Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR Pro
Based on the road-going Aston Martin Valkyrie, the all-new Valkyrie AMR Pro is more than just an iteration of its predecessor but rather a ferocious machine that could reportedly give an F1 car a run for its money.
Now, you might remember that Aston Martin revealed a prototype with a similar name at the 2018 Geneva Motor Show. That, however, was largely based on the road-going car’s chassis and engine. That isn’t the case with this Valkyrie.
Aston Martin’s engineers were in the advanced development stages of a new race car for the Le Mans Hypercar program. However, as you might have heard, Aston Martin pulled out of the series, citing financial reasons and the need to focus on F1.
Upon the cancellation of their participation, the British company decided to take what they had developed so far and tweak it into a new track-only beast. The all-new Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR Pro does closely follow in the footsteps of LMP1 cars, though. It ditches a few bits and adds a few of its own as the car no longer has to conform to any FIA regulations.
The new car comes without the Valkyrie’s hybrid system, instead opting to make do with the car’s ferocious 6.5-liter V12 engine. This decision results in the loss of the extra 100 horsepower that partners the road-going car’s hybrid-electric system. Slightly tweaked, the Cosworth-built engine now revs up to an astonishing 11,000rpm while producing a still-impressive 1000hp.
To make up for the lost horses, Aston Martin says the new car is a lot lighter than its road-going counterpart. That is primarily thanks to the ditched hybrid system, extensive use of carbon fiber, and the choice of a perspex windscreen and side windows.
The road-going car’s chassis has also been redesigned for the new AMR Pro. The result is a 350mm increase in the length of the wheelbase, a 96mm increase in front-track width, and a 115mm increase in the width of the rear.
The AMR Pro comes with an upgraded aerodynamic package too. The new aero package doubles the downforce of the road-going car and enables the new Valkyrie to achieve lateral acceleration of more than 3G.
Aston Martin says that the new car’s performance times and other specifications will be released "later this year." The company insists that the Valkyrie AMR Pro should complete a lap at the 24H Le Mans circuit in a bare 3minutes 20seconds. For context, the all-time lap record at the track stands at 3minutes 14seconds.
Aston Martin says they developed the car in collaboration with Red Bull Advanced Technologies (RBAT) and Multimatic, a company specializing in motorsport engineering.
‘Only 40 units of the Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR Pro will be built. The company didn’t disclose how many of those have been taken, or how much each will cost. Buyers of the car will have an opportunity to attend a bespoke track day event hosted by the company at select International FIA circuits around the world.
