Hansen points to the very first P1 model and claims the Lego P1’s level of detail is “unsurpassed”. When you consider the features that have been carried over from the real car to the model, I’m inclined to agree.
The Lego model has the same seven-speed gearbox (you can change gear using a little paddle behind the steering wheel), wheels, dihedral doors, adjustable rear wing and V8 engine as the real P1.
If that wasn’t enough, Hansen even managed to incorporate the P1’s different engine modes: flick a tiny switch forward inside the cockpit and the gearbox and V8 engine ‘run’ as you roll the car around, mimicking the hybrid mode of the real car.
Flick the switch backwards and it swaps into E-mode, with the tiny electric motor rotating underneath the car.
The Lego P1 is made using 3800 existing Lego Technic parts, with just eight bespoke elements created for the new model – some of which proved harder to design than others.
Among those unique pieces are the P1’s wheels. “They were very tricky to develop because they needed to be as close to perfect as possible,” says Hansen. “We had to make sure they could take the weight of the model, and make sure the spokes were strong enough so they wouldn’t break.”
The P1 isn’t Lego’s first McLaren model: it has partnered the Woking-based brand on several occasions since 2015, creating a number of Technic models including the Senna GTR and the 2022 MCL36 Formula 1 racer.
When Lego approached McLaren to create an Ultimate Car Concept series set, it seemed only right that the P1 should become the next model, as McLaren design boss Tobias Sühlmann explains: “When we first discussed the idea with Lego, we knew straight away it had to be one of our highlights, one of our Ultimates.
The P1 was a very special car when it launched at the Geneva motor show in 2013 because it had hybrid technology. It seemed like the right time for its rebirth 10 years later as a Lego model.”
