Mercedes Benz Project One

You've seen hybrid supercars before, but likely nothing as exotic as this. Mercedes Benz is teasing the debut of the Mercedes AMG Project One, a hybrid "super sports show car," at the Frankfurt International Motor Show beginning September 14th. While the preview image doesn't show much besides a GT-style body (complete with an air scoop on the roof), Mercedes makes much ado of the car's Formula 1 underpinnings -- both power plants amount to race car technology adapted to "day-to-day" use.

Based on previous info, the machine will combine an F1-based 1.6-liter turbo V6 with two electric motors: a 134HP motor linked to the crankshaft, and a 107HP motor that minimizes turbo lag, even though the engine can rev up to an extreme 11,000RPM. The hardware promises over 1,000 combined horsepower and a 217MPH top speed, yet it should offer 15.5 miles of pure electric driving. And yes, all that raw power is as punishing as you'd suspect -- just like a race car, you'll need to rebuild the engine every 31,000 miles.

Needless to say, this will be hard to get. Even if you can swing the expected $2.54 million sticker price for Project One, AMG says it only expects to make 275 units. There's a good chance that business tycoons will snap up the production run almost immediately. Still, it's good to see hybrid technology taken to its limits before electric supercars take over. 

The exterior of the car is formed primarily for aerodynamics, although it still 

maintains a street car stance. Some of its parts come from Mercedes-Benz's 

Formula One cars, most noticeably the aerodynamic fin.

The interior is mostly bare-bones for light weight. This likens it to a Formula One car,

 to keep its promise as the "F1 car for the street" noticeable.

The Mercedes-AMG Project One will use a modified 1.6-liter turbocharged 90-

degree V6 from their Mercedes-AMG F1 W07 race car, as confirmed by Mercedes-

AMG board member Ola Källenius. Modifications are due to the engine's illegality

 in RPM idle and redline. The head of Mercedes-AMG, Tobias Moers, says the 

engine will be at 1,280 rpm when idle, and 11,000 when redlined. However, the 

engine will only last for 31,068.5 mi (50,000 km) and the owners will have to return 

their Project Ones for engine refurbishment. It is still unknown how the engine has 

met emission regulations. The engine produces 748 hp (558 kW; 758 PS), with 

torque still unknown. The engine will be combined with four electric motors (800 

volts in total), with 120 kW electric motors at the crankshaft (Motor Generator Unit-

Kinetic; MGU-K), 90 kW electric turbocharger (Motor Generator Unit-Heat; MGU-H), 

and two 120 kW electric motors at the front axle. These motors will be powered by 

single high-performance battery source. The total power output for the car will be 

1,020 hp (761 kW; 1,034 PS) combined.

The batteries are from Mercedes-AMG's Formula 1 cars, these being the MGU-K 

and the MGU-H. The MGU-K is installed on the main driveshaft; its purpose is to 

help spin the rear wheels and recover kinetic energy while braking. The MGU-H is 

installed on the turbocharger. It is used to spool the turbo and help 

prevent lag issues. It can also recover wasted gas from the exhaust and turn in into 

kinetic energy. Another two batteries will be running the front wheels for an all-wheel 

drive drivetrain, which means all four motors together will be delivering 272 hp 

(203 kW; 276 PS).

The transmission will be a single-clutch automated manual variant, and delivers the 

engine power to the rear wheels. The use of a single clutch plate is meant to keep the car lightweight.

The drivetrain is all-wheel-drive, with the front axle being driven solely by motors

.

The chassis is built around their F1 car. The body will be made entirely of carbon 

fibre to reduce weight. The chassis has been found to be lightweight, with Moers 

saying it is expected to be at around 1,300 kg (2,866 lb)

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Created on Jan 10th 2018 12:45. Viewed 402 times.

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