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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 Andrew Nabors – November 01, 2016

Luxury SUV Battle: Bentley Bentayga vs Range Rover SVAuto...

If you think Bentley's first SUV, the Bentayga, is just a warmed over Porsche, you are incredibly mistaken. The battle for British luxury has been taken to a new level with the Bentayga packing a 6.0-liter twin turbo W12 along with all wheel drive. Because it took them a bit longer than expected to reach production, Land Rover had ample time to stuff their supercharged V8 from the SVR into the long wheelbase Range Rover.(Sports Cars For Sale)An inevitable comparison between these two super SUVs was bound to happen, so Auto Express jumped at the opportunity to line them up. At the starting line is a combined 1,103 horsepower sent to eight expensive tires. Each makes power in a different way, so let's dig into the details.Bentley uses a W12 engine, built upon the venerable VR6 architecture that can be found in the Bugatti Chiron. Launching in all wheel drive levels the playing field, but the results speak for themselves. The Bentayga is 6.0 liters with twin turbos and the Range is 5.0 liters with a blower. Sometimes clever engineering can overcome a deficit in displacement, so tell us who should have won in the comments below.Bentayga For Sale|Range Rover For Sale

By Edward Jones – November 01, 2016

Crazy Lamborghini Halloween Run in Tokyo

Tokyo is full of bright lights, culture, history and apparently Lamborghinis.Friend of the blog, effspot, was recently in Tokyo, Japan doing whatever he does (typically finding amazing cars and making me jealous). While in the city, he happened across a gaggle of Lamborghinis that were participating in a Halloween run. Each car was decorated in unbelievable ways that included LED lights, crystals and insanely bright colors.(Related - LED Ferrari 360 Modena Drives through Tokyo)These cars resemble that of bōsōzoku vehicles. The bōsōzoku culture first began with motorcycles, where the owners customized them to become extravagant, extreme and truly one-of-a-kind. Though many bōsōzoku cyclists are still around in Japan, that type of modification has made its way to exotics and supercars. Click play below to see the Lamborghinis in action.All Lamborghini For Sale

By Edward Jones – October 26, 2016

Lamborghini Veneno and More in Possibly World's Largest H...

One of the benefits of spending buying an expensive supercar or hypercar is that you'll be able to participate in event that consist of other supercars and hypercars. For example, there was a meetup at Shanghai Circuit that had the likes of the Lamborghini Veneno, LaFerrari, McLaren P1, Koenigsegg Agera, Pagani Zonda, Bugatti Veyron and so many more.Seriously, this may be one of the most insane meetups on the planet.Effspot flew out to Shanghai to witness the meetup for himself. He thankfully recorded the entire event and uploaded the video to YouTube. The video is just about 40 minutes long, but it's totally worth it to watch the entire thing, because you're going to see some of the world's most incredible cars. Click play on the video below to see it for yourself, and be warned that there is some NSFW language.Exotic Cars For Sale

By Andrew Nabors – October 25, 2016

Porsche 918 Spyder vs London Police

With over 20 miles of electric cruising range, Porsche's 918 Spyder has the ability to sneak up on you. But if you wrap it in a green and black livery, don't expect to fly under the radar in any urban setting. JWT Supercars is an English YouTube page devoted to catching exotics in action, and they spotted a bright green 918 under inspection from London's finest. We have no idea why a Kuwait license plate would rouse the suspicions of the constables, but perhaps the microscopic front plate is against city rules.(Related - Man Hits 88 MPH in His DeLorean: Gets Ticket Instead of Traveling Through Time)For all of our fans who live in states that require a front-facing license plate, you can empathize with this owner. Parking against the flow of traffic, the presumptive owner is overheard discussing his options with Metro Police Constables. London has a congestion tax for drivers who enter the city, and it is based on automatic plate recognition. The foreign plate is probably not in their system, which flags every car who is not in the system. It costs £11.50 daily to enter the city during weekdays, and the tax helps provide maintenance to the ancient roads. It seems like a relative bargain compared to the NJ Turnpike or Florida's SunPass network, but the UK subsidizes their roads through other means. If you own a 918 Spyder you probably have the means to pay any fine, but if you haven't added one to your collection please take a look at the listings from our dealers below. Stay with us for more candid supercar footage.All Porsche 918 Spyder For Sale

By Edward Jones – October 24, 2016

Tesla Model S P100D: Did it Just Become the Quickest Stoc...

Our friends over at Drag Times took delivery of their Tesla Model S P100D just a few weeks ago, but they haven't been able to push it to its limits until now. Thanks to a very, very brief cool front, Drag Times took the P100D out to Palm Beach International Raceway to see just how fast this new electric sedan could make it down the drag strip.(Related - Mercedes-Benz's Tesla Fighter is Teased)To make sure their Model S was racing at its full potential, they had Florida Drilling come out with 150kW generators on a truck to charge the sedans up to 100% for the races. After a quick charge, the Teslas were at full potential and ready to go.When put to the test, the P100Ds were both consistent and fast as lightning. According to Drag Times, they were able to run them around 10.7-10.8 all night, taking on cars like the Corvette Z06, Challenger Hellcat, Nissan GT-R, Camaro and CTS-V.With a quarter-mile time of 10.76 at 122.36 mph, Drag Times thinks this could be the quickest stock four-door car in the world. What do you guys think? Watch the videos below and let me know in the comments below!All Tesla For Sale

By Edward Jones – October 20, 2016

2017 Acura NSX vs 2017 Nissan GT-R: Which is Japan's Best...

For years, the Nissan GT-R has been called "Godzilla," thanks to its ability to rocket off of the line and handle corners like a boss. Since the GT-R was released, we've been waiting for another Japanese sports car to come in and take down Godzilla. Who will be our King Ghidorah/Mothra/Mechagodzilla? Is it the new 2017 Acura NSX? Motor Trend aimed to find out.(Related - Graham Rahal Gets His New 2017 Acura NSX)In the latest episode of Head 2 Head, Jason Cammisa and Jonny Lieberman took the two cars out to decide if the new 2017 NSX could take down the legendary GT-R. The new 2017 GT-R is powered by a twin-turbo 2.8-liter V6 that's mated to a six-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. As for the NSX, it has a twin-turbo 3.5-liter V6 that works with two electric motors in the front and one in between the engine and nine-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission. So, the major difference between the two are the electric motors in the NSX. But is this jolt of electricity enough? Find out by clicking play below.New Acura NSX For Sale | Nissan GT-R For Sale

By Edward Jones – October 18, 2016

Porsche 911 Becomes the Perfect Rally Car

Whenever my significant other asks me what my dream car is, I always reply with "a rally car." Why? For starters, I was raised in the desert where dirt roads were the only roads and driving on them could be either treacherous or exciting. Unfortunately, I currently live in a part of Florida where dirt roads are nowhere to be found and a drive to the central area of the state is necessary for some dirt driving. But even still, I want a rally car I can take sideways around corners, drive through nature and just beat to hell. For me, the ideal car was a Subaru, but after watching /DRIVE's latest video, my opinion might've changed.Race car driver Leh Keen is like me and loves the thought of driving through nature and getting in on some predictable oversteer. Naturally, he bought a 1981 Porsche 911 SC and installed long travel shocks, upgraded torsion bars, a skid plate, fog lights and, of course, mud flaps. The result is what he calls Project Keen, a rally-ready Porsche 911 that surprised /DRIVE's Matt Farah beyond belief.(Related - Horacio Pagani Shows Off His Porsche Collection)In the video below, Farah takes the car throw the forests of North Carolina, enjoying every bit of the car's predictable oversteer. After watching the video and listening to Farah's thoughts on the car, I may be leaning towards having a 911 as my dream rally car. Although, he does note in the video that this was no cheap project, costing around $35,000-$40,000 (not including the price of the classic 911, which can cost around $30,000).Be sure to click play on the video below to see why Matt Farah freaked over one of his favorite Porsche 911s.Porsche 911 Carrera For Sale

By Edward Jones – October 18, 2016

Motorcyclist Wheelies All Over Lamborghini Gallardo

Imagine you're driving down the street in your Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder with the top down and you're enjoying the weather. Behind the sound of the wind flowing by and the rumble of the V10 engine, you suddenly hear the distinct sounds of a motorcycle. Then, in your peripheral vision, you see a BMW S1000RR pulling a wheelie right beside you while the rider is staring you down. What do you do?Well, this driver just went about his day wondering why in the world a motorcyclist was doing a wheelie beside him on a public road. I'll say this now, always follow your local traffic laws, including speed limits.After following the Gallardo for a bit and pulling off some more stunts, the motorcyclist and Lamborghini end up at a stop light together where they chat for a brief second and the rider hands the driver what looks like a sticker.2004 Lamborghini Gallardo For SaleCheck out the whole event in the video below and let me know what you would've done in the comments below if you were the driver of the Lamborghini.All Lamborghini Gallardo For Sale

By Edward Jones – October 12, 2016

38 Lamborghinis Packed Indoors for Hurricane Matthew

Lamborghini Palm Beach was under a hurricane warning last week as hurricane Matthew aimed its sights on the state of Florida. Having such an expensive inventory, they knew they had to protect their investments from potential damage that the storm could cause. So, they had to carefully pack up their exotic cars inside where they would be safe. The only problem is that they had almost 50 cars that needed to be brought inside.(Related - Five Things to Love About the Lamborghini Huracan)Our friend Nue Vue was at the dealership when the packing commenced and he thankfully recorded it all on film. He told me there were 38 Lamborghinis that needed to be brought in, as well as 11 other exotic cars. If you watch the video below, you'll see just how careful they had to be when bringing the cars in. Heck, some cars are parked almost less than an inch away from each other. One wrong move and you've got yourself a costly repair.Check out the video below and give some props to the guys driving these cars. Lamborghini Palm Beach Inventory

By Edward Jones – October 11, 2016

Mustang GT500 Takes On Nissan GT-R in Surprising Street Race

If you've ever been to a drag racing event, odds are there was a Nissan GT-R there. Since it was released, people have been modifying the GT-R to become gods of the strip through various modifications. As for the Mustang GT500, it's not held in the same regard but it can still haul booty, especially when modifications are introduced.(Related - Who Wins the World's Greatest Drag Race?)This is why the drag race seen below is very interesting. In the video we see a GT500 take on a GT-R on a public road. Before I go any further I'll say that we don't condone these actions and street racing is an illegal action. Always follow your local safety laws and drive safe. Now that that's been said, let's get into it.The GT500 is noted as having 730 whp on tap thanks to a new upper, throttle body, exhaust, but it's running on pump gas. As for the GT-R, it only has unspecified bolt-on mods and is also running on pump gas-- its horsepower is unspecified as well.So who will win the race? Click play to find out.

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