Features

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

Driving The Future: An Interview With Jeff Mason of Piston Foundation

By Edward Jones – June 02, 2026

An Interview With Jeff Mason of The Piston Foundation

Ask anyone in the collector car world what keeps them up at night, and you will usually hear the same answer. The industry is running out of skilled hands to restore or repair the classics. The technicians who can rebuild a carburetor, hand-form a body panel, or coax a worn-out straight-six back to life are aging out, and the pipeline behind them, sadly, looks thin. That is the problem Jeff Mason is trying to fix. (Picture Above: Jeff Mason and Chris Mason rallying at the 2025 Targa New Newfoundland.) Mason runs the Piston Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit now in its fifth year, and his pitch is refreshingly direct. "Piston is creating a career path for young enthusiasts to get into the collector car industry," he says. "That career path has three big hurdles in it, and these are the things that have been keeping young people out." The first hurdle is awareness. Many young people who love cars do not realize they can turn that interest and passion for cars into a career. The second is cost. As Mason puts it, "technical education is expensive no matter how you do it, no matter where you do it, when you do it." The third is access. Even the kids who get the training often cannot find their way into that critically important first job. Piston tackles all three of these problems. The foundation's scholarship program funds students enrolled in two- or four-year automotive technology programs who have a serious interest in working on collector cars. And if numbers tell any story, it's that there are plenty of students interested in what Piston Foundation is offering. This year alone, the application pool hit 365, the foundation's largest yet, and Mason is hoping to award 60 scholarships, which is double the number from last year. But scholarships alone are not the end goal for the Piston Foundation. "Education is great, but if that's the end result, that's not enough," Mason says. "It's got to be converted into opportunity." That is where the foundation's next chapter comes in. The Piston Jobs program, currently in development, will connect Piston Scholars directly with shops, private collections, and specialty businesses looking for knowledgeable and capable hands in the shop. The idea is to close the loop between training and employment, building what Mason calls a flywheel that pulls young people in, gives them the resources they need, and places them in roles where they can build a career. Mason knows the shape of that path personally. College did not work out for him the first time around. After moving to Colorado from New Jersey, he enrolled at a trade school for graphic design, worked full-time during the day and went to class full-time at night, and turned that associate degree into a 25-year career running his own marketing agency. "I have personal experience in what it is to take some technical education and build your career off of that," he says. "I have a lot of affinity for what they're going through." He also pushes back hard on how the industry has historically talked about young people in the trades. "Let's stop talking about these students as kids. Instead, I'm going to introduce you to the young people that we're supporting, and I'm going to let you talk to that person," Mason says. "You're going to discover very quickly how passionate, knowledgeable, and skilled they are. They might know more than you do." That generation, he points out, is showing up at the shop door with a different toolkit than the one their predecessors carried. One that's filled with many tricks older generations are unaware of. With the vast majority of these students being digital natives, they come through Piston Foundation's doors fluent in SolidWorks, CNC, additive manufacturing, and vacuum forming. They are bringing those skills into shops alongside traditional handwork, not in place of it, giving them an ace up their rolled sleeves. "Suddenly, Celicas are saved," Mason says, pointing to how vacuum forming is bringing back dashboards that were considered unfixable. "There's a breed of new tech that recognizes the value of hand fabrication, handwork, and understanding the history of the mechanical function of cars, and they're ready and willing to absorb all of that and pull in digital tools and new methods of manufacturing." The result, he believes, could be a quiet renaissance in restoration, one where a single talented young person with the right tools and the right training can keep entire eras of cars alive. "I just hope that there's a renaissance out there about to happen," he says. HOW TO GET INVOLVED The Piston Foundation operates on what Mason describes as a partnership model with four groups: students, enthusiast donors, employers, and automotive brands. Each one has a role to play. For anyone who wants to support the next generation of collector car talent, the foundation makes it easy. You can donate directly online, sponsor a specific Piston Scholar, donate a collector car, pledge a future gift, or donate stock. Shops and businesses can also sign on as employer partners to help shape the Piston Jobs program as it builds out. Visit PistonFoundation.org

By duPont REGISTRY – May 19, 2026

LLP Exotic Auto Finance: The Specialist Behind High-End Vehicle Deals

When duPont REGISTRY Group announced its acquisition of LLP Exotic Auto Finance earlier this year, the move made sense on paper. A luxury automotive marketplace acquiring a luxury automotive finance company. But to understand why the deal matters, it helps to understand what LLP actually does and why it has earned the trust of more than 300 dealer partners nationwide. Founded in 2016 and headquartered in Montvale, New Jersey, LLP Exotic Auto Finance (formerly Luxury Lease Partners) was built with a specific purpose: financing the vehicles that traditional lenders either won't touch or don't understand. Ferraris, Lamborghinis, Porsches, and other six- and seven-figure automobiles occupy a different financial universe than a standard car loan, and LLP has spent nearly a decade developing the expertise to navigate it. A Finance Platform Built for Exotic Cars At its core, LLP offers lease and loan solutions for high-net-worth buyers across the credit spectrum, provided they have the income and financial resources to support luxury vehicle ownership. Leasing has been the company's signature product since day one, giving buyers flexibility and dealers a reliable path to closing transactions on high-value inventory. More recently, LLP expanded its platform to include traditional loan offerings, broadening its reach for clients who prefer ownership over a lease structure. What sets LLP apart from conventional lenders isn't just the vehicles it finances. It's the approach. The company operates with what it describes as a "car-first" mindset, meaning the team understands the product before structuring the deal. That kind of specialized knowledge matters when you're financing a car that costs as much as a house. Speed and flexibility are also central to LLP's value proposition. Dealers working in the exotic segment can't afford to wait days for a credit decision on a transaction worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. LLP has built its reputation on moving quickly without sacrificing rigor, which is part of why its dealer relationships run as deep as they do. Strength Behind the Platform LLP's financial credibility isn't just anecdotal. In December 2025, the company's most recent securitization received A and BBB ratings from S&P Global Ratings, a meaningful signal of the quality and consistency of its lease and finance portfolio. For dealers and clients evaluating financing partners, that kind of institutional validation carries weight. The company has also carved out a reputation for delivering strong dealer reserves, a key consideration for dealerships evaluating which finance partners to prioritize. In a segment where margins matter and deals are complex, LLP's ability to provide competitive terms alongside reliable dealer support has made it a preferred partner for luxury and exotic retailers across the country. What the dRG Acquisition Changes Joining the duPont REGISTRY Group ecosystem doesn't change what LLP does. It amplifies it. With access to dRG's network of collectors, dealers, and enthusiasts, as well as its marketplace infrastructure, LLP gains deal flow that independent finance companies rarely see. The long-term roadmap includes enabling pre-qualification for leasing and financing directly within the duPont REGISTRY platform, including duPont REGISTRY Live, creating a more seamless path from browsing to ownership. There are also plans to explore dealer floorplan financing for select marketplace partners as the platform matures, which would further deepen LLP's role within the broader dRG ecosystem. For now, the fundamentals remain the same. Doug Goodman continues to lead LLP as CEO, the team that built the platform stays in place, and the dealers who have relied on LLP for years will continue to have access to the same high-touch service that built the company's reputation. For the exotic and luxury automotive market, having a finance partner that actually speaks the language has always mattered. LLP was built precisely for that role. Get Pre-Qualified

An image of a Bugatti Tourbillon on the road.

By Gabriel Vega – June 20, 2024

Unveiled: The 2026 Bugatti Tourbillon

When automakers say they're thinking of the future, it usually involves a roadmap for the next 10 to 15 years. With the Chiron's replacement, the 1,800-horsepower Tourbillon, Bugatti isn't looking ahead a few decades but instead to the finely trimmed lawns of the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance a century from now. Bugatti's obsession with timelessness has been a driving force since the beginning of its third chapter 25 years ago. Despite being a technological powerhouse, essentially refining what it meant for a road car to be "over-engineered," the Veyron has nearly no components that date it. By abstaining from the early 00s trend of filling cabins with low-res screens powered by cumbersome infotainment systems, interacting with the Veyron is not too dissimilar to the Chiron that succeeded it. However, with the introduction of the 2025 Bugatti Tourbillon, the French carmaker is focused squarely on this car's long-term future. Its gauge cluster, for example, is nearly fully analog, sporting a skeletonized construction like you'd get from an AP Royal Oak. Its aero components, such as its raised front fenders, which channel air beneath its headlights, and its retractable rear wing, hide in plain sight until needed. However, its most impressive achievement is integrating a brand-new V16 engine with three electric motors, allowing it to provide naturally aspirated thrills and a genuinely usable electric range. The Veyron may have introduced over-engineering to the modern scene, but the Tourbillon takes the concept to a new level. Unlike the Veyron and Chiron, the Tourbillon is not named after a Bugatti racing driver on the count of it no longer housing a W16 engine. Instead, its inspiration comes from the world of watchmaking. In keeping with the carmaker's French origins, the Tourbillon is a complex movement developed in 1801 by Swiss-French watchmaker Abraham-Louis Breguet. It encases its escapement and balance wheel within a rotating cage to improve balance and maximize accuracy regardless of the watch's orientation. This theme of balance is present throughout the Tourbillon's design, which combines to allow for a top speed of 276 mph. As such, this car's styling serves that overarching goal. Drawing from the carmaker's back catalog, including cars like the Type 35 racer, the mythical Type 57 SC Atlantic, and the elegant Type 41 Royale, the Tourbillon now sits lower to the ground, visually widening the car. However, four key elements: its horseshoe grille, central ridge, dual-color split, and the Bugatti line are present, with all lines emerging from its central opening. Like the Veyron and its ten radiators, the Bugatti Tourbillon's aero works to serve the needed air to both its new V16 and its tri-motor setup. To channel air upfront, it sports elevated fenders that route air beneath its headlights and onto its side intakes. A new cooling system allows air to pass under and through its front hood, enabling the use of a more prominent front storage area. Its rear diffuser extends just behind the passenger compartment, sloping upwards aggressively, allowing it to sit hidden beneath the car. Like the Chiron, the Tourbillon counts on a retractable rear wing, which raises for added downforce at lower speeds and doubles as an air brake. As talk of the Chiron's successor began circulating online, rumors suggested that the French carmaker might downsize its cylinder count to meet stricter emissions regulations. However, the Bugatti Tourbillon sees the carmaker charging ahead in precisely the opposite direction. As carmakers lean into all-out electrification, the French carmaker unveils a brand-new 8.3-liter naturally aspirated V16 engine co-developed with legendary engineering firm Cosworth. Despite lacking any forced induction, the V16 generates 1,000 hp by itself, just one shy of the Veyron's quad-turbo W16. It achieves this despite weighing just 555 pounds. However, it's not alone. Drawing from its sister brand Rimac, the Tourbillon houses three electric motors, two in its front axle and one in the rear. This setup not only develops a further 800 hp, but Bugatti integrated it to sharpen throttle response and fill in torque when necessary, aside from allowing for true torque vectoring and all-wheel traction. Its total system output is 1,800 hp, and its naturally aspirated engine spins to a screaming 9,000 rpm. While the Tourbillon is still under development, Bugatti claims it'll sprint to 62 mph in two seconds, reach 124 mph in less than five seconds, and hit its limited top speed of 248 mph in under 25 seconds. However, it activates its Speed Key, and its limit rises to 276 mph. Its new eight-speed dual-clutch transmission and electronic limited-slip differential make these figures possible. Housed in its central tunnel behind the passengers sits an 800-volt, 25-kilowatt-hour battery pack, allowing the Tourbillon to travel under electric power alone for up to 37 miles. However, despite integrating its new engine, battery pack, and electric motors, Bugatti's latest is nearly 150-lb lighter than the Chiron that preceded it. To achieve these weight savings, the Bugatti Tourbillon rides on an entirely new carbon composite chassis and body structure, with its battery working as a structural component. Its front and rear frames are now built of 3D-printed aluminum, which, thanks to a thinner design, is lighter yet stronger than the Chiron's. This manufacturing approach extends to its multi-link front and rear suspension, which is now 45 percent lighter than its predecessor. Step inside, and the Tourbillon pairs an elevated level of craftsmanship to balance out its extreme engineering. In keeping with the theme of timelessness, it doesn't sport any fixed large displays, not even the Chiron's small screens, which flanked its central tachometer. Instead, Bugatti leaned again into the watchmaking world for its new interior, calling on Swiss watchmakers to develop its skeletonized gauge cluster. Comprised of over 600 components, precious stones decorate the analog dials. Unlike a more conventional cluster setup, the wheel rotates around the cluster, and the pair moves as one piece. As such, the Tourbillon's wheel attaches to its hub by just four minuscule spokes aligned vertically. Its center console houses plenty of anodized and milled aluminum pieces but adds new crystal glass components and a cluster of knurled aluminum switches. Curiously, its drive mode selector stans up vertically, not too dissimilar to what we've recently seen in other VW Group products like the Porsche 911. While Bugatti has previously been adamant about its dislike for large displays, the Tourbillon bends the rules slightly by incorporating a new retractable screen built to offer Apple CarPlay connectivity. Visible in landscape and portrait modes, it extends fully in just five seconds and hides when it's not needed. As the French carmaker pulls the covers off its latest offering, the Bugatti Tourbillon is still in the testing phase of its development, with prototypes covering miles worldwide. Unlike the Chiron, its successor's production run shrinks to just 250 units with a starting price of over $4 million. Its assembly is expected to begin once the brand completes its run of W16 models, with deliveries commencing sometime in 2026.

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