taking a well-deserved break just 82km from Le Mans

This left Bellm with a predicament – he had an extremely valuable, contemporary racing car that he couldn't race. His solution? To take the car back to its roots as a road car.

"I had the idea of making it road legal and turning it into a unique promotional tool, offering rides in a genuine Le Mans racer,’ said Bellm.

He then set about making it road legal, by replacing the racing slicks with road tyres and installing reversing lights, a rear fog lamp and a horn. A silencer was also fitted, although it barely diminished the howling V12.

(If you want to imagine what the soundtrack to the road trip might have been like, the video below should give you a good idea)

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To make the trip more comfortable, the ride height was raised a few centimetres and softer springs were installed. Steel brakes replaced their former ceramic counterparts, the roll cage was removed and a carbon fibre seat was fitted on the driver's left side.

That seat was occupied by motoring journalist Matthew Carter, who made his debut trip to Le Mans in spectacular fashion.

With those modifications making the car road legal, the remainder of the car was left virtually untouched, so it could be converted back into a racer if needs be.

As it was still essentially a racing car cockpit with no sound deadening, Carter and Bellm had to communicate via intercom.

"The brakes screeched, the big V12 sang, there was no luggage space and it was hot in there. The acceleration, in particular, was unbelievable and it parted the traffic as if it were the Red Sea," recalls Carter.

"It was easily the most exhilarating ride I have ever had, full of snapshot memories."

Belmm behind the wheel of his F1 GTR - you can almost hear that V12 singing Belmm behind the wheel of his F1 GTR - you can almost hear that V12 singing

One of those memories involves Bellm flooring it past a hatchback on the A28 between Abbeville and Rouen.

"We came up behind a hatchback belching diesel fumes into the atmosphere," says Carter.

"In true racing driver fashion, Ray wasn't too keen to lift off, so it’s just as well that the driver in front spots us coming. Then again, few are likely to miss the sight of a full-on McLaren F1 GTR, resplendent in iconic blue and orange war paint, looming large in their rear-view mirror.

"As the car changes lanes to let us pass, a passenger clambers on his seat and sticks his torso out of the sunroof. He starts to wave his arms enthusiastically, urging us to even greater speed. Ray complied."

Attracting a fair amount of attention upon arrival, outside the famous Restaurant Des 24 Heures Attracting a fair amount of attention upon arrival, outside the famous Restaurant Des 24 Heures

Once they arrived at Le Mans, Bellm focused on his driving duties for the weekend behind the wheel of a Longtail F1 GTR.

The happy ending to the ultimate road trip wasn't to be – Bellm's car was in contention for most of the race before it caught fire while running in a solid fourth position.

The bitter disappointment was only alleviated as the sister Longtail finished second, just one lap adrift of the winning sports prototype.

Bellm no longer owns his brightly-coloured F1 GTR, but the car remains in road-legal specification and has taken part in McLaren celebrations at Goodwood in recent years, so we hope to see much more of it in future.