Yahoo Autos Aston Martin Vanquish Vision Concept Has Ferrari and McLaren in Its Sights
The Aston Martin Vanquish Vision concept has the Ferrari F8 Tributo and the McLaren 720S firmly in its sights.
The concept is not built using a carbon-fiber tub like the hypercars from the same brand, but a bonded aluminum structure like front-engined models.
It will be powered by a new Aston Martin–developed turbocharged V-6 engine, which we will see first in the production version of the AM-RB 003.
The British like to joke that you spend ages waiting for a bus—doubtless in the rain—and then three turn up at once. It appears the same is true for mid-engined Aston Martins, with the company's revelation at the Geneva auto show that it is planning two separate new models to follow on from the work it began with the Valkyrie. The company's stand at the Swiss auto show contained a near-production version of the AM-RB 003, which, like the Valkyrie, is being co-developed with Red Bull Racing, and a further-out look at the slightly less rabid car that is set to become the new Vanquish.
The concept's name also explains why the company's senior front-engined grand tourer has been switched back to the DBS name badge. We're told that the mid-engined Vanquish will be going on sale in 2022 and that, unlike road and track-only versions of the Valkyrie and the 003, production of this one won't be limited. Aston Martin is serious about producing a rival for cars like the Ferrari F8 Tributo and McLaren 720S.
Details are being kept limited at this point, but Aston has released a couple of key details. The first is that the Vanquish won't be using a carbon-fiber tub like the company's hypercars; rather, it will be constructed using a bonded aluminum structure similar to the one employed in the company's front-engined models. Insiders have also told us it will be built alongside its grand touring sisters at the company's Gaydon factory.
Power will come from a new turbocharged V-6 engine that Aston has developed by itself, which we will see first in the production version of the AM-RB 003, and which we've been told will also feature hybridization. The total system output will be less than that of the 003, probably with less electrical assistance, but you could color us surprised if the total does not at least match the 710 horsepower made by both the McLaren 720S and the just-announced F8 Tributo as well as offering comparable straight-line performance. Of course, given that Vanquish sales aren't scheduled to start until 2022, it is entirely possible that most of its rivals will already be rocking their own hybrid powertrains by the time it comes to market.
The Vanquish concept has a strong family resemblance to both the 003 and the Valkyrie, especially at the front, but also has a significantly larger cabin, which should improve passenger accommodation; we haven't been given any images of an interior yet. Aston's design director, Miles Nurnberger, describes the Vanquish as being "a prettier car, and purposely so, as it's been designed to thrive in a less extreme performance environment." The concept does without aggressive high-level wings, and it also has a pair of exhaust tailpipes at the back instead of the top-exit system that the 003 has been shown with. Although shown as a coupe, it also looks to be well suited for transformation into a roadster. That's a likely direction, given the appetite of this part of the market for Spiders and Spyders.
With three years to go until it comes to market, there will be plenty of time to find out more of the remaining details, but we imagine news of Aston's bold new direction—which we're already thinking of as son of the son of the Valkyrie—is already causing alarm in Maranello, Sant'Agata, and Woking.
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