Porsche 918 Trounces McLaren P1: Track Time Tuesday Presented by Nitto NT05 Tire
Everyone wins in this battle of the hybrid-supercar titans.Â
If someone asked you to name a car faster than the Porsche 918 Spyder, you’d be staring at a very short list. But if there is one car with a chance of dethroning the mighty 918 at any track day or drag race event, it’s the McLaren P1. Both cars share a similar construction, with similar ultra-powerful hybrid drivetrains. The Porsche has a little less horsepower, but has AWD, whereas the McLaren has even more grunt, but it’s RWD only.
In short, these cars are very evenly matched, and almost any event they compete in is decided by chance, driver skill, or both. This video we found of a half-mile racing event is no different.
The event in question is ShiftS3ctor’s fall 2015 race, and the results are so close it’s hard to imagine. When you watch the footage it is easy to see that the McLaren needs a driver mod; response time for that launch is awful. Disregarding the late launch, the McLaren is still multiple car-lengths back on the 918, so the race is handily won by the Porsche.
But then we get some data and things get interesting. You see, the Porsche was well ahead of the P1 when it crossed the line with a top speed of 172 mph. The McLaren managed a speed of 173. So yes, the faster car was slower. Like we said, these races are always so close, it’s basically down to drivers and luck.
We love it.
Just make sure your speakers are turned up when you hit play on that video. We get the run from multiple angles and using multiple cameras, so there is plenty of magical engine noise to get that smile going.
As a special bonus for those of you who like British cars or British spies, keep your eyes out for the small vinyl on the McLaren’s lower flank. It’s a James Bond 007 badge, as this particular P1 was chassis #007. So, while it lost to the superior Porsche in the race, it wins a few extra cool points.
