A McLaren F1, one of the rarest supercars ever built and worth around HK$160 million, rolled through Hong Kong’s busy streets on Feb. 22, 2026. The sighting drew gasps from passersby, who snapped photos of the British icon amid the urban crush.

Images shared across social media captured the sleek vehicle slipping past high-rises and double-decker trams. One viral post compared it to ‘driving a luxury flat down the road,’ highlighting its eye-watering value in a city where prime property fetches similar prices per square foot.

The McLaren F1 debuted in 1992 under the Formula One team’s watch. Gordon Murray, the project’s chief engineer, and designer Peter Stevens crafted it as the pinnacle of road-going performance. Production wrapped in 1998 after just 106 units left the factory, including special variants. That scarcity drives today’s auction prices into the stratosphere.

A custom 6.1-litre BMW S70/2 V12 engine powers the beast. In 1998, a prototype hit 240.1 mph (386.4 km/h), snagging the Guinness World Record for the fastest production car then. The model’s racing cred peaked in 1995, when an F1 GTR variant dominated the 24 Hours of Le Mans, claiming outright victory despite roots as a street machine.

Innovations defined the F1. It pioneered a full carbon-fibre monocoque chassis in a production car, slashing weight while boosting rigidity. The cockpit seats three, with the driver dead-center and forward of two passengers—a layout Murray devised for optimal focus and sightlines.

Motoring experts heap praise on the F1. Publications like Autocar and Top Gear rank it among the finest road cars ever. Celebrities, collectors and drivers such as Lewis Hamilton have owned examples, burnishing its legend.

Hong Kong’s tight streets and sky-high real estate make the F1’s appearance all the more surreal. Officials offered no details on the owner or registration, but the event highlights the car’s global allure. Spotting one demands luck anywhere; here, it rivals lottery odds.

Online buzz exploded post-sighting. Users on platforms like Instagram and X posted clips of the car idling at lights, its gullwing doors gleaming under sodium lamps. ‘Unreal in HK traffic,’ one commenter wrote. Another noted the irony: a vehicle born for empty racetracks, now dodging delivery bikes.

The F1’s value has soared with time. Recent sales at RM Sotheby’s and Gooding & Company have topped US$20 million—roughly HK$156 million at current rates—for low-mileage chassis. Hong Kong’s tax haven status for collectors likely lured this example across the border from mainland storage.

No word yet on whether the driver planned a full lap of the city or just a quick spin. Either way, the McLaren F1 reminded Hong Kongers that automotive history occasionally shares their roads.