New McLaren W1 Coming Soon: Specs, price and release info

Any McLaren with a ‘1’ in its name is something out of the ordinary, even by the standards of the brand. For its combination of 200mph-plus speed and surprising usability the 90s F1 remains a legend, the P1 of 2012 adding hybrid power and adjustable aero to the mix while this new W1 raises the bar again with performance to beat even the super track focused Senna. It does this with the combination of an all-new turbocharged petrol engine, a super lightweight hybrid module, Formula 1-inspired aerodynamics and the shape-shifting ability to go from road car to track weapon with a simple change of driver mode.
• The new W1 is the pinnacle of the McLaren range and just 399 will be built • Pricing starts at £2m before taxes and all have already been allocated to customers • Petrol engine has 922 horsepower on its own and 1,275 horsepower when combined with the electric motor • Rear-wheel drive costs it a little in the 0-62mph sprint compared with all-wheel drive rivals but from 0-124mph and 0-187mph the W1 shows its class – it’s also three seconds a lap faster round McLaren’s test lap than the Senna • Suspension drops and rear wing extends by as much as 300mm in Race Mode, with choice of ‘GP’ or ‘Sprint’ hybrid deployment, much like an F1 car’s race and qualifying modes • For all the performance it’s also relatively practical, with space for weekend luggage behind the seats

Like all McLarens the W1 is shaped as much with aerodynamics and technology in mind as style, but it’s still a breathtakingly striking machine with its wings, ducts and contrasting panels accentuating its already dramatic looks. It’s as though you can see the air passing over, under and through the bodywork even at a standstill, and far more elegant than the brutalist Senna. Any true hypercar needs novelty doors, of course, and the W1’s ‘anhedral’ ones deliver both functional benefits as well as the all-important kerbside theatre when you pull up. While there’s only the one W1 model customers want to be sure theirs doesn’t look like anyone else’s, a first-world problem McLaren’s MSO department can solve with endless options for customisation and personalisation. At a cost, inevitably.

The W1 treads a line between racing car minimalism and road car luxuries, but McLaren knows this game well and can deliver on both. Seats are integrated into the structure of the car in the name of weight saving and space efficiency, but you can be sure a comfortable combination of padding can be arranged at your fitting. With the seat fixed the pedals and wheel come to you, and adjust for the perfect seating position. To keep your mind on the driving instrumentation and buttons are kept to a minimum, a small screen between driver and passenger your main point of interaction be that through the car’s systems or your phone apps. Practicality isn’t entirely forgotten either, a shelf behind the seats apparently having space for a couple of bags and crash helmets if your idea of a weekend away is razzing round a race track.

There is enough electrification in the W1 for McLaren to call it a hybrid … but only just! And, safe to say, the electric motor is geared more to extra performance than saving the planet, the battery on the tiny side and best-case range without firing up the petrol engine basically a mile or so. If you want a McLaren but fancy a bit more electrification save yourself some cash and get a plug-in Artura… Meanwhile in the W1 the main event is a brand-new 4.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine, which has 928 horsepower on its own! Clever tech abounds, the motor and control unit combined into a single lightweight unit while the gearbox doesn’t have a reverse gear, the electric motor used for moving backwards instead.

When a starting price is listed as “circa” £2m plus taxes and “with the final cost dependent on the level of MSO personalisation” you know you’re operating in the big league. All 399 W1s McLaren will be building have apparently already been “allocated” to buyers, with no word yet on deliveries.

With the Spider version of the Artura now out and this W1 that’s probably McLaren done for a while, unless it’s finally going to give in and make an SUV to rival the Ferrari Purosangue...

Any number of equivalent hypercars with four-figure power outputs and seven-figure pricetags, some of them petrol powered, some hybrid and others, like the long-awaited Lotus Evija or Rimac’s latest and greatest going full electric. For all the extravagance in terms of price and performance even the W1 will have play second fiddle to the Bugatti Tourbillon, though.