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Chez Aston Martin, la future hypercar baptisée Valkyrie évolue à toute allure. Présentée il y a tout juste un an, en juillet 2016, sous le nom d’AM-RB 001, elle a ensuite pris le nom de Valkyrie à la faveur de son apparition dans une nouvelle livrée au salon de Genève en mars 2017. Maintenant, l’hyper sportive présente la version quasi-définitive de l’ultime automobile point de vue Aston Martin featuring Red Bull Racing.
Aston Martin Valkyrie ?
The revolutionary hypercar being co-developed by Aston Martin and Red Bull Advanced Technologies, formerly identified by its codename AM-RB 001, has now been officially named the Aston Martin Valkyrie.
The name continues a fine tradition of Aston Martin ‘V’ cars. This began back in 1951 with Vantage, which was selected as a name to distinguish high performance variants of the then current model, the DB2. Boasting 125bhp versus 105bhp for the standard engine, the Vantage represented a significant increase in performance and desirability. The first time the Vantage badge appeared was on the side of the DB5.
It remained a name reserved for the most potent model derivatives until 2005, when the Vantage became a model line in its own right. Twelve years later the acclaimed family of V8 and V12-powered models has made the Vantage the most successful model in Aston Martin’s history.
Virage, Vanquish and the Aston Martin Vulcan – Aston Martin’s very own God of fire – are more recent ‘V’ cars to continue this lineage. Now, seven decades after the Vantage name started it all, the Aston Martin Valkyrie propels this uniquely distinctive and lyrical family of model names to another level.
Valkyrie perfectly captures the drama of what is not only the ultimate Aston Martin, but the ultimate expression of hypercar design, engineering and performance.
“Aston Martin model names have deep meaning. They need to inspire and excite. To tell a story and enrich a narrative that stretches back some 104-years. The Aston Martin Valkyrie is an incredibly special car that demands an equally remarkable name; an uncompromising car that leaves nothing in reserve. The connotations of power and honour, of being chosen by the Gods are so evocative, and so pertinent to a car that only a fortunate few will ever experience.”
– Marek Reichman, Chief Creative Office Aston Martin
While its name is rooted in ancient mythology, the Aston Martin Valkyrie is a pure expression of modern technology. By bringing together Aston Martin, Red Bull Advanced Technologies, project partner AF Racing and some of the world’s leading technology partners, the Aston Martin Valkyrie promises otherworldly performance befitting of its name.
Design Aston Martin Valkyrie
Aston Martin Valkyrie – 2017 – front-face / face avant
Conçue par Adrian Newey, célèbre ingénieur de F1, chef technique au sein du Team Red Bull, la future Aston Martin Valkyrie a ses lignes et courbes grandement influencées par l’aérodynamique. Son apparence a beaucoup évolué depuis ses débuts en 2016. Radicale dès le départ, cette « hypercar » s’inspire d’un prototype Le Mans ou d’une Formule 1 …adapté à la route et disposant de deux places avec portes papillon.
Aston Martin Valkyrie – 2017 – front-face – open doors / face avant – portes ouvertes
Aston Martin Valkyrie – 2017 – side-face / profil
L’appui aérodynamique, c’est justement ce qui a été au coeur du développement de l’Aston Martin Valkyrie. Sa forme en goutte d’eau et ses surfaces lisses ont été dessinées par le vent, à la fois pour une pénétration optimale, mais aussi pour permettre à la voiture d’être rivée au sol même à forte vitesse.
Aston Martin Valkyrie – 2017 – rear side-face / profil arrière
Une prise d’air est visible sur le toit pour alimenter en air le moteur V12 atmosphérique placé à l’arrière.
“I would say we’re around 95 per cent of the way there with the exterior design. Much of what you see is actually the structure of the car, so this had to be signed-off relatively early in the project. The remaining areas of non-structural bodywork are still subject to evolution and change as Adrian [Newey] continues to explore way of finding more downforce. The new outlets in the body are a case in point.
Ordinarily the last thing we’d want to do to one of our surfaces is cut a hole in it, but these vents work the front wings so much harder that they’ve found a significant gain in front downforce. The fact that they are so effective gives them their own functional beauty, but we’ve finessed them without impacting on their functionality. That they also serve as windows through which to view the fabulous wing section front wishbones is a welcome bonus!”
– Miles Nurnberger, Creative Director of Exterior Design Aston Martin
Aston Martin Valkyrie – 2017 – front side-face / profil avant
Aston Martin Valkyrie – 2017 – side-face – open doors / profil – portes ouvertes
Aston Martin Valkyrie – 2017 – rear face / face arrière
Design extérieur Aston Martin Valkyrie
L’Aston Martin Valkyrie a évolué depuis la dernière fois au niveau de l’espace entre le cockpit et les roues avant, pour faire circuler l’air, afin d’améliorer l’aérodynamisme un peu plus encore. La firme de Gaydon est aussi particulièrement fière de ses feux avant, à la fois très simples et 30 à 40 % plus légers que des feux habituels.
Le constructeur anglais a voulu pousser le concept de l’auto de course à fond en minimisant le poid de la Valkyrie au maximum.
Toujours à la poursuite du moindre gramme superflu, pas de logo habituel extérieur, l’écusson traditionnel sur le capot a été jugé trop lourd (!), pas de sticker non plus, trop ‘cheap’ pour une telle voiture, mais un badge en aluminium épais de 70 microns, 30 % plus fin qu’un cheveux, et 99,4 % plus léger que le logo habituel !
Le feu stop arrière, à LED, monté sur l’arrête centrale, et qui ne fait que 5.5 mm de largeur et 9.5 mm de haut.
Tout ceci pour atteindre un poids record de 1030 kg seulement.
Aston Martin Valkyrie – 2017 – top rear face
While the essence of the original Aston Martin Valkyrie exterior design remains unchanged, Adrian Newey’s pursuit of downforce and aerodynamic efficiency has driven many detail changes to the bodywork. These requirements have been faithfully incorporated into the design by the Aston Martin Design Team in a genuine case of form following function.
One of the biggest changes in this latest model are openings in the body surface between the cockpit and front wheel arches, Adrian Newey having found that they were the key to achieving considerable gains in front downforce. It was then the job of the Aston Martin Design Team to integrate these new apertures into the overall design and ensure they had aesthetic merit as well as aerodynamic function.
While aerodynamics and downforce are the dominant story, Aston Martin Valkyrie features some delightful details. Some of the most striking are the headlights, which take inspiration from the pure functionality of a Formula One car’s components. Aston Martin’s designers stripped things back to the bare essentials, celebrating the engineering rather than concealing it behind cladding. With the low and high beam elements attached to an intricate exposed anodised aluminium frame not only are the headlamp units a work of art, but they are 30-40 per cent lighter than the lightest series production headlamps available to Aston Martin.
The same approach has been taken with the Aston Martin ‘wings’ badge that adorns the nose. With the regular badge considered too heavy, and a simple sticker not befitting for a car of the Aston Martin Valkyrie’s quality and cutting-edge nature, the Aston Martin Design Team came up with a chemical etched aluminium badge just 70 microns thick. That’s 30 per cent thinner than a human hair, and a remarkable 99.4 per cent lighter than the regular enamel wings badge. The badge (nicknamed the ‘lacewing’) is then attached to the painted body and covered with a perfectly smooth coat of lacquer.
Further detail innovation can be found at the rear of the car, with the centre high mounted stop light (CHMSL). Mounted on the tip of the small shark’s fin that runs down the spine of the Aston Martin Valkyrie’s airbox and rear bodywork, the light is just 5.5mm wide and 9.5mm high. Illuminated by a red LED it is the world’s smallest CHMSL and evidence of how every element of the Aston Martin Valkyrie is scrutinised in the pursuit of eliminating unnecessary weight and drag.
Design intérieur Aston Martin Valkyrie
Pour maximiser l’espace intérieur, les sièges ont notamment été directement montés sur la tubulure. C’est à dire, les sièges sont montés directement sur le châssis en carbone.
Le pilote et sont passager auront une position façon F1 ou prototype du Mans, allongée, avec les pieds en hauteur. Un harnais quatre points ou six points est présent. Épuré, ce cockpit n’offre que l’essentiel : tous les boutons sont sur le volant, quatre écran dispensent toutes les infos utiles : un écran OLED sur le volant pour les données essentielles, un central pour la vue arrière obstruée par la prise d’air, les deux latéraux affichent la vue des caméras remplaçant les rétroviseurs.
Aston Martin Valkyrie – 2017 – driving whhel / volant
The teardrop-shaped cockpit’s upper body surfaces and lower tub contours follow the envelope of space available between the huge full length Venturi tunnels that run either side of the cockpit floor. Drawing huge quantities of air beneath the car to feed the rear diffuser, these tunnels are the key to generating the Aston Martin Valkyrie’s extraordinary levels of downforce while keeping the upper body surfaces free from additional aerodynamic devices that would spoil the purity of the styling.
To maximise interior space the seats are mounted directly to the tub, with occupants adopting a reclined ‘feet-up’ position reminiscent of today’s Formula One and Le Mans Prototype race cars, ensuring driver and passenger are extremely safe, perfectly supported and feel completely at one with the car. A four-point harness comes as standard, while an optional six-point harness will be offered for those who intend to do more track driving.
The Aston Martin Design team were keen to keep distractions to a minimum and focus the driver on the road ahead. To this end all switchgear is located on the steering wheel, with all the vital signs shown on a single OLED display screen. The steering wheel is also detachable, both to aid ingress and egress, and to serve as an additional security device.
Great attention has been taken with the glasshouse design to ensure forward and peripheral side-to-side vision is virtually uninterrupted. To avoid any unwanted aerodynamic disturbance or stylistic ‘clutter’ traditional door mirrors have been replaced by discreetly mounted rear facing cameras in each of the Aston Martin Valkyrie’s flanks. These feed two displays which are positioned at the base of each A-post to mimic the view provided by conventional door mirrors. The all-enveloping bodywork and roof-mounted engine air intake means there is no rear window, negating the requirement for a rearview mirror.
“It’s been a tremendous challenge to make the interior packaging work. We’ve embraced Red Bull Racing’s Formula One ethos and approached from a different angle than conventional road car design. In this instance, we’ve started from a position where you think something is impossible and work at it until you find a way to make it work.
We’ve been fighting for millimetres everywhere, but the battle has been worth it, as it’s been fantastic seeing customers try the interior buck for size. They love the ritual of getting in and how it feels to be sat behind the wheel. They’re also genuinely surprised at how the car just seems to swallow them. You really do have to sit in it to believe there is genuine space for two large adults.”
– Matt Hill, Creative Director of Interiors Aston Martin
With its high-power, high-downforce, low-weight philosophy the Aston Martin Valkyrie promises to redefine the limits of road car performance. With many owners certain to explore these limits on a race track, the Aston Martin Valkyrie will put unprecedented demands on its tyres. Though still in the early stages of development, Aston Martin and Red Bull Advanced Technologies can confirm the hypercar will run on Michelin’s Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres: 265/35 ZR20 at the front; 325/30 ZR21 at the rear. They will be mounted to lightweight magnesium alloy wheels (20 x 9.5J front, 21 x 11.5J rear) featuring race-specification centre-lock nuts to further reduce unsprung mass.
Moteur Aston Martin Valkyrie
Aston Martin continue de faire équipe avec le motoriste Cosworth, après la sublime One-77 équipé du V12 7.3L, ce sera encore et toujours un bloc V12.
La Valkyrie espère ainsi atteindre un rapport poids-puissance hors norme : 1 kg/ch.
“Much like Formula One, designing, engineering and building a car like the AM-RB 001 is a massive team effort. To achieve great things you need to surround yourself with the best people.
Experience, creativity, energy, diligence and perfectionism are absolute must-have qualities in every area of the project. Having great technical partners such as those working with us is both reassuring and motivating. Together we aim to produce an innovative piece of engineering art.
– Adrian Newey, Chief Technical Officer Red Bull Racing
With design and engineering work on the AM-RB 001 hypercar progressing apace, Aston Martin, Red Bull Advanced Technologies and project partner AF Racing today confirm some of the key technical partners for AM-RB 001.
Working to the exacting brief of both brands, the technical partners have been selected for their unrivalled expertise and willingness to push the performance boundaries. Together with Adrian Newey, Red Bull Racing’s Chief Technical Officer and Aston Martin’s VP and Chief Special Operations Officer, David King and his team, they will embrace the challenges inherent with delivering a car poised to redefine the limits of road car performance.
The heart of every Aston Martin is its engine. Never more so than in the AM-RB 001, which is why it has been entrusted to legendary engine builder, Cosworth. An illustrious name with an impeccable motorsport pedigree, the UK-based company will bring all its Formula One and high performance production engine experience to bear in the design and manufacture of the AM-RB 001’s bespoke, high-revving 6.5-litre naturally aspirated V12 engine.
Mated to AM-RB 001’s all-new engine is a bespoke 7-speed paddle-shift transmission. Designed and manufactured by Ricardo, to Red Bull Advanced Technologies’ specification, the gearbox will be the perfect partner to Cosworth’s V12. Conforming to the radical hypercar’s ethos of minimal mass and maximum efficiency and led by Red Bull Advanced Technologies’ simulation work, Ricardo will deploy intelligent engineering solutions to achieve Newey’s uncompromising goals.
Not content with commissioning the ultimate road-legal internal combustion engine, the AM-RB 001 also boasts a lightweight hybrid battery system supplied by Rimac. Acknowledged as world-leaders in high-performance battery technology, the Croatian-based company has showcased its capabilities with the innovative Concept-One: the world’s first – and fastest – all-electric hypercar.
With lightweight construction paramount the AM-RB 001’s MonoCell is constructed from carbon fibre by world-leading composite experts, Multimatic. A long-standing technology partner on projects such as One-77 and Aston Martin Vulcan, Multimatic will combine its unrivalled manufacturing experience with Red Bull Advanced Technologies’ knowledge gained from the design and build of ultra-competitive, championship-winning Formula One cars.
With a power-to-weight ratio of 1:1 – that’s to say one bhp for every kilogram of kerbweight – the AM-RB 001 requires a braking system that’s more than the equal of its powertrain. Step forward Alcon and Surface Transforms, who together are responsible for supplying the lightweight, high performance brake calipers and carbon discs required to deliver the stopping power.
To guarantee maximum efficiency, performance and dynamic control, electronics expert Bosch has been entrusted with developing bespoke Engine Control Unit (ECU), Transmission Control Unit (TCU) and Electronic Stability Programme (ESP) systems for the AM-RB 001, while UK light manufacturer, Wipac, is responsible for the hypercar’s full LED headlamps and tail lamps.
“Making the AM-RB 001 presents huge challenges. It’s a real test of everyone involved, but that’s as it should be, for we’re genuinely raising the bar with this car. That’s what makes the project so special, and why having the right technical partners is so critical.
Some of those names we’re working with are long-standing suppliers of Aston Martin, but there are some new names in there, too. Whether forging fresh partnerships or building on existing relationships, the AM-RB 001 project is a shared engineering adventure we’re all relishing.”
– David King, VP and Chief Special Operations Officer
Source et images :
Aston Martin, Red Bull Racing, Cosworth
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