Question of the day: what’s the difference between a supercar and a hypercar?

If there is a car with either of these titles, you know it must be cool. But what is the difference? Tomato tomahto blah blah blah. According to Ferrari, “a supercar is a world-class vehicle, but a hypercar pushes the boundaries of the possible while generally being produced in more limited quantities.” Basically, hypercars are cooler than supercars. So instead of dreaming of owning a supercar, you should be dreaming of owning a hypercar. These are not the kind of cars you will see driving on the streets unless you’re roaming around Monaco. And I’m serious. Here in the US, there are 66 hypercars per every 1000 car drivers. In Monaco, there are over 3000 hypercars per every 1000 drivers. So everyone in Monaco owns three hypercars, crazy right!? If you stumble across the opportunity to drive or ride in one of these exclusive vehicles, definitely take advantage of it, no matter how snobby it may seem.  

Hypercars push the limits of the automobile industry in terms of power, aerodynamics, and technology. It all comes down to incredible engineering and vivid imagination. Current companies that produce such cars include McLaren, Ferrari, Aston Martin, and Bugatti. Today, we will take a closer look at the first-ever hypercar, the McLaren F1.

The McLaren F1 made its debut back in 1992. It was way ahead of its time and honestly still is ahead of time now. What made this possible was the convenience that it was a “no-cost-object” project. Essentially, money was not an issue in the production process (hence the hefty price tag accessory). Aside from the headlights, every little part of the car was specifically designed for it, made up of the lightest metals: carbon fiber, magnesium, and aluminum. Also thought I should just add in that several components in the car were made out of pure gold, just to spice it up I guess. Though the F1 was not intended to be a race car, it still blew many actual F1-made cars out of the water with its speed. 30 years after its debut, it is still in the top 15 fastest cars of all time, with a top speed of 241 mph. If that sounds impressive now (which, don’t get me wrong, IS VERY impressive), imagine that in 1992. This car came out a decade before we were even born!

Now for a quick technical dump. I just said that the F1 is still holding its own among the fastest cars. To nit-pick, the F1 is the fastest naturally aspirated road car ever built (no race cars included). A naturally aspirated engine gets its air intake solely from atmospheric pressure. It does not have forced induction, which is when pre-compressed air is delivered directly to the intake site. Cars with turbo boosters or superchargers would not be classified as naturally aspirated. In a sense, they have a little extra help getting their gears going. A lot of sports cars try to stick to naturally aspirated engines because turbos tend to have a bit of a delayed reaction time, and sports cars are all about that 0-60 speed. 

The F1 is unique in many ways if you couldn’t tell, but if you take a look at its physical design, you’ll see that it is a three-seater vehicle. There is a single row, and the driver sits in the middle. My favorite feature, though, is those butterfly hinge doors. These are the doors that open upwards instead of out. Besides looking cool, this door style is designed to make it easier for occupants of the vehicle to enter and exit. Unfortunately, this is at the expense of horizontal space. Great for a dramatic exit in front of a red carpet, not so great when you’ve squeezed into a parking garage. If you don’t think these are awesome, stop reading my blogs then, I guess. Anyways if you’ve ever seen the original Incredibles movie, when Mr. Incredible starts to turn his life around, he gets a new car with doors that are called gullwing doors. These doors are the original version of the butterfly doors.

With the production of this hypercar coming to an end just 6 years after its start, only 106 models were ever produced. If any of you ever get to see one, snap a picture for me!