It's safe to say Mercedes-Benz AMG may have bit off more than it could chew when it first decided to drop a modern Formula One engine into a road car.

AMG's One hypercar, which is powered by a sophisticated hybrid powertrain utilizing a turbocharged V-6 engine from F1's current era as the internal-combustion component, is now due to start production around the middle of 2022, the company told Autocar.

We'll remind you that the car was first shown as a concept at the 2017 Frankfurt International Motor Show, originally with a planned 2019 launch. After 2019 came and went, the launch date was pushed back to 2020 and then again to 2021. Now it's another year, it seems.

Mercedes AMG W07 Hybrid 2016 Formula One car power unit

Mercedes AMG W07 Hybrid 2016 Formula One car power unit

To be fair, a certain pandemic is sure to have thrown some spanners into the works. And getting the car's F1 engine suitable for road duty is no easy task, a task that was made tougher by the WLTP (Worldwide Harmonized Light Vehicles Test Procedure) emissions standard that came into force in Europe 2019, a stricter standard than the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) it replaced. To meet it, AMG is thought to have needed multiple exhaust gas treatment systems, among other measures, for the One.

And even without the emissions issue, just getting the F1 engine to operate like an engine in a road car is a monumental feat in itself. Remember, this is an engine that normally has a team of engineers monitoring it around the clock. For example, because the tolerances of the internals are so tight, an F1 engine normally can't be started until it's warmed to a temperature of about 175 degrees F, achieved by circulating warmed coolant through the engine and radiators. The engine then needs to be manually turned so that all the oil can seep through before it's finally fired.

Given this, it's no surprise that the One's engine will only be rated to 50,000 kilometers (approximately 31,690 miles), after which a rebuild will be necessary.

Mercedes-Benz AMG One

Mercedes-Benz AMG One

In case you've forgotten, the One matches the actual engine used in AMG's multiple championship-winning F1 cars, the 2015 F1 car, to be specific. It's a 1.6-liter turbocharged V-6 complete with an 11,000-rpm redline and a turbo-mounted electric motor-generator. Three additional electric motor-generators feature in the One, with one mounted to the engine and a further two at the front axle to form an all-wheel-drive system. Combined output is above 1,000 hp. The particular setup also makes electric driving possible, though a range estimate isn't clear as there are no details on the size of the onboard battery.

Previous performance estimates include 0-60 mph acceleration in well under 3.0 seconds, 0-124 mph acceleration in under 6.0 seconds, and a top speed of around 217 mph (likely limited by the aerodynamics). A lap time of the Nürburgring below the current 6:43.61 production car lap record, set by AMG's GT Black Series in 2018, is also a given.

Just 275 examples are destined to be built, and all build slots are sold. The original price tag was set at 2.275 million euros (approximately $2.64 million).