The Aston Martin DBR22 Is a Tribute to Aston's Greatest Race Cars

Photo credit: Aston Martin
Photo credit: Aston Martin
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

Aston Martin is known primarily as a brand that builds sporty GT cars, but in the Fifties, it built world-class sports racing cars. The best were the DB3S and the DBR1, the latter of which won Le Mans in 1959 with Carroll Shelby and Roy Salvadori driving, and helped bring Aston that year's World Sportscar title. They're also two of the most beautiful race cars ever made, and they provide inspiration for Aston's latest limited-edition car, the DBR22.

Photo credit: Aston Martin
Photo credit: Aston Martin

The DBR22 is a creation of Aston Martin's Q division, which specializes in customization and one-off models, like the Victor. Q celebrates its 10th birthday this year, and it plans on building a handful of DBR22s for the occasion. The carbon-fiber bodywork evokes the elegant-yet-muscular lines of the DB3S and the DBR1, while under the long hood lives Aston's 5.2-liter twin-turbo V-12, here making 705 hp and 553 lb-ft of torque.

There are a number of interesting engineering details here, most notably, an entirely 3D-printed rear subframe. Individual components are printed from aluminum, then bonded together to create the complete assembly. Aston says this brings "significant" weight savings without compromising on rigidity, and this process can be used for additional components on future low-volume models.

The interior features a dashboard that appears similar to that of the Vantage and is trimmed in brown leather Aston Martin describes as "aromatic." Like the old race cars, there's a small windscreen and humps behind the driver and passenger that help smooth out airflow.

Photo credit: Aston Martin
Photo credit: Aston Martin

Naturally, DBR22 customers will be able to customize their cars to a very high level, though the official stance of Road & Track is that you should at least stick to Aston Martin's traditional shade of green for the bodywork. It just looks right.

Pricing and production numbers haven't yet been announced, but you can expect the answers to those are a lot, and, not a lot. The DBR22 will make its debut at the Pebble Beach Concours D'Elegance later this week.

You Might Also Like