Aston Martin has pulled a new speedster out of its sleeve, and it is so nostalgic that it falls in love
Published by The team in News the
16/08/2022 at 17:15
Aston Martin is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its exclusive Q by Aston Martin personalization department with the launch of a prototype that combines the best of the British firm's past with the technology it will use in the cars of the future.
It is called Aston Martin DBR22 and its name is already a declaration of intent because it pays homage to one of the English firm's most popular racing cars, the 1956 Aston Martin DBR1 which came to win the 24 Hours of Mans.
No room for electrification
But it's not just its name that recalls the legendary competition model that Carroll Shelby, Stirling Moss, Jack Brabham and Jim Clark, among others, have piloted. Its design also draws inspiration from the late 1950s tray, although it also draws inspiration from its predecessor, the 1953 Aston Martin DBR3S.
But the DBR22 doesn't just look to the past for inspiration. Its appearance anticipates some of the design language we'll see in the next production Aston Martin. In fact, it was not meant as a simple design exercise as Aston Martin is open to making it as limited as the Vulcan (24 units) or the Vantage V600 (14 units).
Because of this, Aston Martin has tried not to be too futuristic, what's more, the DBR22 is less risky than the Aston Martin V12 Speedster we encountered in 2020 .
The result is a speedster that has everything it takes to hit the streets and become one of the most exclusive supercars on the planet and one of the most coveted Aston Martins of all time.
But that doesn't mean Aston Martin has put innovation aside. Among the new design solutions it launches, the grille in carbon fiber stands out, instead of aluminum, but also a body made of the same material that seeks the maximum cleanliness of the shapes using the minimum number of panels possible .
The DBR22 allowed the British brand to explore new production techniques, such as 3D printing to create the rear subframe . The goal is to save weight and increase stiffness. The paint or the rims are also new creations from the Q by Aston Martin department.
The interior opts for the same combination of modern elements with classic touches . It combines brown leather with exposed carbon fiber and the dashboard is more minimalist than that of the last production Aston Martins. The central touchscreen takes on more prominence and opens up a panel of buttons that connects the dashboard to the center console.
The innovation, fortunately, did not reach the mechanical part. Most of the cars on display this week at Monterey Car Week will be electrified, but the Aston Martin DBR22 swims against the tide and uses a dying engine.
It's the same 5.2-litre twin-turbo V12 that powers the Aston Martin DBS, but this time it is content with 715 hp and 753 Nm of torque (in the DBS it delivers 725 hp and 900 Nm).
An eight-speed torque-converter automatic gearbox is responsible for transmitting power to the rear wheels and can be operated from paddles attached to the steering column .
Those from Gaydon promise that the Aston Martin DBR22 will be able to accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 3.4 seconds and reach a top speed of 319 km/h. These are slightly more muted figures than the Aston Martin DBS, which hits up to 339 km/h, but Aston Martin's aim is for the driving experience to be more like that of a luxury car . competition than to that of grand tourism.