Aftermarket

McLaren W1 First Drive: Ferocious Hypercar Transcends the Track

You know things are getting serious when McLaren rolls-out the ‘1’ suffix. The origin story is, of course, the very first road car McLaren ever built, the F1. Designed by visionary Formula 1 aerodynamicist and engineer Gordon Murray, it arrived in 1992 and rendered all other supercars obsolete. The tiny, lightweight F1 embraced carbon-fibre material technology, adopted a radical centre seat driving position with two passengers set back and either side and was powered by a 6.1-litre V12 engine from BMW that might as well have been passed down directly from the Gods. Game-changer? That doesn’t even come close to describing its impact, even if at the time sales didn’t come easy… The P1 was very different. Rather than a unique side project from the Formula 1 team, it was instead a statement piece for McLaren Automotive, a new road car division still in its infancy. It arrived in 2013 and was a wild-eyed showstopper. It traded the long-legged gait and supple suspension of the F1 for a weaponized hybrid system capable of delivering 903bhp and huge blue flames from its drainpipe exhaust. In Race mode, it lowered by 2-inches and its massive concave rear wing extended into the sky. The P1 was all about aerodynamic downforce, crazed acceleration and a snorting, angry soundtrack that mixed venomous twin-turbocharged V8 with the manic whirr of electric motors. Not so much a car as a force of nature. And now there’s this: The W1. It’s a true successor to the P1 with a similar brief and, on the face of it, it evolves rather than radically reinvents McLaren’s vision for the ultimate hypercar. This is not a criticism. How could it be when the result is this dramatic and has such staggering, other-worldly potential? The W1 has 1258bhp delivered to the rear wheels. It’s capable of 0-124 mph in 5.8-seconds, the quarter mile in 9.6-seconds at 167 mph and produces 2205lbs of downforce at 174 mph. The active aerodynamics – particularly a rear wing that extends way out beyond the rear of the car – are pure performance art and deliver massive aerodynamic efficiency. The result, aside from looking extremely cool, is that the W1 is McLaren’s fastest road car around a racetrack. Ever. Their benchmark circuit is the breath-taking Handling Track at the Nardo proving ground in southern Italy, where the W1 beats their previous benchmark, the flyweight McLaren Senna, by three seconds per lap. Or “a lifetime” as they call it in racing. Maybe two lifetimes! Core to the W1’s performance is the new ‘Aerocell’ carbon fibre tub. With integrated seats and a raised footwell to allow for inboard pushrod-operated front suspension – which in turn gives air a clean path to the huge underbody diffuser – it’s light, stiff, space efficient and has been instrumental in McLaren realising a full ground-effect concept. Just like last year’s F1 cars, which were the fastest ever made. There is also an active front wing and the aforementioned complex rear wing dubbed ‘Active Long Tail’. All of which is very admirable. But the ‘anhedral’ or gullwing doors and the fantastically shirnked-wrapped feel to the minimalist, highly-focussed interior are a pretty good side effect. The W1 feels special. Those fixed seats are perhaps a shade more upright than expected, and the driving position is less obviously racecar than, for example, the Aston Martin Valhalla or Ferrari F80. However, once you’ve adjusted the pedals (they move on a slider) and the delicate, slim-rimmed and alcantara-trimmed steering wheel, there’s an overwhelming sense of purpose. The cabin is so tightly tailored and imparts a sense of lightness and agility before you so much as start the all-new 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8 engine, which makes 916bhp all on its own and revs to 9200rpm. Reach up to a roof-mounted control panel to find the starter button. Maybe this fighter plane trope is a little corny, but somehow you feel thrilled rather than manipulated. The W1 has a sense of humour as well as all that motorsport-derived sophistication. There’s a short delay, but when the engine does fire it’s instant – as the high-powered hybrid system negates the need for an old-school starter motor. A sharp flare of revs tells you that this engine is hyper-responsive and angry. On some deep level your brain and body have been sent all the signals required to prepare for something new and intense. Ahead of us, an empty Mugello racetrack, so press and hold the blue button next to the red starter to select Race mode. The centre display graphic shows the W1’s transformation in real time as it lowers by 37mm at the front and 17mm at the rear whilst simultaneously undocking all that active aero goodness. Race mode is not road legal and is geo-locked. You can show your friends and neighbours the aero dance, but it won’t allow you to select a gear to actually drive unless you’re at a circuit. Incidentally, the rocker switches either side of the display binnacle allow further options now: Toggle up the Handling control on the left for Race+ (for F1-spec super smooth tracks) or stick to Race for gnarlier ones. On the right toggle select ‘GP’ for sustained performance over a stint or ‘Sprint’ to unleash all 1258bhp for a time attack. There’s also a DRS and Boost function on the steering wheel. But I guarantee you won’t have the mental capacity to use them… Exit the pitlane, pin the throttle and W1 takes maybe a millisecond or two to gather its might (the gearing stretches to around 60mph in first, nearly 100mph in second, primarily to aid traction), but then lunges at the first turn with incredible ferocity. It instantly feels light, almost like inertia is no longer a thing. McLaren really does prize lightweight engineering, and at 3084lbs (dry) the W1 has a 278lbs advantage over the Ferrari F80. Plus, Ferrari uses figures for cars fitted with every single carbon fibre option. In reality, the gap is probably wider still. The impression of agility and stunning control continues as the track is unravelled at startling pace. The electric motor mounted to the side of the new 8-speed dual-clutch transmission is good for 342bhp and 324lb ft and it boosts any low rev lethargy the new flat-plane crank V8 might have (spoiler alert: It doesn’t appear to have any), so the W1 just feels massively, almost impossibly powerful at any revs. Even so, there’s real reward for wringing it out to 9200rpm and the power curve feels superheated but organic, too. In Race mode the steering – still hydraulically powered – has less assistance and it is noticeably heavier than other McLarens. However, that resistance is welcome as it gives you something to push against and imparts so much information about the front grip level. New Pirelli Trofeo RS tyres with a bigger front footprint than P1 or Senna really help. The front-end feels incredibly secure and the rear-axle follows with perfectly-aligned precision. The whole car feels super-stiff, completely locked into the surface and inspires confidence, but there’s an inherent agility and adjustability that means you’re quickly confident to push at its limits and really impose yourself on the chassis. It’s such a complex car but the driving experience is intuitive, and the driver feels a key contributor rather than just amazed (or terrified) observer, holding on for dear life. Every dynamic ingredient really is shockingly effective and yet has a subtlety and lightness of touch. From that delicious steering to the incredible brakes, the W1 just feels so mission-focussed, so hooked-up. Only the new 8-speed gearbox is a slightly disappointment. It’s fast and punchy, but after the scintillating energy of the Ferrari F80 ’box it feels competent rather than inspired. Other quibbles – it’s okay to quibble when the starting price is $2.1-million before tax and destination charge. Well, that new twin-turbocharged V8 sounds tightly wound and aggressive but if you have a P1 tucked in the garage you’ll miss the snorting, Darth Vader-style soundscape and all the drama that goes with it. Ferrari does this better, too. The F80 sounds deathly dull from the outside but is a riot of turbochargers, electric motors and all sorts of mechanical fury within the cockpit. Even so, the W1 is wildly entertaining on track, and the rear-drive configuration makes it more of a challenge and more satisfying than the F80 when chasing lap times or just sliding around for fun. In the Ferrari, you must second-guess what the front e-axle might do, whereas in the W1 it’s all on you. There are plenty of tools to help, including the ingenious Variable Drift Control, but somehow the W1 is more heroic. Or at least fools you into feeling more heroic – which is surely the point! On the road? Nimble, loaded with feel and sublime response. The ride is noticeably tougher than, say, a 750S but the control is ramped-up too, and with a bit more speed the whole car finds a delicious rhythm. Sport mode for the drivetrain brings some nice turbo whooshes and chirps, but the noise remains high-quality rather than extreme excitement. It is perhaps the one area the W1 feels just a little too tame. Of course, there’s nothing tame about the raw performance… which is genuinely shocking and literally hurts your neck muscles after a few hours. How McLaren has given the W1 such immense traction through just two driven wheels is beyond me. So, is it worthy of that ‘1’? I think so. Perhaps we won’t be talking about $25-million auction results for the W1 in 30 years from now, as we are for the F1. Perhaps it doesn’t quite have the amazing presence and jaw-dropping star quality of the simply gorgeous P1. But it is such an intense experience and the way it marries stunning track performance with delicate poise and entertainment on normal roads is something akin to magic. Maybe not ‘the one’ but definitely a searing, outrageous addition to McLaren’s fiercest family line. Just 399 W1’s will be built and they’re all sold. I’m not surprised at all. View All McLarens For Sale Images: McLaren Automotive

A red vintage-style Ferrari 612TR sports car with a white circle and black stripes is driven on a highway by a man wearing sunglasses; palm trees and blue sky in the background, capturing true V12 exotic flair.

By Khris Bharath – July 16, 2025

Ferrari 612TR “Teppista”: A Custom One-Off V12 Exotic Wit...

It may look like something from Ferrari’s golden age, but this beast was born a rebellion. Meet the Teppista, a 1-of-1 outlaw Ferrari from the folks over at S-Klub LA. First unveiled at SEMA 2023, the Teppista stole the spotlight. Now the car now up for sale, is back in the limelight as it just featured on AutopiaLA, the YouTube channel known for filming the wildest custom machines on the road. Host Shawn Davis, who is no stranger to high-dollar insanity, was left pretty impressed. Underneath its swooping 1957 Testa Rossa silhouette lies a reimagined Ferrari 612 Scaglietti stretched, slammed, and stitched back together in a way that even Ferrari, themselves, could’ve never imagined. Now this is no tribute car nor is it a tasteful homage. What it is is a riot in red, built with what appears to be no intent to please the purists. As for the name Teppista, it comes from the Italian word for “hooligan,” and there’s no better way to describe this unique creation. The project began life as a fiberglass replica body of the 1957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa, originally crafted so the owner of a real TR, Paul Mitchell, could swap it on for track duty without risking his $40 million original. S-Klub acquired that shell and mounted it onto a donor Ferrari 612 Scaglietti, a modern front-engine V12 grand tourer that’s often overlooked. Yet the 612’s V12, front-engine layout, and understated performance make it wildly underrated. S-Klub saw the potential and went all in. However, the modern-day 612 is much larger than the original TR, so S-Klub cut the body down the middle and widened it by a full foot, then stretched it two more feet in length. As for the sculpted body, every surface was reshaped by hand, no scans, no templates. Around 40 unique carbon-fiber pieces were fabricated, including the front splitter, the massive carbon-fiber swan-neck wing with the big endplates and diffuser at the rear, the GTO-style vents, and custom flared fenders that retain the pontoon style of the original. There’s a frameless fiberglass windshield that adds to the open-top experience and exudes what appears to be more of a road-going prototype. A gold-accented engine bay (highlighted through a transparent glass cover), gold powder-coated head covers, and a carbon-fiber prancing horse shield give it a regal, yet luxurious look. Behind the driver’s seat, a headrest fairing adds a heritage motorsport touch, while twin fuel fillers and titanium hardware hammer home the no-limits build philosophy. The high-polish HRE wheels add visual drama. Inside, the Teppista retains much of its 612’s basic DNA, the dash, seats, and center console, but the cabin is overhauled with a deep blue over yellow interior that is a nod to vintage Ferrari racers. The audio system is absurd: four amplifiers, twin woofers, and 3,800 watts of Audison Thesis sonic force. But you’ll need it, because the custom side-exit exhaust is pretty violent and impossible to ignore. Underneath? The chrome bolts alone are worth over $30,000. The kind of detail you'd never see unless the car’s on a lift. But that’s the S-Klub way, no shortcuts, no compromises. The California-based outfit is no stranger to wild creations, and their widebody Mercedes-Benz 300SL “Gullwing” restomod is the perfect example of that. The original 1957 Testa Rossa was one of Ferrari’s most iconic race cars, famed for its dominance at Le Mans and Sebring. S-Klub decided to channel that same spirit, but then pushed it beyond recognition. It took 12 guys working flat-out to finish the car in time for SEMA, and it nearly broke them. But the result is art, speed, and insanity all rolled into one. If there’s anything from Ferrari’s own stable that comes close, it’s the Icona Series Monza SP1 and SP2, the roofless, screenless barchettas built to celebrate Ferrari’s legacy with modern engineering. This one-off hooligan, though, blends Ferrari’s heart with S-Klub’s soul, and they say they’ll never build another. View All Ferraris For Sale " width="680"> Source: AutotopiaLA

By Andrew Nabors – June 24, 2020

2021 GMC Syclone Combines 750 Horsepower & AWD, Limited t...

GMC took on the world by adding an intercooled turbo to their smallest truck. The first generation Syclone has had a dedicated following for three decades, and their pleas were answered last year. Specialty Vehicle Engineering (formerly SLP) has built over 60,000 cars, trucks, and SUVs for General Motors. As a Tier-1 supplier, their engineers solve problems and deliver niche cars that wouldn't be profitable for GM. I explained their modus operandi in our July issue, so click the link below for all the details. Discover the Cover-July 2020: American Muscle Edition With SVE The 2020 Syclone made its world debut at our Cars & Coffee, and it was also the centerpiece of our display at Amelia Island. It packs 455 horsepower from a supercharged V6 with optional 4WD. For this year they upped the ante by replacing the 3.6-liter with a 5.3-liter V8. Utilizing the same block found in the 6.2-liter Sierra and Silverado, they chose to build a forged 5.3-liter bottom end along with a meaty cam & ported heads. Like the V6 version, the supercharger is their proprietary design that doesn't load the crankshaft when boost isn't needed. Other standard equipment includes their own 13.6" brakes, solid sway bars, full-length traction bars, and All Wheel Drive. Driving the V6 model around Clearwater and Amelia Island was a blast, so expect a full review when the V8 arrives. Click the button below to reserve yours and stay with us for all your SVE news. Learn More https://www.facebook.com/SpecialtyVehicleEngineering/videos/681921282376310/

By Edward Jones – October 25, 2019

A Visit to TECHART

Headquartered in lovely Stuttgart, Germany is a well-known aftermarket brand known as TECHART. They have built a reputation around their incredible specialized aftermarket programs for Porsche models over the years, and they show no sign of slowing down. We recently took flight to Germany and had the chance to visit TECHART's headquarters and were treated with a truly German automotive experience. When we arrived in Stuttgart, we were greeted by Marc Herdtle, TECHART's Marketing Director. He picked up the team in a stunning 700+ horsepower Porsche Cayenne Turbo Coupe that had been upgraded through TECHART's own program for the model. Herdtle then took us through the streets of Germany in the magnificent SUV until we arrived at the TECHART HQ. Upon entering their headquarters, a Rolf Benz Edition of the Porsche Cayenne was on display, as well as a classic Porsche 911 and 911 Turbo S that had been enhanced by TECHART. There were also displays that demonstrated TECHART's abilities when it comes to personalized cars, like custom steering wheels and more. After a quick lunch in the conference room, the tour of the headquarters began. Starting off in the mechanic's garage, a new Porsche 911 (992 generation) that had been further improved by TECHART. This was technically an exclusive sneak peek, as the TECHART 911 (992) had not been unveiled during the time of our visit. From here, we made our way to the leather upholstery department. The artisanship that goes into TECHART's custom interior is a sight to behold. The artists that create these masterpieces are truly masters of their craft. Whether it's the seats, steering wheel, door trim, or what have you, they can customize it with leather and other fine materials. Not only does TECHART have a leather upholstery department, but they also produce their carbon fiber and carbon fiber components inhouse. TECHART utilizes a lot of carbon fiber, so it makes perfect sense that they produce it inhouse. This allows them to oversee everything that goes on, ensuring that their carbon fiber is of the highest quality. For the design of the cars themselves, TECHART's designers have a lot of tools at their disposal. One of the most interesting tools we saw that they use is a virtual reality setup that's powered by the HTC Vive. This allows the designers to get up close and personal with the car and see what they're building before their very own eyes. Even though they have this kind of technology available, they also design with the tried-and-true clay molding method. After the cars have been fitted with new TECHART components, they're placed in a wind tunnel to ensure that the cars have the most optimized aerodynamics possible. Seeing it in action is incredible, but it's frowned upon to jump in while testing is taking place. After the tour, we were treated with something special: a chance to drive TECHART's Cayenne Turbo Coupe and new 911 (992) in the forests of Germany. If the tour of TECHART's headquarters was the dinner, then this was the exquisite dessert. Each of these vehicles not only looked fantastic, both inside and out, they handled beautifully. When sitting in each of the TECHART Porsches, you could feel the amount of craftsmanship that went into the refinement of the exterior and interior. With the press of the pedal, the true power and essence of the German sports car and SUV was on full display. We'll just say this: if you ever have a chance to drive a Porsche through a German forest, take it. We want to thank TECHART for inviting us to their headquarters and for treating us to a day we'll never forget. Then again, we can live it again, to an extent, by getting a TECHART vehicle of our own. Could that be a business expense...? visit techart.de

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