Ranked: The 7 best hybrids in the world

Spoiler alert: this list may not include high-performance cars in no particular order.

I remember the days when the word "hybrid" didn't go down well with car enthusiasts. For many, many years you associated hybrid power with cars like the Toyota Prius, tools of necessity rather than instruments of passion. Then, more or less overnight, car makers realized that using hybrid systems helped performance and then the floodgate opened.

The end result is that if you look at the most exciting cars on sale today, you'll find several hybrids. Let's talk about some of them.

Honda NSX

This is the long-awaited successor to the original Honda NSX, the blue-collar supercar that was introduced in the early 1990s to rival with cars that were much more expensive.

The world has changed since and supercar prices have gone up comparatively, and that means that while the new NSX costs £138,000 and that's not cheap in absolute terms, it is still cheaper than competition.

Underneath the futuristic body there's a 3.5 L twin-turbo V6 and three electric motors, making 573 hp in total. Honda didn't provide any official figures for the 0-60 time but the NSX that was tested on The Grand Tour did it in 3.2 seconds. Honda did instead quote the top speed which is 191 mph.

This is a very technical car. It has very clever gearbox, a 9-speed automated manual. It has fly-by-wire brakes, meaning there is no physical connection to the pedal, and that helps recharging the battery system. The electric motor at the back helps the petrol engine delivering the instant torque, thus eliminating power gaps, while the two electric units at the front drive a wheel each and that means the NSX has an extremely effective de-facto four-wheel drive.

Ferrari LaFerrari

This is one of Ferrari's most iconic cars ever.

The LaFerrari has a 6.3 L V12 twinned with an electric motor and a KERS system for a combined power output of 950 hp and 900 torques. It is built using four different types of carbon fibre, which means that the kerb weight is around 1.5 ton meaning the car has a power-to-weight ratio of 687 hp-per-ton. In plain English, all of that means that the LaFerrari has a top speed of 218 mph and it does 0-60 in under 3 seconds and, even more impressive, it does 0-300 kph (186 mph) in 17 seconds.

Unlike most hybrids out there, the LaFerrari cannot be utilized as an EV alone because both the electric unit and the V12 are always working all of the time.

The LaFerrari is a technical and engineering masterpiece. Something that is evident even with the things that appear simple like, for example, the driver's seat which is fixed and instead it's the steering wheel and pedals that move. This allows the car to have a lower centre of gravity which improves performance.

It costs £1 million and you can't buy one without Ferrari's say-so.

McLaren P1

When McLaren began working on the P1, their first priority was weight.

The P1 doesn't have any carpets or a glovebox, the glass is only 3.5 mm thick and the car was built with extensive use of carbon fibre and titanium, and the entire body consists of just five panels to keep the car as light as possible. All of that means that the car only weighs (kerb weight) 1,547 kg.

The P1 employs a 3.8 L twin-turbocharged V8 engine coupled with an in-house-developed electric motor producing 177 hp on its own which, when combined with the V8, makes for a total power output of 903 hp. The power is sent through the rear wheels with the help of a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission.

According to McLaren, the P1 accelerates from 0 to 60 in 2.8 seconds and from 0 t6.8 seconds. The standing quarter mile is done in 9.8 seconds, which means Dom Toretto would love it, and the top speed is limited electronically, I'll say it again "limited electronically", to 217 mph.

Only 375 units were built at a price of around 1.5 million dollars.

Porsche 918 Spyder

The 918 is one of the most amazing cars ever made by Porsche. It is powered by a naturally aspirated 4.6 L V8 engine making 600 bhp and two electric motors delivering an additional 282 bhp for a combined output of 875 bhp and an astounding 1,280 Nm of torque.

Officially, the 918 can reach 60 from standstill in 2.6 seconds and 124 mph (200 kph) in 7.2 seconds but several independent tests were conducted by various car magazines improving on those times. Car and Driver for example, did a test and found that their 918 can do 0-60 in 2.2 seconds. The top speed is 214 mph.

Production was limited to 918 units, most of which were sold in the States, with a starting price was $845,000.

Koenigsegg Regera

Legend has it that when Christian von Koenigsegg, the owner and founder of Koenigsegg, bought a Tesla Model S in 2013, he was impressed with the car's ability to deliver speed immediately. This prompted him to begin working on a hybrid supercar and here it is: the Regera.

The Regera (regera is Swedish for "to reign") is powered by a 5 L twin-turbocharged V8 and three electric motors with an all-electric range of 22 miles.

The total power output is a whopping 1,797 hp and 2,000 Nm of torque. This means that Koenigsegg claim that this Swedish missile can do 0-300 kph in 10 seconds and 0-400 in around 20 seconds.

The top speed is electronically limited to 255 mph. The price? Starting at 2 million dollars.

BMW i8 Roadster

The i8 came out in 2014 and a roadster version was finally made available in 2018. It has the same combination of petrol+electric power for a total power output of 357 hp and 236 lb-ft of torque. There's a three-cylinder 1.5 L turbo with 228 hp and an electric unit capable of 129 hp.

The roadster is slightly slower to 60, 4.6 seconds versus 4.4 which is what the standard i8 does, while the top speed is 155 mph (electronically limited). Like the standard i8 the roadster can be operated on electric power alone for an all-electric range of 23 miles.

This is an interesting car. It is cheaper than most cars on this list and I think it still looks rather good. On a personal note, if there's one criticism I have is that the interior, especially the infotainment system which is important for a car like this, hasn't aged well and does not match the futuristic exterior.

Porsche Panamera Turbo Sport Turismo S E-Hybrid

When the first Panamera came out about a decade ago, car magazines were quick to praise its dynamic abilities and performance but were just as quick to criticize its looks. The new Panamera, which was put on sale in 2017, looks much better and that's a good thing.

This is the Sport Turismo version, which is essentially a shooting brake, and that means it looks even better than the "normal" Panamera.

The hybrid Panamera is one of the most sophisticated Porsches you can buy, and one of the most expensive (€207k for the regular Panamera and €196k for the Sport Turismo) and it is also one of the quickest.

It has a twin-turbocharged 4 L V8, and an electric motor, for a combined power output of 680 PS. The Panamera can do 0-60 in 3.4 seconds and the top speed, which is not limited electronically, is 192 mph.

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