In Italian, a spare or test car is known as a 'muletto' - quite literally, a small mule. And that's where we get the English term 'mule car' from, reveals Pirelli. It originates from the 1930s, when cars that were used for training racing drivers or testing new parts needed to be strong and reliable rather than necessarily fast: a bit like mules, especially when contrasted with the capricious thoroughbreds that were the actual race cars. Since then, the term has stuck, and at the end of this year, a new generation of mules will take to the track, courtesy of Mercedes, McLaren and Renault: which will each put together an adapted 2018 car that is designed to test the very first prototype...
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