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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

By Tyler Rampersaud – September 18, 2024

Rolls-Royce Celebrates 60 Years Of The Goldfinger Phantom

An iconic movie car celebrates its 60th anniversary. An undeniable, quintessential standard of automotive luxury, Rolls-Royce has enjoyed the status of a pop culture icon for most of its century-long history. Rolls-Royce has been featured a dozen times in the decades of James Bond films, which are known for highlighting unique luxury cars, fashion, tech, and gadgets. However, one Rolls-Royce that made a 007 cinematic appearance stands out in particular as the most iconic, and that is the Rolls-Royce Phantom, which featured in Goldfinger in 1964. 60 years have passed since the premiere of Goldfinger, one of the most iconic James Bond films, on September 17, 1964, and the 1937 Phantom plays a pivotal role in the film as the villain, Auric Goldfinger’s car. It was used in the film to smuggle two tons of gold from England to Switzerland in a unique way. The car’s body was made of gold and melted down with the original body replaced to repeat the journey. The car, the Rolls-Royce Phantom III, was up to the challenge of taking on alpine roads with its 165-horsepower, 7.3-liter engine, the first V12 engine that Rolls-Royce ever used. The car was the last Rolls-Royce to be developed by Henry Royce before he died in 1933. The car itself was originally commissioned for an American who settled in England. It was originally finished in all black with a white coach line but was then given its recognizable yellow and black color scheme for the Goldfinger film. After 60 years, the iconic Goldfinger Phantom remains one of the most iconic Rolls-Royces in pop culture and one of the most iconic cars in the James Bond franchise. View All Rolls-Royces For Sale

By Edward Jones – April 17, 2020

Meek Mill Donates His Rolls-Royce Phantom for "All-In Cha...

Fanatics is currently putting on the "All-In Challenge," meant to help those affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. This allows everyone to either enter to win fan experiences for just $10 per entry or bid on auction items and experiences. One of the items that have been added to the auction portion comes from Meek Mill, who donated his prized 2018 Rolls-Royce Phantom to the cause. This all-black Phantom was actually mentioned in his debut album "Dreams and Nightmares" and it comes with just 5,041 miles clocked on its odometer. From the auction's descriptions: "When he bought it, they said it was leased. When it becomes yours? Haters rest in peace. Luxurious, exotic and elegant, Meek Mill's personal Rolls-Royce Phantom is unmatched in technology, design and style. In Meek's debut album, "Dreams and Nightmares," this baby is the dream. On the streets of Philly, seeing Allen Iverson roll past his childhood neighborhood in a Phantom offered Meek a glimpse at the portrait of success." When the winning bid is set, 100% of the money will go directly to Feeding America, Meals On Wheels, World Central Kitchen and No Kid Hungry. Now that's an awesome cause! Click the button below to see the auction page for yourself and maybe drop a bid. View Auction Page https://www.instagram.com/p/B-9-yFJJbwV/ Featured Image via Rolls-Royce Motorcars NA

By Edward Jones – November 15, 2019

Drake's New Rolls-Royce Has a Golden Owl Hood Ornament Wi...

Drake is now the proud owner of a one-of-a-kind Rolls-Royce Phantom that is a stunning piece of automotive art from every angle and aspect. The man behind this creation is none other than Tony Bet, Drake's exclusive vehicle designer. For the body itself, it has Bushukan package from Mansory that was installed by Driving Emotions Motorcar in Toronto. Within this package are body components that transform the look of the ultra-luxury automobile. Gracing the finished body is a beautiful two-tone paint scheme. Let's be honest, two-tone paint jobs are perfect for Phantoms. The shining star of Drake's new Rolls-Royce has to be the hood ornament. Tony Bet came up with the idea for this one-of-a-kind hood ornament based on the "OVO" logo. He wanted to add something to this car to make it the perfect gift for Drake and this was the incredible result. Pulling off the creation of it was both Raffi Jewellers and Hearts on Fire Diamond Company. This gold owl has a ton of diamonds around its feet, as well as two large diamonds that make up the owl's eyes. The jewelers who created this ornament engraved Drake's name into the base of the ornament and placed two more diamonds between his name and OVO. It's easy to say that Tony Bet has created an undoubtedly stunning Rolls-Royce for his friend Drake. This is a true one-of-a-kind automobile that was only made possible through fine craftsmanship and creativity.

By Edward Jones – October 01, 2018

Conor McGregor Gets a New Rolls-Royce Phantom EWB

Conor McGregor is getting ready for his anticipated fight against Khabib Nurmagomedov, but that isn't stopping him from adding to his car collection. The Notorious recently posted up a photo and video of his new 2018 Rolls-Royce Phantom VIII Extended Wheelbase from Rolls-Royce of Las Vegas. This car is the ultimate luxury automobile that is perfect for the owner that likes to be chauffeured around. In the rear are seats that take advantage of the extended wheelbase, allowing for plenty of legroom. Conor McGregor's Car Collection But it's not just about space in this car. Perhaps McGregor wins the fight and on the way home in this Rolls-Royce he wants to celebrate. No big deal, because there's a drink cabinet in the rear, complete with Rolls-Royce Champagne flutes. There are also plenty of luxuries available in the Phantom EWB you'd expect from a Rolls-Royce, like the Starlight Headliner and monitor screens for each rear passenger.Congratulations are in order for McGregor on his latest purchase and we can't wait for the fight this weekend. View All Rolls-Royce For Salehttps://www.instagram.com/p/BoX-9IDAlEY/https://www.instagram.com/p/BoNjr2UA-1m/Source: Instagram/@thenotoriousmma

By Edward Jones – December 07, 2017

Rapper Turned a New Rolls-Royce into a Recording Studio

How quiet is the new Rolls-Royce Phantom? Quiet enough that rapper Skepta was able to record an entire song in the backseat of one while he was driven through the mountains of Switzerland.“The Phantom really takes you away. I stepped in the car and there was no need to think," said Skepta. "It was like sitting in first class on a plane minus the noise. Comfortable and silent, a perfect space to make music.”Rolls-Royce Dawn Races 0-155 mph on AutobahnIn the video below you can see the recording in action. In the video, Skepta makes the beat on his laptop on the way up a mountain's peak and then connects a mic to lay down the vocals. It's pretty interesting to see just how quiet the Phantom really is, which is something Rolls-Royce pointed out when the car was first revealed.

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