Aston Martin and Red Bull Racing have revealed a new ‘ground-breaking’ hypercar - codenamed AM-RB 001.
The result of an Innovation Partnership between the British luxury sports car manufacturer and the Red Bull F1 team, the AM-RB 001 is described as ‘ambitious, uncompromising and wholly extraordinary’.
The three men charged with bringing the project to life were renowned F1 designer designer and Red Bull Racing’s Chief Technical Officer, Adrian Newey, Aston Martin EVP and Chief Creative Officer, Marek Reichman and Aston Martin VP and Chief Special Operations Officer, David King.
Built around a lightweight carbon fibre structure, the AM-RB 001 features F1 inspired aerodynamics that enable ‘unprecedented levels of downforce in a road-legal car’. Thanks to Newey’s design, much of this downforce is generated through underfloor aerodynamics, leaving Reichman free to craft a ‘pure yet dramatic form’ that expresses both the AM-RB 001’s cutting-edge dynamism and the essence of Aston Martin.
The AM-RB 001 is a bespoke machine from the tyres up. It will be built by David King and his team at Gaydon, in the purpose-built facility created for Aston Martin’s original hypercar, the One-77. More details of the AM-RB 001's technical specification will be revealed in due course, but its heart is a new, mid-mounted, high-revving, naturally aspirated V12 engine with the potency to achieve a 1:1 power-to-weight ratio; 1 bhp per kilo of weight.
To cope with the extreme aerodynamic loadings at high speeds yet deliver the on-road usability and comfort levels, 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.
Adrian Newey, Red Bull Racing’s Chief Technical Officer, says of the AM-RB 001 project: “I’ve long harboured the desire to design a road car. The formation of Red Bull Advanced Technologies brought me a step closer to realising that ambition, but I believed we should work with an automotive manufacturer. Aston Martin was at the top of my list. The synergy between Red Bull Racing and Aston Martin is clear. I knew Red Bull Racing had the ability to handle the pure performance aspects, but Aston Martin’s experience of making beautiful, fast and comfortable GT cars is of great benefit to the project. I’ve always been adamant that the AM-RB 001 should be a true road car that’s also capable of extreme performance on track, and this means it really has to be a car of two characters. That’s the secret we’re trying to put into this car - the technology that allows it to be docile and comfortable, but with immense outright capabilities.”
David King, Aston Martin’s VP and Chief Special Operations Officer, added: “Working at Aston Martin means you get to be a part of some truly special projects, but the AM-RB 001 is a dream - a true once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Of course it’s a huge engineering challenge, too, but the game-changing objectives of this programme have a uniquely energising effect on everyone involved. We have world-class people and facilities at Gaydon. We’re all motivated to achieve great things and take Aston Martin to the absolute pinnacle of road car performance.”
Marek Reichman, Aston Martin’s Chief Creative Officer, says of the AM-RB 001: “Working so closely alongside Adrian and an organisation like Red Bull Racing is a fabulous experience. By definition the objectives we’ve set for the car ensures there has never been an Aston Martin - or any car, actually - quite like the AM-RB 001. The shared challenge has been finding that magical tipping point where we achieve the most efficient engineering solutions and the most beautiful styling solutions without any compromises. My personal challenge has been expressing the AM-RB 001’s extraordinary performance and the unique way in which it delivers that performance. Its style reflects its revolutionary nature, while possessing the form and beauty that makes it unmistakably an Aston Martin.”
The task of engineering the AM-RB 001 will be shared between Q by Aston Martin Advanced and Red Bull Advanced Technologies, with production taking place at Aston Martin’s Gaydon facility. 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.