McLaren W1 Winter Testing in the Arctic

W1 Winter Testing

The Ultimate Challenge

The 1275PS McLaren W1 is the fastest-accelerating, fastest-lapping road-legal McLaren in our history. Yet, our engineers have always been insistent that the supercar must balance its world-beating performance with capability in the most challenging conditions on the planet. Extensive McLaren W1 testing with prototypes in the Arctic was a critical milestone to ensure our new '1' car delivers on that promise.

A Word from McLaren

“It’s always been about pushing the limits with our ‘1’ models, and I’m confident that’s what we’ve achieved with the W1.”

Dani Marcos

Lead Test Driver

Widest Breadth of Ability

Optimizing the chassis and systems to harness the McLaren W1's power in Arctic conditions was a priority. 'We're talking about a car with 1275PS, so to give traction in low-grip conditions is a big challenge,' describes Dani Marcos, McLaren Lead Test Driver. 'We pushed to get the best performance from our torque-vectoring systems, as well as traction control, stability control [ESP] and ABS brake systems.'

Extreme endurance

Everything from the McLaren W1's engine and gearbox to the hybrid battery and electric motor was stress-tested in the sub-zero conditions. Even the effect of compacted snow and ice on the cooling system's vents was rigorously checked. As Chief Engineer Andy Beale explains, the 'short days and long test times' are ultimately the biggest challenge of winter testing, but 'proving the performance and calibrating for these conditions is an important part of our testing.'

A Word from McLaren

“We're very serious about making this car a car for all conditions. Completing this testing gives us the greatest bandwidth of car.”

Andy Beale

Chief Engineer

CREATING HISTORY

Beale and Marcos both describe the privilege and responsibility of developing the McLaren W1. The significance of working on the successor to the McLaren F1 and P1™ is keenly felt by all those involved – and their passion is clear to see in the finished product. As Marcos puts it: 'This car is powerful and the aero is mega – a great, great supercar to drive.'

W1 STORIES

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Lando Norris has firmly established himself as a top Formula 1 driver, but he also has a passion for beautiful automotive design and engineering. We take five minutes to talk to Lando about his favourite bits of our Real Supercar, the W1.

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