Frankfurt debut cannot come soon enough.
The Project One is getting closer to its debut. It will be the most powerful, exotic, and fastest car Mercedes-Benz has ever created. This was confirmed at the Frankfurt Motor Show this autumn. Although we are still unsure how it will look, the Germans reportedly have already seen the vehicle during design studies. Now, we present our interpretation of Project One based on all information.
It may look familiar because it has a radiator grille that is similar to the one on the Mercedes AMG Vision Gran Turismo concept. The overall shape is similar to the previous Project One rendering. Jan Peisert designed it and we still adhere to the description that the manufacturer gave when we teased the car: “very clean, pure, but also very extreme.”
It will be a road-legal Formula 1 vehicle – Mercedes AMG will adapt its hybrid powertrain from the title-winning W07 Hybrid Formula One Car. The ICE will work in a more civilized way to provide a better customer experience. However, the rev limiter will remain at around 10,000 rpm, which is close to F1’s characteristics.
The car’s massive front wheels, shown here with multi-spoke design, matte-black paint and a hybrid motor, will conceal an electric motor that will support the 1.6 turbo in its best possible way through torque vectoring. The hybrid system can send more that 1,000 horsepower (735kilowatts) to all four wheels. Active aerodynamics will combine this incredible power with a curb weight only 2200 pounds (1,099 kilograms).
Do not get too excited about the Project One. Tobias Moers, Mercedes-AMG’s boss, expects that all production runs will be taken by buyers by the Frankfurt show. According to reports, will not build more than 300 units and each unit will cost $2.5 million.