The first time we saw Chris Harris behind the wheel of a McLaren P1 was in Abu Dhabi where he got to spank a pre-production model around the Yas Marina circuit. Now back in Europe he revisits the old friend for a more thorough test, this time on both the race track and the road.
This time Chris has spent two days with the million pound hyper car and has a lot of interesting things to say about it. Our favorite part of this review is when he compares the McLaren P1 to a normal fast car. That really puts in perspective what constitutes a hyper car.
McLaren P1 Technical Highlights:
-Aero-led design produces more downforce than any other production road car
-916PS (903 hp) generated by 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8 petrol engine coupled to an electric motor gives tremendous power and instant throttle response with an electronically limited top speed of 350 km/h (217 mph)
-Active ride height, and aerodynamics work with large adjustable rear wing to give ground effect suction and optimised downforce
-IPAS (Instant Power Assist System) and DRS (Drag Reduction System) offer instant boost of power and straight-line speed
-The MonoCage is one of the lightest carbon fibre full-body structures used in any road car to date, weighing 90kg. This weight includes the roof and lower structures, roof snorkel, engine air intake cavity, battery and power electronics housing
-MonoCage chassis includes fibres more than five times the strength of the best grade titanium, and includes the use of Kevlar
-0 to 300 km/h in less than 17 seconds – five seconds quicker than the legendary McLaren F1