McLaren W1 is a £2m Formula One-inspired hybrid hypercar

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McLaren W1 is a £2m Formula One-inspired hybrid hypercar
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McLaren’s new W1 supercar is a spiritual successor to the F1 and P1. Powered by a twin-turbocharged V8 engine and Formula One-inspired hybrid battery system, the W1 produces 1,300 horsepower, making it the most powerful McLaren road car ever.

Priced at £2m (plus tax and optional extras), just 399 examples of the McLaren W1 will be built.

McLaren has revealed its new flagship hybrid hypercar. Called the W1, it is a 1,300-horsepower successor to the iconic F1 and P1, limited to 399 examples and priced from £2m.

Not that the price really matters, because McLaren says every W1 has already been allocated to a customer. Those lucky buyers will receive a two-seat, rear-drive hypercar that features Formula One-derived suspension and ground-effect downforce, plus a race mode that is said to deliver a “world-first” road-to-track transformation at the touch of a button.

(Image credit: McLaren Automotive)

Revealed on the 50th anniversary of McLaren securing its first Formula One Drivers’ and Constructors Championships, the W1 is powered by an all-new 4.0-litre, twin-turbocharged V8 engine. The hybrid electric system has a tiny 1.4 kWh battery and an electric motor that produces 342 horsepower all on its own. These are connected to a new eight-speed transmission that uses the electric motor for reverse.

Total output is a massive 1,258 hp, while torque is an equally muscular 1,340 Nm. Despite only being two-wheel-drive, McLaren says the W1 accelerates to 60 mph in 2.7 seconds. More impressive is a 0-124 mph (200 km/h) time of just 5.8 seconds, while 186 mph (300km/h) takes less than 12.7 seconds. The latter is almost four seconds quicker than the McLaren P1 and 7.5s quicker than the F1. Top speed of the W1 is electronically limited to 217 mph, McLaren says.

McLaren W1

(Image credit: McLaren Automotive)

Described by its makers as “a supercar for all occasions,” the W1 weighs 1,399 kg, which is just 4kg more than the P1, and has a claimed best-in-class power-to-weight ratio of 899 hp per tonne. That stat, as well as the W1’s specific power output of 230 hp per litre, is the highest of any McLaren supercar to date. The motor produces 22.7 horsepower per kg, which McLaren says is “directly comparable to Formula 1 e-motors.”