Hi
You can calculate a car's top speed in each gear this way:
redline (rpm) / gear ratio / differential ratio x wheel circumference (mm) / 16667
and the result will be in km/h. I made a huge Excel chart with these data (among others) for many cars, and it nicely showed each cars' top speed in each of their gears. But not with the McLaren F1. I used these data:
redline: electronically limited at 7500 rpm,
gear ratio in 6th: 0.93,
differential ratio: 2.37,
driven wheel (rear): 315/45-17.
This way the circumference of the rear wheel is ( 17x25.4 + 315x2x0.45 ) x pi = 2247 mm. This means 7500/0.93/2.37 x 2247 / 16667 = 459 km/h top speed in 6th gear. Now some quotes from Peter Dron about the McLaren's record braking:
"Wallace hit the rev limiter in sixth on his first run. It is normally set at 7500rpm (about 380 km/h / 236mph with tyre growth)."
"Andy came in and said, 'I want to confirm this - I think I'm on the limiter in sixth.' We checked the data, and he was."
There were many minor hiccups with other cars as well in my Excel chart, but this is by far the biggest.
Is there any other set of gears in the Macca next to the gearbox and the differential?