McLaren’s P1 Ride On is a great way to introduce children to the sports car brand. It’s also a lot cheaper than the real deal at $486
McLaren will unveil a compact, electric hypercar that has an open roof in October. It won’t be the brand’s EV project nor the possibly failed undertaking with Apple. It will instead be an ride-on for young drivers under six years old. It will be sold first by McLaren dealers and will retail for 375 Pounds ($486 at current exchange rates). The toy will be available in the United States starting in Q1 2017. “Pricing is still TBD but should be comparable with the U.K.,” McLaren stated.
These kids will be able to boast about their privilege of driving a P1 car, something that is not available to their wealthy parents. The toy’s designers managed to keep the roof intact. This means that the P1’s miniature version can reach its maximum speed in just two seconds. It can travel three miles an hour (five km per hour) and the ride-on takes only two seconds. At that speed, the authentic McLaren would reach 62 mph (100 km/h), but it wouldn’t be even close to the maximum speed of 217 mph (355 kph). The little racer can shift through three speeds from behind the wheel. There’s also reverse for when they run out of road.
Although the tiny driver of this vehicle doesn’t have a grippier racing seat as a real P1, it comes with an added feature that isn’t available in many other production cars from just a few decades ago. McLaren claims that the MP3 player and stereo system are onboard. It is also pre-programmed to play every nursery rhyme. The back has an on/off switch that allows parents to decide when their child Fernando Alonso-wannabe needs to go to bed.
McLaren’s high performance electric vehicle (EV) can be enjoyed by adults until 2022. Rumours claim that the company is aiming for performance comparable to the 675LT. The car would be capable for 30-minute runs on track and could recharge in half an hour to allow drivers to get back on the circuit fast.