Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)

RIDE OF THE VALKYRIE HYPERCAR

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THANKS to various regulation­s, you can never make a truly uncompromi­sed track car that’s also road legal, but Aston Martin has found a way around that dilemma with its upcoming Valkyrie hypercar.

Enter the AMR Track Performanc­e Pack, consisting of track-only components that can be interchang­ed with the road-legal parts that the car comes with, and which can improve lap times by around 8%, according to Aston Martin.

The optional package comprises an aerodynami­c front clam that improves downforce as well as a second set of exterior body panels, titanium brakes, track-honed suspension components and special wheels and carbon-fibre aero-disks.

The Valkyrie’s lucky customers – there will only ever be 150 of them – will also get to choose between three AMR livery designs or their own finish. A whole array of race suit and pit garage accessorie­s is also available for those wanting to go the whole hog.

Even those not planning to take their hypercar to the track can choose between an almost boundless array of personalis­ation options through “Q by Aston Martin – Commission”.

Here, owners are invited to work with the Aston Martin Design team to refine their specificat­ion. There’s even a Gold Pack that features 24-carat gold leaf livery laid beneath the paint lacquer.

“This is simply the best car in the world if you want something bespoke and we are really pushing the boundaries to match the dreams of our customers,” said chief executive Marek Reichman.

“Every single element of this hypercar, including its performanc­e, can be personalis­ed.

“The materials are very much about science, the art of creativity and the ability to create a unique solution that doesn’t detract from this exceptiona­l car’s performanc­e capability”.

And that part is rather extreme. The Valkyrie is powered by a 6.5-litre V12 engine that revs all the way to 11 500rpm.

The maximum power output of 745.7kW is produced at 10 500 revs, while peak torque of 740Nm is produced lower down at 7 000 revs.

But that’s just the internal combustion side of things… Aston Martin says it will be further boosted by a battery hybrid system, which will be detailed at a later stage.

The price?

Aston Martin is quoting a cool

$3.2 million, or R44.4m in our money. |

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