Mercedes-AMG is currently the benchmark in Formula 1. So it was only natural to launch a super sports car with Formula 1 technology to show competitors such as Bugatti and Ferrari that it is not for nothing that Mercedes-AMG has won several world championship titles in the premier class of motorsport. The Mercedes-AMG Project One concept car was unveiled back in 2017 and is now leaving the factory as the Mercedes-AMG One, ready to be delivered to its wealthy clientele. Just 275 units of the Silver Arrow will be built, and it is set to strike fear into the hearts of its established competitors in the hypercar league.

Mercedes-AMG Project One: Design like a Le Mans racer.

The extremely flat front end with large cooling air intakes and narrow headlights is somewhat reminiscent of the competition from Koenigsegg, but the painted Mercedes star does not really fit in with the premium claim of this vehicle. A tactile brand emblem would be a better solution in this segment. Otherwise, however, we think the front end is very successful, and the side view is no less spectacular than the very expressive front. With its crouched line and long rear, which is very reminiscent of Le Mans racers, it makes a powerful impression on every road.

Above all, the rear fin, an aerodynamically important component from Formula 1, attracts everyone's attention. The rear engine cover, which means that the car has to do without a rear window, is also a tribute to endurance sports cars of the past. The taillights, on the other hand, are more in line with the design language of current Lamborghini models, while the oversized central diffuser at the rear is, in our opinion, a little too obtrusive. The styling of the car clearly corresponds to the image one has of a hypercar, without setting any particular accents, apart from the rear fin, which leads into an air intake duct familiar from current Formula cars. Retracted and invisible when stationary is the huge active rear wing, which looks very martial and is designed to generate optimum downforce at high speeds. In terms of exterior design, Affalterbach is unlikely to revolutionize the world of hypercars.

Mercedes-AMG Project One: The interior looks almost like it belongs in a Formula 1 race car.

As soon as you take a seat in the AMG Project One, you feel like Lewis Hamilton in his company car. Crouching low in narrow, leather-covered full bucket seats, you look out onto a cockpit that is entirely in Formula 1 style. Even the steering wheel is not round, but rectangular, although for regulatory reasons it cannot be half-open, as is familiar from Formula 1.

The two fully digital displays create a modern, but very cool and technical ambience. However, other Mercedes models are responsible for comfort, as this rocket is designed to shine with extreme longitudinal and lateral dynamics as well as exclusivity. The AMG Project One offers space for two people, who must be very flexible and not too heavily built to make themselves comfortable in the ultra-flat car.

The two seats are also positioned conventionally next to each other, and entry and exit is via a combination of scissor and gull-wing doors, which open upwards and forwards at the same time to take up as little space as possible in tight parking spaces. This concept is already familiar from various McLaren models. Unfortunately, however, shorter drivers have a disadvantage when closing the doors, as they have to stretch very far.

Mercedes-AMG Project One: engine from the 2016 Formula 1 racing car

Now we come to the absolute highlight of this car, namely the drive technology, which was taken directly from the 2016 Formula 1 racing car. The V6 turbo gasoline engine, which has a displacement of only 1.6 liters and is located in the rear, is supported by two electric motors on the front axle. The six-cylinder gasoline engine delivers 759 hp at a breathtaking 11,000 revolutions per minute.

No other production car achieves a higher speed, which definitely shows its Formula 1 genes. The two electric motors that drive the front axle each deliver 163 hp, giving the car a system output of 1054 hp and a breathtaking 1400 Newton meters of maximum torque. Power is transmitted via an automated 8-speed manual transmission, which is operated via shift paddles on the steering wheel.

For added comfort, an automatic mode is also available, but this is likely to be used only in the rarest of cases. Not only are the performance figures beyond reproach, but so too are the driving performance, as the Mercedes-AMG One sprints to 100 km/h in 2.6 seconds and only has to concede defeat at over 350 km/h. This means that it has to give way to Bugatti and Koenigsegg in terms of top speed, but it leaves every super sports car of the caliber of a Lamborghini or Ferrari in the dust.

Mercedes-AMG Project One: a hypercar with Formula 1 technology that is set to cause a sensation.

It remains to be seen whether mass-production manufacturer Mercedes will succeed in breaking into the phalanx of Bugatti and Koenigsegg, as it is not only exclusivity that counts in this class, which the Mercedes-AMG One, limited to 275 units, undoubtedly offers, but also the bare performance figures. Compared to a Bugatti Chiron or a Koenigsegg Jesko, the AMG One has to admit defeat in terms of performance, as both of its competitors break the 400 km/h mark, with the Koenigsegg even setting its sights on the 300 mph (500 km/h) mark. The Swabians are naturally hoping that the brand's new halo car will also have a positive effect on the entire model range, as not much remains of the former exclusivity of a Mercedes today. With a base price of €2.275 million plus VAT, this exclusive toy is only for very solvent and wealthy fans of the Mercedes-Benz brand anyway. Ultimately, it will also depend on the value stability of this model whether this car can revive the former myth of the Silver Arrows on the road, or whether it was just a half-baked attempt to transfer the successes from Formula 1 to the road. Mercedes-AMG plans to start deliveries this year, after they had to be postponed due to changes in registration regulations. After the first tests and driving reports, at the latest, it will become clear how serious Mercedes-AMG really is and whether the team in Affalterbach has done its homework confidently, or whether it will have to take another lap of honor in the hypercar concert if it finds that the competition from Sweden, France, and Italy still has a huge lead that cannot be easily caught up. It will also be interesting to see how the solvent clientele receives the newcomer.

At the IAA (2020), this special car could have shone alongside other high-performance motor hybrid wonders. Whether this vehicle can expect the same drive on the road as it does virally on Facebook remains to be seen.