Mercedes-AMG One has entered in a new testing phase. Several pre-production units undergo fast circuit laps at the Mercedes testing center in Immendingen. It is the first time that the Mercedes-AMG One is running with the sophisticated F1-inspired propulsion system, which has a power of more than 1,000 HP.
As we reported two months ago, the Mercedes-AMG One is delayed due to the sophisticated F1-inspired engine and will not reach customers sooner than 2021.But the street legal sports car with F1 drive train will come in 2021.Mercedes-AMG One has now entered the final testing phase when engine and drive train adjustments are made to the racetrack.
The six-time F1 world champion Lewis Hamilton, who is one of the clients, has been recruited for tuning of this hypercar. Other clients are his team mate Valtteri Bottas, but also former F1 drivers Nico Rosberg and David Coulthard.
Mercedes now presents the first official photos of the car under test on the Mercedes racetrack in Immendingen. Mercedes-AMG says it accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in less than 2.5 seconds and catches over 350 km/h but can also be driven electrically.
Lewis Hamilton told auto motor und sport magazine: “The car behaves like a cannonball and it speeds up incredibly and sounds like a racing car”.
The reason for the delay is the sophisticated F1 hybrid propulsion that needs to be adapted for the street. Mercedes’ official statement explains how complicated the adaptation process is for this hypercar to be able to drive legally on the street.
“The adaptation of a complete Formula 1 drive unit for a hypercar with road approval, which along with its impressive driving dynamics must also deliver perfectly in terms of everyday performance and be able to drive in all-electric mode, represented a tremendous challenge. As far as many aspects were concerned, such as noise level, the development team ventured into uncharted territory with this project, working with great tenacity and exceptional engineering expertise to find solutions that could be developed to series maturity”.
In fact, the propulsion system of the Mercedes-AMG One is even more complicated than that of the F1 car because in addition to the electric motor MGU-K that helps propulsion and MGU-H that drives the turbine, AMG One has other two electric motors on the front axle.
This means that the 1.6 liter V6 hybrid petrol engine is coupled with four electric engines. In the final configuration the total output should reach over 1,000 HP.
