Look at any of the latest supercars, be it the McLaren Artura, the Ferrari 296 GTB, or the recently unveiled Lamborghini Temerario, and you’ll find traces of the hypercars that came before them. Eleven years ago, the McLaren P1, Ferrari LaFerrari, and the Porsche 918 Spyder laid the foundation for the future of the modern supercar. Plug-in hybrids with monstrous power outputs and infinitely adjustable aero may be the norm today. Still, they weren’t so back in 2013. Now, over a decade on, the Woking-based carmaker wants to give us a glimpse of the upcoming ten.
The 2025 McLaren W1 is a direct nod to its predecessors, the P1 and F1. And more than just paying tribute to the carmaker’s greats. The W1’s moniker signifies the beginning of a new era for the brand. The tech unveiled in this $2.1 million hypercar, of which just 399 units will ever exist, will work its way into future models.
As such, practically every component on the 2025 McLaren W1 is new, starting with its 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8. Although its displacement is identical to its predecessor’s, it’s an all-new engine designed to work alongside an electric motor. A lightened block, cylinder heads, aluminum pistons, and new twin-scroll turbochargers round out the list of significant changes. By itself, the W1’s V8 generates 916 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of torque while spinning up to a 9,200-rpm redline. For context, the P1’s total output, electric motor and all, maxed out at 903 hp.
The W1 pairs its new V8 with a 342-hp radial flux electric motor directly integrated into its eight-speed automatic transmission. Aside from bumping its total power output to 1,258 hp and 988 lb-ft, it replaces the need for a traditional starter motor and reverse gear. Like its predecessors, McLaren’s latest sends all its power to the rear wheels, with the carmaker citing insights from its Formula 1 team to manage traction and power delivery. The result is a 2.7-second sprint to 60 mph and a 5.8-second dash to 124 mph. 186 mph is dealt with in 12.7 seconds, while its top speed is electronically limited to 217 mph.
Unlike the P1, however, the McLaren W1 isn’t a traditional plug-in hybrid with a usable range. Its relatively tiny battery pack holds just 1.4 kilowatts, allowing it to cover at most 1.6 miles on electrons alone (the P1 managed 19 miles EPA.) Instead, the cells used in this application serve purely performance purposes. The choice to incorporate a small pack, along with an electric motor that weighs just 44 lb, is how the W1 can claim the lightest possible dry weight of 3,084 lb.
The W1 encloses its new powertrain hardware in a novel carbon-fiber Aerocell monocoque. It’s unique to McLaren’s latest hypercar and incorporates what the carmaker calls its Anhedral doors, aka its new gullwing doors. The carmaker cites aerodynamic constraints for their introduction due to a door hinged on the car’s roof allowing for optimized airflow from the front arches and into the high-temperature radiators on its sides. It also doesn’t hurt that they’re wonderfully theatrical and at home in a multi-million dollar hypercar.
Inside, the McLaren W1 debuts integrated seating, essentially chairs carved into the monocoque. By eliminating conventional buckets, the carmaker effectively shrinks the W1’s wheelbase by 2.8 inches while raising its footwells. As such, its steering wheel, pedals, and primary controls adjust instead. The W1’s wheel is squared-off, featuring just two buttons: “Boost” and “McLaren Aero Deployment.” Its digital instrument cluster is mounted to the steering column and moves with the wheel, ensuring legibility. Its powertrain and chassis settings flank it, adjustable via two padels. Meanwhile, the sun visor above it is now made of carbon fiber and just 0.1-inch thick.
Like the P1, the McLaren W1 will likely introduce us to the carmaker’s design language for future models. It’s distinct, angular, and shaped primarily by wind tunnel testing. The W1’s goal to be both a road and track car greatly informs its styling. It sits in a low-drag configuration when cruising, aiming to be slippery.
However, engage race mode, and it squats by 1.5 inches up front and 0.7 in the rear. Simultaneously, it deploys active front and rear wings working alongside the downforce generated by its ground effect. Its active rear spoiler alone can extend by 11.8 inches. By incorporating these active elements, the W1 generates up to 2,205 lb of downforce, 772 lb coming from the front and 1,433 lb from the rear. However, its wing enables a DRS system while doubling as an air brake.
On the suspension front, the McLaren W1 debuts Race Active Chassis Control III. It incorporates an inboard damper system to enable the aforementioned Race mode without spoiling its ride. It includes titanium torsion bars upfront with an active heave element crosslink. In the rear, it incorporates a Z-bar setup with active drop links. The W1 introduces this motorsport-inspired suspension setup while retaining the hydraulic power steering system the brand is well-known for.
Its standard carbon ceramic brakes measure 15.4 inches up front with six-piston calipers. The W1 wears bespoke 265/35 and 335/30 Pirelli P Zero Trofeo RS rubber to use the additional stopping power best. However, P Zero R and P Zero Winter 2 are available as optional extras. Combining these new power, chassis, and aerodynamic technologies, the McLaren W1 laps the carmaker’s Nardo reference track three seconds quicker than the Senna.
Setting its performance aside momentarily, McLaren aims to make the W1 one of its most customizable cars ever. The carmaker designed it with customization in mind, offering all 399 virtually limitless options. One of the most interesting is a new material called InnoKnit, effectively a knitted-to-fit fabric that covers the interior in large pieces of materials, reducing the need for seams. This process allows the carmaker to vary not just its color but also print patterns accorss the cabin as seen in the car photographed above.
Although production most likely won’t begin until next year, McLaren states that all 399 units have sold with a starting price of $2.1 million.
