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McLaren has finally built the car enthusiasts waited a decade for. The W1 is the successor to the legendary P1, and it completes the bloodline that started with the mighty F1.

The Third 1

McLaren reserves the number one for its ultimate cars. The F1 defined the 1990s, the P1 helped launch the hybrid hypercar era in 2013, and now the W1 takes the crown.

It is the fastest and most powerful road McLaren ever built. The brand has been openly working toward this car for years, and the pressure to follow the P1 was enormous.

A Brand-New Heart

At the centre is an all-new 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8, codenamed MPH-8. It pairs with a compact radial-flux electric motor and an eight-speed dual-clutch gearbox.

Combined, they make 1,258 hp and 988 lb-ft of torque. That V8 on its own is the most power-dense engine McLaren has ever produced, at 230 bhp per litre.

The Numbers Are Absurd

Zero to 60 mph takes 2.7 seconds, and top speed is electronically capped at 217 mph. Dry weight is just 1,399 kg, which is featherweight for a hybrid hypercar.

The small 1.4 kWh battery is not about range. It exists to fill the torque gaps and offer a token 1.6 miles of silent running, not to turn this into an EV.

A Downforce Obsession

McLaren spent more than 350 hours in the wind tunnel tuning the W1. Active front and rear wings generate up to 2,205 lb of downforce in the most aggressive Race mode.

In that setting the whole body hunkers down and the aero goes to work, turning the W1 into something close to a road-legal race car.

Already Gone

Here is the gut punch. Just 399 will be built, each priced around 2.1 million dollars, and every single one is already spoken for.

If you wanted one, you are too late. McLaren allocated the entire run before most people had finished reading the spec sheet.

Why It Matters

The P1 is a modern classic, so following it was always going to be hard. On paper, the W1 clears that bar with room to spare.

It is McLaren reminding everyone that, whatever else is happening at Woking, it can still build one of the greatest cars on Earth when it truly wants to.

McLaren McLaren W1

The McLaren W1 Completes the '1' Trilogy