Aston Martin and Red Bull Racing have revealed the first official images of their new hypercar, codenamed AM-RB 001.
The British automaker says the new vehicle has been “engineered to be entirely useable and enjoyable as a road car, but with the capability to perform like no road car before it on a race track”.
And, for those who crave an even more intensely focused driving experience, rest assured that a track-only AM-RB 001 is also in development, the projected performance of which is “in line with that of today’s LMP1 Le Mans sports prototypes”.
At this stage, technical details are scarce, but we do know that a mid-mounted, high-revving, naturally aspirated V12 engine will form the AM-RB 001’s heart.
The AM-RB 001 is built around a lightweight carbon-fibre structure, and employs radical aerodynamics for what the automaker calls “unprecedented levels of downforce in a road-legal car”.
The vehicle is the shared vision of Adrian Newey, Red Bull Racing’s chief technical officer; Marek Reichman, Aston Martin EVP and chief creative officer; and David King, VP and chief special operations officer.
The AM-RB 001 will be produced in Gaydon, in a purpose-built facility created for Aston Martin’s original hypercar, the One-77.
Aston Martin says the AM-RB 001’s suspension system will feature “innovative technology and employ principles honed by Newey over his thirty-year career. Likewise, the transmission is a clean-sheet design conceived by Newey and developed by Red Bull Advanced Technologies”.
Total volume will be between 99 and 150 road cars, inclusive of all remaining prototypes and 25 track-only versions, with first deliveries commencing in 2018. And pricing? Well, reports out of the United Kingdom suggest a figure between £2-million and £3-million (which, at the current exchange rates, translates to between R38,7-million and R58-million)…
