The Nichols N1A pays homage to one of the most iconic racing cars

The designer of one of the most legendary F1 cars of all time has now turned his attention to his ‘own’ road car, with the result being the Nichols N1A.

The project has been led by Steve Nichols, who penned the McLaren MP4/4 Formula 1 car – one of the most successful racing cars of all time, and which won 15 of the 16 races in 1988 in the hands of Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna.

But the Nichols N1A is the designer’s own doing, and after several years of prototyping and testing, this is now the production-ready model.

It’s inspired by the McLaren M1A, a Can-Am racing car from the 1960s that has an especially iconic design, with Steve Nichols believing that vehicles of this era are among the best cars ever created.

The N1A’s design is a modernised interpretation of the ‘60s race car, with bodywork made from graphene-infused carbon fibre, similar to that used in modern Formula 1 cars. With a long bonnet with bulging wheelarches, this Nichols model is certainly dramatic to look at.

Powering the N1A is a General Motors-sourced 7.0-litre V8 engine, though it’s been tweaked further to generate 650bhp, and it’s worth noting it weighs just 900kg – less than a Fiat 500. The engine work is handled by Richard Langford, who previously worked at Cosworth, the firm that made the powertrains for many past Formula 1 cars.

The cockpit of the N1A is stripped-back, with a focus on the aluminium driving gauges. There’s also an Ayrton Senna-inspired gear kob, while the fully reclining seat is said to offer a similar seating position the MP4/4 F1 car. The firm says it ‘gives drivers a chance to experience exactly what Senna and Prost saw’.

Modern-day features like power steering and anti-lock brakes (ABS) are available as options, with the firm saying that the N1A is specifically designed for ‘motorsport purists who enjoy the pleasure of driving, away from the glaring touchscreens that are all too common in today’s cars’.

Founder of Nichols Cars, Steve Nichols, said: “Having experienced amazing racing cars over the decades, I’ve never been able to implement those quirky qualities into a road car, until now. Taking into account all the people that have worked on the N1A, I’m incredibly proud that the car is part of the next chapter in sports car history and is the next step for us and Nichols Cars.

“The process from pencil to production model has been extremely gratifying; this should be a reminder to the entire automotive industry that combining the past, present and looking to the future, is the way forward for this entire community.”

There will be an initial 15 launch models available, with each one commemorating a victory of the MP4/4. The entire N1A production run ‘won’t exceed more than 100 vehicles’, the firm has said.