Aston Martin Valkyrie: first example of ‘era defining’ hypercar completed
The first Aston Martin Valkyrie customer car is complete and ready for delivery. Assembled at the company’s headquarters in Gaydon, Warwickshire, the hybrid Valkyrie is described as ‘the first true F1 car for the road’.
Aston Martin CEO Tobias Moers commented: “It is an immensely proud moment for us to complete our first ever hypercar. The Valkyrie programme has tested everyone who has worked on it to the limit, but the commitment to the dream has produced a truly incredible car”.
Gives you wings
Only 150 Valkyrie coupes will be made, followed by 85 open-top Spiders and 25 examples of the track-only AMR Pro.
Hand-building a Valkyrie takes 2,000 man-hours and each car is track-tested at Silverstone before sign-off.
Its handling was honed by Red Bull Racing F1 drivers Alex Albon and Max Verstappen, along with GT racer Chris Goodwin – formerly chief test driver at McLaren.
Revs to 11,100rpm
The Valkyrie’s heart is a 6.5-litre naturally aspirated V12 tuned by Cosworth, which revs to 11,100rpm.
This is supplemented by a hybrid system – including batteries from Rimac, the Croatian EV manufacturer that now owns Bugatti – for a total of 1,155hp.
Standstill to 62mph takes 2.6 seconds and an F1-style KERS system allows even greater bursts of acceleration.
No time to buy
Aero-sculpted bodywork keeps the Valkyrie glued to the road or racetrack, with up to 1,816kg of downforce at top speed (217mph, since you ask). A kerb weight of 1,030kg is around 100kg more than a Lotus Elise, aided by a carbon fibre chassis and minimalist interior.
As for the price, reckon on £2.5 million, or north of £3 million for the Spider or AMR Pro.
The entire production run is now sold out, but wannabe owners can opt for the ‘son of Valkyrie’ Valhalla supercar – as seen in recent James Bond outing, No Time to Die – forecast to cost £650,000 and due in 2024.
Tim Pitt writes for Motoring Research