The first customer for the McLaren P1 has been sold.
McLaren's P1 plug-in hybrid hypercar entered production in 2013, kicking off the Ultimate lineup.
To recap the hypercar's recent history, the P1 is powered by a 3.8-liter twin-turbocharged, electric-powered V8 with a combined output of 903 hp and 664 lb-ft of torque. McLaren claims the new car accelerates to 0-62 mph in 2.8 seconds, 0-124 mph in 6.8 seconds and 0-186 mph in 16.5 seconds. Top speed is claimed to be 217 mph.
The P1 was introduced at the same time as the Porsche 918 Spyder plug-in hybrid and the Ferrari LaFerrari light hybrid, allowing electrification to be widely adopted in modern performance cars. Only McLaren and Porsche have plug-in hybrids that can charge without an engine and run on electricity for short distances; according to the EPA, the McLaren has a range of 19 miles and the 918 Spyder has a range of 12 miles.
McLaren later introduced the P1 GTR track car (some of which were modified for use on public roads). The last standard P1 was completed in December 2015, and the last GTR was completed shortly thereafter. A total of 375 cars were built.
Painted Volcano Yellow with a black leather interior and Alcantara dashboard, this car was, according to the seller, the first of 375 P1s given to customers. This is confirmed by a handwritten letter from Frank Stephenson, then McLaren's designer, to the first owner.
According to the seller, the car had been in the hands of two British owners and had covered 3,666 miles. It was last serviced by a McLaren dealer in the UK in September 2020, prior to which another dealer replaced the lithium-ion battery pack in 2018.
Silverstone Auctions gives a pre-auction estimate of £885,000 to £985,000, equivalent to $1.2 million to $1.3 million at current exchange rates. Incidentally, this estimate seems conservative, as the estimated price of P1 in new condition was $1.1 million and sold out almost immediately.
McLaren is reportedly planning a successor to the P1, with deliveries to begin in 2025. McLaren recently announced the Ultimate Series Senna (including GTR and LM variants), Speedtail, and Elva, and has no plans for an Ultimate Series model yet.
