Photo: Mercedes-AMG
It was a long and winding road from concept to series production, but Mercedes-AMG has finally started deliveries of the Formula 1-infused ONE. Unveiled in 2017 at the Frankfurt Motor Show in Germany, the UK-built hypercar is closely related to the F1 W06 Hybrid racecar from 2015.
As a brief refresher, the W06 was fielded by Mercedes-AMG Petronas to great success that season. It won 16 out of 19 races, giving Lewis Hamilton yet another drivers’ title and Mercedes the constructors’ crown.
Codenamed PU106B, the 1.6-liter hybrid power unit of the W06 was adapted for street-legal use in the ONE. The six-cylinder turbocharged combustion engine is complemented by MGU-H and MGU-K systems. Compared to the Formula 1 car, the ONE also happens to be a plug-in hybrid rather than a hybrid. The 8.4-kWh battery offers little in the way of zero-emission driving range because Mercedes wasn’t interested in that.
Outright performance is the name of the game here, a philosophy shared by the four-cylinder C 63 S E Performance and eight-cylinder GT 63 S E Performance. Set up for 1,280 revolutions per minute at idle and up to 11,000 revolutions per minute on full song, the PU106B needs to be rebuilt every 50,000 kilometers (31,000 miles) as per the German brand.
The highly-strung powerplant is joined by no fewer than four electric motors. The MGU-K is coupled to the crankshaft, MGU-H to the spinny lad that goes whoosh, and two electric motors are tasked with driving the front wheels. Given that it packs electric all-wheel drive, it shouldn’t come as a surprise the Mercedes-AMG ONE is ridiculously powerful and fast.
On its own, the combustion engine produces 566 horsepower. Hybrid assistance boosts the output to 1,049 horsepower. Combined with a dual-clutch transmission specifically developed for this application, the ONE is much obliged to lap the Nordschleife in 6 minutes and 35 seconds. It is the fastest-ever lap for a series-production car, although one could argue that 275 units at €2.275 million plus local taxes isn’t really series production.
Not legal in the United States of America, the ONE can still be imported there on the show or display law that allows owners to drive “illegal cars” for up to 2,500 miles (a little over 4,000 kilometers) per year. €2.275 million is $2.460 million at current exchange rates, which is a small price to pay for driving the closest thing possible to an F1 car on public roads.
The first ONE delivered is equipped with a rather cheeky plate, or better said plates because two are mandatory in Germany. “ON1” is finished in black and green accents, with its rear plastered with three-pointed stars for good measure. Red is used exclusively for the tip of the roof scoop, and AMG E Performance lettering is proudly featured on the huge center fin.
Notice the lack of EQ branding, which shouldn’t come as a surprise given that Mercedes-Benz didn’t think its electrified brand’s nomenclature through. Come 2024, the EQ brand is expected to be dropped entirely from all-electric vehicles as Mercedes and AMG continue to pivot to EVs.
Codenamed PU106B, the 1.6-liter hybrid power unit of the W06 was adapted for street-legal use in the ONE. The six-cylinder turbocharged combustion engine is complemented by MGU-H and MGU-K systems. Compared to the Formula 1 car, the ONE also happens to be a plug-in hybrid rather than a hybrid. The 8.4-kWh battery offers little in the way of zero-emission driving range because Mercedes wasn’t interested in that.
Outright performance is the name of the game here, a philosophy shared by the four-cylinder C 63 S E Performance and eight-cylinder GT 63 S E Performance. Set up for 1,280 revolutions per minute at idle and up to 11,000 revolutions per minute on full song, the PU106B needs to be rebuilt every 50,000 kilometers (31,000 miles) as per the German brand.
The highly-strung powerplant is joined by no fewer than four electric motors. The MGU-K is coupled to the crankshaft, MGU-H to the spinny lad that goes whoosh, and two electric motors are tasked with driving the front wheels. Given that it packs electric all-wheel drive, it shouldn’t come as a surprise the Mercedes-AMG ONE is ridiculously powerful and fast.
On its own, the combustion engine produces 566 horsepower. Hybrid assistance boosts the output to 1,049 horsepower. Combined with a dual-clutch transmission specifically developed for this application, the ONE is much obliged to lap the Nordschleife in 6 minutes and 35 seconds. It is the fastest-ever lap for a series-production car, although one could argue that 275 units at €2.275 million plus local taxes isn’t really series production.
Not legal in the United States of America, the ONE can still be imported there on the show or display law that allows owners to drive “illegal cars” for up to 2,500 miles (a little over 4,000 kilometers) per year. €2.275 million is $2.460 million at current exchange rates, which is a small price to pay for driving the closest thing possible to an F1 car on public roads.
The first ONE delivered is equipped with a rather cheeky plate, or better said plates because two are mandatory in Germany. “ON1” is finished in black and green accents, with its rear plastered with three-pointed stars for good measure. Red is used exclusively for the tip of the roof scoop, and AMG E Performance lettering is proudly featured on the huge center fin.
Notice the lack of EQ branding, which shouldn’t come as a surprise given that Mercedes-Benz didn’t think its electrified brand’s nomenclature through. Come 2024, the EQ brand is expected to be dropped entirely from all-electric vehicles as Mercedes and AMG continue to pivot to EVs.
The delivery of the first #AMGONE — soon bringing the future to the streets of today and our final highlight of 2022.
— Mercedes-AMG (@MercedesAMG) January 13, 2023
[WLTP: Kraftstoffverbrauch kombiniert: 8,7 l/100 km | CO?-Emissionen kombiniert: 198 g/km | Stromverbrauch kombiniert: 32 kWh/100 km | https://t.co/ye4fweSJ4V] pic.twitter.com/g9MCVxj8hJ
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