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mclaren w1 This isn’t just another seven-figure supercar – it’s the successor to two of the most significant performance cars ever built. Equipped with 1,258 horsepower, rear-wheel-drive hybrid technology and Formula 1-inspired engineering, the $2.2 million halo hypercar has the impossible task of emulating the iconic F1 and P1. We took it to Italy’s Mugello circuit to find out whether McLaren’s latest flagship is worthy of the family name.
The McLaren W1 has the biggest shoes in the hypercar world
Despite the wildness of ultra-high-performance seven-figure McLaren flagships like the Elva, Senna and Speedtail, at the pinnacle of the brand’s capabilities are its so-called “1” cars, ultra-low volume models that only come along every few decades. The F1 (1992) is still considered the supercar GOAT, a $20 million grail car that still holds the title of fastest naturally aspirated supercar. The P1 (2013) is one of the three now-legendary holy trinity of hypercars. And the new W1 carries no less of a burden than representing pinnacle technology and design while leading the brand into the future.
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Standing out in a sea of supercars is no small feat. But W1 is a moon that engineers itself around traditional limitations. Sure, it has the expected combination of big power (1,258 hp) and light weight (about 3,200 pounds), but the hybrid V8-powered W1 aims to stand out by manipulating those numbers by being driver-focused. So instead of diverting electric power to the front wheels to boost acceleration from a standstill, the e-motor and internal combustion engine drive only the rear wheels for a livelier experience.
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Futuristic technology helps this alien-looking wheeled spaceship move around the track at high speed, but McLaren sticks to traditional hydraulic steering and brake systems in the interest of providing maximum feedback to the driver. And whereas every McLaren road car has dihedral doors that open upwards and outwards making traditional “billionaire doors” vulnerable, the W1’s door surfaces have wildly sculpted shapes for aerodynamics that prevent them from closing at an angle. The doors operate with a simple but still sexy upward sweep. Show less, go more.
Inside the McLaren W1’s 1,258-hp hybrid powertrain and cockpit
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Every millimeter of the W1 is engineered for speed, and every touch point is designed to feel like a rocket on Earth. Reach under an aerodynamic crease on the door and you’ll feel a button that lifts it skyward.
The cabin looks more like a space-age bachelor pad than a passenger car, with the two seats blending into the surrounding architecture. Do you want to adjust your sitting position? Pull a latch to allow the spring-loaded pedal box to move toward or away from you and adjust the steering wheel to meet you, just like you would in a race car. Even cargo storage is unique to the W1. Since the front end is dedicated to reshaping airflow, a front trunk won’t do; The mid-mounted twin-turbo powerplant also means there’s no room for bags. Solution? Folding headrests that open onto the cargo shelf behind the seats.
The view ahead is clean and clutter-free, the only switches on the steering wheel are a blue “aero” button on the left for more speed and less downforce and a “boost” button on the right for increased e-motor assistance. Carbon fiber is everywhere, from the A-pillars to the door sills, furthering the no-nonsense fast-moving aesthetic. Closing the door from your seat requires a little reach, but a small leather strap makes pulling a little easier, and latches onto the back of the door with a magnet.
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The engine start button is overhead in an aircraft cockpit-style panel, and unless you’re in electric mode, the twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 turns on with a feeling of clear and present power. Tap the big carbon fiber paddle on the right, and you’re ready to rock and roll.
McLaren’s rear-wheel-drive hypercar looks different from its rivals
You immediately get a feeling from the first moments of sitting in the car, and the McLaren W1 puts you on the seat of your pants with feedback. The hydraulic nature of the steering means the wheel transmits everything on the pavement to the palm of your hand, and the response of the hydraulic brakes paints an accurate picture of the pressure required for every deceleration, whether rolling to a smooth stop at a light or scrabbling along at a few hundred miles per hour.
The hybrid system’s battery is a smaller 1.384 kWh for light weight and quick discharge/recharge and is good for only 1.6 miles of EV-propulsion. But it’s the best way to help it race the W1 around the 3.2-mile Mugello circuit, which is just a short distance from the Ferrari factory where the rival, $3.9 million F80 is built. There are no coincidences.
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It’s important to configure the W1 for the circuit: you’ll need to engage Track mode, which is only available in motion when the car is on a racetrack (thanks to GPS!) Press and hold the overhead button for a few seconds, and the W1 drops to the ground and extends its rear wing forward for maximum aerodynamics. Further aggression can be included in Race+ mode, and the Sprint setting eliminates that altogether by dumping all the electrons into forward motion rather than preserving battery state for repeated laps.
With racer Andre D’Cruz in tow for pro tips and perhaps emotional hypercar support, I took to the vast Tuscan track to see what the W1 could do. Despite the car’s challenging capabilities, there’s an immediate sense of confidence and precision behind the McLaren’s big, square steering wheel.
Above the wheel is the brand’s first embedded shift light in a non-motorsports McLaren model, providing a colour-coded green/yellow/red guide for when to shift, if you want to control the 8-speed dual-clutch yourself. Gear changes are almost instant, and the gearbox uses technology so advanced that it can send power through the current gear and the next gear simultaneously to minimize lag. Transform yourself, and you will feel completely in control of these atomic levels of energy. But trust the machine, and you’ll be rewarded with split-second cog swaps at the engine’s peak power, accelerating the revs at breathtaking speeds.
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The final key to ultimate speed is Dynamic Handling mode, activated by a button on the left stalk of the TFT instrument panel. The setting frees up the stability control system to allow tire-smoking powerslides, and the uncontrollable feeling of reaching nearly 1,300 horsepower at the rear wheels is nothing short of mental. Whereas the rival Ferrari F80’s front wheels are driven by electric motors, giving it inherently more directional control, the sole job of the W1’s front wheels is to aim the car where you want it to go, which gives the steering a transparent, direct feel; Business is ahead, party is behind.
And what a party this is. While the relatively cheap, everything from a Dodge Demon to any Tesla plaid can have four-figure horsepower, speed varies in the highly engineered W1. When the boost button is pressed in Sprint mode, acceleration bursts at tarmac-gobbling speeds. I clocked 302 kilometers per hour (188 mph) at the end of the 0.7-mile main road without much effort, and could have easily exceeded the electronically limited top speed of 217 mph with a little more tarmac. Speed was reduced dramatically by applying pressure to the carbon ceramic stoppers, aided by a rear wing that folded upward to act like an air brake.
The aforementioned hydraulic steering reveals how much grip the front tires have with nerve-wracking clarity, and I’m able to turn the car easily by increasing the throttle a bit. It might not be the most efficient way around Mugello, but venturing into the atmosphere with some steamed-up Pirelli P Zero Trofeo RS is a great way to find out what this $2.2 million machine can do.
Is the McLaren W1 worth $2.2 million?
My McLaren W1 test drive also included time spent on local roads, although I’d prefer to modify most of my observations as they reflect more of the ridiculous capabilities of this track-focused weapon than its feasibility in the real world. Suffice it to say, the sea of Fiat Pandas and VW Polos in these parts makes the McLaren look more ethereal in both design and sheer capability.
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It might be easy to dismiss moonshots like W1 as futile exercises because of the 0.1 percent excess. And yes, there’s a certain absurdity to investing untold manpower and resources into building a race-bred road car that few will actually use (for what it’s worth, Jay Leno has regularly driven his P1 to accumulate 12,000 miles on the clock, and he has a W1 on order). But seeing as it is a landmark achievement that comes every decade, it’s no surprise that each of the 399 McLaren W1s has long been talked about.
2026 mclaren w1 specs
- engine: 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged flat-plane-crank V8
- electric motor: Radial-Flux E-Module
- Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
- Horsepower/Torque: 1,258 hp/988 lb-ft
- 0-60 mph: 2.7 seconds
- Top Speed: 217 mph
- price: From $2.2 million
