AMG originally dipped its toes into the electrified performance segment back in 2013 with the low-volume SLS Electric Drive packing four e-motors and no combustion engine. A new wave of PHEV and EV sports cars is coming under the "E Performance" banner, kicking things off with the recently unveiled AMG GT 63 S E Performance.
The next-generation C63 will also be getting a charging port in the following months, but by far the most exciting of the lot will be the One hypercar. Shown as a concept in September 2017 at IAA in Frankfurt, the production-ready model has suffered multiple setbacks during the development phase, with AMG having to delay customer deliveries more than once. Thankfully, Autocar has learned from the three-pointed star that production will finally kick off around the middle of next year.
Gallery: Mercedes-AMG One Nurburgring Spy Photos
No additional details have been provided, but we do know all 275 cars have long been sold to wealthy buyers eager to get the pinnacle of AMG engineering. Fitted with an adaptation of the 2017 championship-winning Mercedes F1 engine, the €2.27 million (approx. £2 million) One will be an all-wheel-drive monster with four electric motors and a 1.6-litre turbo V6 generating a combined output of over 1,000 bhp.
Two e-motors will drive the front wheels, one will be built into the turbocharger, and the fourth will sit directly on the combustion engine with a link to the crankcase. When the Project One debuted four years ago, AMG promised a 0 to 124 mph (200 km/h) run in less than six seconds and a top speed in excess of 217 mph (350 km/h).
The mid-mounted V6 revs up to 11,000 rpm, down by 4,000 rpm compared to the F1-spec powertrain. It's a known fact AMG had issues with reaching an idle speed of 1,200 rpm, admitting it was a "tremendous challenge" to get it down from the Formula 1 engine's 5,000 rpm in order to meet increasingly stringent emissions regulations.
Much like the concept before it, the production version is expected to have a pure electric mode, which in the case of the Project One, offered 16 miles (25 kilometres) of range from the lithium-ion battery pack. The showcar from Frankfurt was presented with an eight-speed automatic transmission linked to a combustion engine revamped to accept premium fuel instead of racing gas.
The F1-engined hypercar is coming... eventually
Aside from running into issues with lowering the rpm levels of the 1.6-litre engine for the street-legal car, AMG also had problems with the V6's noise as it was originally too loud for a production vehicle. You can imagine reliability has also been a major concern while adapting the F1-spec powertrain to the road version, which will require an engine rebuild once every 31,068 miles (50,000 kilometres). That said, we can't imagine many owners extensively driving the hypercar as most Ones will likely be locked up in a climate-controlled garage.
When the One finally arrives in production form, it could grab the title for the fastest production car at the Nürburgring. In 2018, AMG went as far as to say it could establish the outright record, which would be downright remarkable considering the track-only Porsche 919 Hybrid Evo driven by Timo Bernhard set an amazing lap time of 5 minutes and 19.55 seconds in June 2018 with an average speed of 145.3 mph (233.8 km/h).
Source: Autocar