Mark Vinnels

I am Marks only Sister we loved each other so very much and on my behalf I want to say he was the most wonderful person , supportive with every thing . He was always such a exceptional uncle Good father to my sons Adam and Richard We miss him every day and believe the world is a sadder place without him Christine xx

Hugely saddened to learn of Mark's passing. I'm an automotive journalist and I knew Mark professionally, particularly during his time at McLaren, where I interviewed him many times. He was one of those infectiously brilliant people to talk to, he had a passion, skill and ability to convey things his huge mind and ability was capable of creating, into something a far simpler person (me) could understand and write about. More than that, he was always wonderfully entertaining company and someone I always sought out to spend time with after we'd 'talked shop'. Sincere condolences to all his family and friends, Mark was a such a lovely human being, who has been taken far too soon, by an awful disease.

Mark Vinnels (‘MV’) – A gifted man I remember Mark when he had hair; a full head of hair (well almost). We were fellow students on Mechanical Engineering; Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) at Nottingham City University. (Known to us as ‘Mech Eng., BEng @ Trent Poly’). We were part of ‘Group E’ a seminar group made up of all the Surnames at the end of the alphabet. To myself, our seminar group and pretty much the rest of the course Mark was ‘MV’. He was always gifted, a natural engineer, taking in the science behind the course with ease, but more importantly he knew when something was right and when something was shite not right. He excelled at whatever he did on that course, but always had time to help others. I remember his smile as he would enter the common room, sling his satchel under one of the tables, grab a coffee and then come back to the table and say ‘alright’ in his Norfolk accent and sit down for a chat. We all liked him. ‘MV’ was passionate, talented and sometimes flamboyant who was destined to succeed and he did. Somehow though he always managed to be friendly and supportive of others as he went on his inevitable journey to Industry Executive. That was clear then and is also so clearly reflected in the tributes from others that have written about Mark. I remember dancing with him in the Irish Centre in Nottingham on many an occasion; he led our seminar group on the dance floor Mark wearing pointed boots that only ‘MV’ and the eighties could get away with. He was the best dancer in our group (although I am not sure there was much competition). We followed ‘MV’s moves (sort of) and all was great in the world.

I had the absolute pleasure of working with Mark at McLaren and beyond, building a lasting friendship along the way. Within work Mark was an extraordinarily talented individual, who pushed himself and his teams really hard, but was always fair. Unfortunately an increasingly rare set of qualities. However, Mark will always be a reference model for us all; he would expect us to motivate and drive ourselves to do the right thing, even when he is not there to guide us. Outside work Mark was an active and fun-loving character. He may have been taken from us way before his time, but he managed to squeeze more into those years than many could ever imagine. I have found myself mentally referring to Mark for guidance when faced with challenging decisions - his leadership, support and friendship will remain with me forever. Mark

To have worked with and for Mark on game-changing projects at McLaren was an honour and pleasure - even when he was wrong, because his passion and tenacity for the product came before his ego (most of the time

I worked with Mark briefly at Rivian. I didn't really fit in with the Rivian culture, but the one person who had a lasting impact on me was Mark. I actually discovered Mark had passed because I would periodically check his LinkedIn profile to see where he had landed after Rivian. The thought in my mind was always, "I should try and work with Mark again -- that'd probably be awesome." I was really saddened to see the post on his passing. Mark had a great smile and was a great leader -- I wish I could have worked with him again. I'm sure his family, who I have never met, is deeply grieving. If it is any relief at all, I hope they know Mark touched a lot of people and will be remembered long into the future. I only worked with him for six months, and I know I'll remember him and continue to try and emulate some of his best qualities throughout the rest of my career and life. I can only imagine the impact he had on others he spent more time with.

Mark was the consummate professional and an important customer of mine at McLaren and Rivian. We shared the same haircut and passion for the automotive industry. I was with Mark at the LA Autoshow in 2019 when Rivian revealed the R1T and R1S. He could not have been more proud. His legacy will be the enormous contribution that Rivian will make to the mobility industry in the years to come. My condolences to Mark's family.

I worked with Mark at McLaren. The McLaren 720S can be considered as his masterpiece: he was pushing the engineering to really high standards, seeking perfection in every details. He was also visionary understanding where to lead the product. His ability to lead a team by focusing on the work itself rather than on unecessary reporting was creating a "start-up dynamic". Mark will remain a source of inspiration for many engineers who worked with him. My condolences to the family. RIP Mark