The Mercedes-AMG Project One is the first of its kind — a street-legal hypercar powered by Formula One hybrid technology. To complement its innovative powertrain, the German automaker made sure to incorporate an extraordinary design for the high-performance vehicle.
In a new teaser, Mercedes provides some insight into the design process of Project One. Chief design officer Gorden Wagener explained that all of the German automaker's vehicles fall somewhere in the "hot and cool" spectrum of their Sensual Purity design language — with Mercedes-AMG being the hottest brand of them all.
Thus, with the German automaker's high-performance division creating a hypercar, it had to be something that was very different from what is already available in the market.
"I think that car marks a milestone in design history and it will be the most extreme execution along our Sensual Purity philosophy so that's going to be the hottest car ever," Wagener said.
Project One was designed with the philosophy that form follows function. Rather than incorporating elements for style, engineers were faced with the challenge of having each design detail contribute to the overall performance of the hypercar.
Inspired by F1 racing, the two-seat sports car features aerodynamic components such as a large front spoiler, prominent wheel arches, NACA ducts that extend across the entire width of the hood, a roof-mounted air intake, a shark fin at the rear and an aggressive exhaust pipe design.
Meanwhile, interior design director Harmut Sinkwitz revealed that the materials used for Project One's cockpit were directly from race driving. The use of carbon fiber gives the interior components significant strength while the microfiber on the steering wheel and seats provide drivers with some haptic feedback.
Project One is powered by a 1,000-horsepower 1.6-liter turbocharged V6 engine alongside four electric motors. It can go from 0 to 124 miles per hour (mph) in less than six seconds and attains a top speed of 217 mph. The hypercar is able to deliver outstanding track performance but is also suitable for day-to-day driving.
The Mercedes-AMG Project One comes with a $2.8 million price tag. First deliveries will begin in 2019.
