In the mid-nineties McLaren was trying to recover the competitiveness of the first seasons of the decade, but without success. The car for 1996, the MP4 / 11, was equipped with the Mercedes engine and debuted in tests at Estoril with Alain Prost at the wheel. Designed by Neil Oatley with Henri Durand and Steve Nichols, the MP4 / 11 was entrusted to Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard. The results were fairly consistent, but they never went beyond Coulthard's second place finish in Monte Carlo. McLaren finished fourth in the championship; Hakkinen finished fifth in the drivers' championship, Coulthard seventh.
For the 1996 F1 season, Scotsman David Coulthard moved from Williams to McLaren. He achieved his best result of the season in Monaco: starting fifth, he finished second. In that year, Coulthard collected 18 points, which earned him seventh place in the final standings of the drivers' championship. Coulthard remained with McLaren until the end of the 2004 season.