This Is What It’s Like to Drive Porsche’s Insanely Expensive, Super-Fast Hybrid

Porsche is getting ready for its next big thing. The German luxury giant is teasing its new 918 Spyder, an 887-horsepower super hybrid that goes from zero to 60 miles per hour in 2.5 seconds. Starting price: $848,000. This video shows a hot lap of the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, TX in the vehicle, with Porsche Works Driver Patrick Long at the wheel. The camera essentially shows what the driver sees.

The company says it plans to produce 918 units of the pricey plug-in for the 2014 model year. Sales of some high-end, high-performance vehicles are on an uptick as the global economy strengthens. Ferrari reported a net profit of 246 million euros, or $342 million, for 2013, an increase of 5.4% for instance. Bernhard Maier, a member of the management board of Porsche who is in charge of sales and marketing, told the New York Times earlier this year that the company counted about five main competitors back in 2000. By 2010 the number had doubled.