On Monday, Mercedes pulled the cover off of its Project One hypercar in advance of this year’s Frankfurt Motor Show. Project One is propelled by a powerplant developed over three years of work in Formula 1, where the dominant Mercedes team earned the drivers’ and constructors’ championships back to back to back. The engine is derived from Mercedes’ Formula 1 engine, and is a turbocharged 1.6 liter V6, revving as high as 11,000, transmitted through an 8-speed paddle shifted transmission. That engine, when paired with four electric motors, will allow Project One to sprint from zero to 112 miles per hour in under six seconds.
The proud prancing horse of Maranello, Ferrari, is not taking kindly to the public showing of Mercedes’ new hypercar. Their Formula 1 team is enjoying their first competitive year since 2008, but are still being soundly beaten in the constructors’ championship by the more consistent Mercedes and their drivers. Just a week ago, Mercedes took a one-two finish at Monza, Ferrari’s home race, their number one driver Sebastian Vettel losing the championship lead to Lewis Hamilton.
While Mercedes was busy enjoying the glamour of the global press coverage that Project One earned them, Ferrari studied the blade was busy testing an upgrade to their FXX K, the track-only version of the fastest road car Ferrari has ever made. This new prototype, which we speculate to be named FXX K Evoluzione, was filmed by YouTube user 19Bozzy92 during a test session at Monza.
Despite its typical automotive camouflage of black and white swirls, we can tell almost everything we need to know about the FXX K Evoluzione by looking. The aero knob has been cranked up to 11, with an arcing rear wing, a diffuser the size of Manhattan, canards to spare, and what appears to be half a Cessna’s tail mounted on its engine lid. More power may too lie unseen beneath its carbon fiber skin, as the Enzo-based FXX saw power bumps in both FXX and Evoluzione models.
So, are you ready for four figures of thoroughbred Italian stallions? If you’re not, we’re sure a few dozen oil sheiks are; this car will probably sell out well in advance of its formal announcement.