The Beast With A 1,063 Hp Heart, A Mercedes-AMG Hypercar, The One Finally In Production

Finally making its highly anticipated debut five years after it was first teased to the world, Mercedes premiered the production version of the Mercedes-AMG One.

Despite taking nearly half a decade, the German automaker delivers what was promised, a road car with Formula 1-quality performance.

Comparing it to the prototype, the Project One concept unveiled at the 2017 International Motor Show Germany, the production model looks amazingly similar.

Outstandingly, its stance is low to the ground and with a wide track, the hypercar’s carbon-fibre body retains its forerunner’s curvaceous shape, including giant fenders in the front and rear.

It has also held on to almost all of the original aerodynamic elements, namely a roof scoop, shark fin and the giant rear wing.

In the cockpit, the One’s interior appears to be stripped down, with almost none of the lavish comforts enthusiasts would expect from Mercedes.

Being a hypercar and all, there’s room enough for just a driver and passenger, and everything has been done up in menacing matte black.

There are two 10-inch displays, a digital instrument panel positioned behind the F1-style rectangular steering wheel and an infotainment setup placed in the centre of the spartan dashboard.

The latter can be used to navigate and monitor the rear-view camera, while the steering wheel and pedal box are adjustable to best fit the driver's seating position.

Differentiating it from the rest of the AMG line-up is its performance, an F1-derived plug-in hybrid powertrain.

At the heart of this beast lurks the same mid-mounted setup found in the Mercedes-AMG race cars, a turbocharged 1.6-liter V-6 with a Motor Generator Unit-Heat (MGU-H).

However, this 574 hp mill mated to a custom-made seven-speed automated manual gearbox, transmitting power to the rear axle and has an 11,000 rpm redline is only doing half of the job.

The rest comes via four additional electric motors. One directly mounted onto the engine, another onto the turbocharger, while the other two on the front axle, one situated on each wheel.

Notably, the two motors on the front axle also enable the AMG One hypercar to have an all-wheel-drive capability.

For instances where that amount of power is not enough, the system is also connected to an 8.4 kWh battery pack that gives it 11 miles (18 km) of electric range.

Dissecting further, the turbocharged V6 and four motors combine to produce a monstrous 1,063 hp, which is more than any other AMG vehicle before it.

According to Merc, the One can go from 0 to 62 mph (0 to 100 km/h) in just 2.9 seconds, and 0 to 124 mph (0 to 200 km/h) in seven seconds, all while hitting a top speed of 219 mph (352 km/h).

Besides that, more racing-inspired features include a multi-link suspension setup, which has push-rod coil-overs and adaptive dampers. 

Then, its nine-spoke magnesium forged wheels come with a set of Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2R tires and are equipped with carbon ceramic brakes. 

Last but not least, the One has a Drag Reduction System just like an F1 car, which provides lower downforce by 20 percent, allowing for optimal speed on the straight always.

That said, even though the price is still unknown, AMG will make only 275 examples, all of which are already allocated. The Mercedes-AMG One is slated to go into production later this year.