Launched at the 2013 Geneva motor show, McLaren’s P1 is limited to an edition of 375 cars. It features a 727-horsepower, 3.8-liter, twin-turbo V8 engine matched with a KERS electric motor, producing a further 176 horsepower — sufficient to provide a top speed of 239 mph, which, on customer versions, is electronically limited to 217 mph. The specially developed electric motor (which McLaren calls IPAS, Instant Power Assist System) helps the P1 to accelerate from standstill to 180 mph in less than 17 seconds and enables it to travel for up to 20 km at slow speeds in emission-free, full-electric mode. McLaren’s new flagship costs around $1.5 million.
Read more about luxury hybrid cars in the Fall/Winter 2014 issue of Northrop & Johnson’s Navigator magazine.