Aston Martin Valhalla.
Aston Martin has unveiled the Valhalla, one of the rarest models that the British brand has ever built.
The exotic machine was unveiled this afternoon to members of the media in the Aston Martin showroom at 45 Leng Kee Road. Wearnes Automotive is the marque’s official agent in Singapore.
The Valhalla can be considered as the “more refined” version of the Valkyrie, which is more extreme and designed for track use.
SEVERAL FIRSTS
Aston Martin has built two-door sports cars with V8 and V12 engines, but there have always had front-engine layouts. The Valhalla is the carmaker’s first with a mid-engine layout, and its first plug-in hybrid model as well.
Behind the top-mount air intake, and beneath the curvy roof resides what Aston Martin claims is its most advanced, most responsive, and highest-performing V8 powerplant with a flat-plane crankshaft. It kicks out over 789hp at 7200rpm.
Instead of a conventional exhaust system with tips at the rear, the Valhalla features a pair of top-mounted exhausts with active flaps.
Complementing the engine is a pair of electric motors capable of 201hp. Combined, both the engine and electric systems produce 937hp. With an 8-speed dual-clutch automatic, the Valhalla crushes the century sprint in 2.5 seconds and has a top speed of 350km/h.
Aston Martin says that with further development, the Valhalla’s powertrain will eventually produce 998hp (1012PS). In pure electric mode, the Valhalla can supposedly be driven up to 130km/h and cover a maximum of 15km.
F1-INSPIRED CHASSIS AND DYNAMICS
To keep the car’s dry weight below 1550kg and enhance its handling, the Valhalla is built around a carbon fibre tub that offers strength and lightness.
Like a Formula One car, the Valhalla has pushrod-type suspension with inboard mounted springs and dampers. The driver can tweak the ride-handling balance with the Multimatic Variable Spring rate and Adaptive Damper units. To help cope with city use, the Valhalla has a front axle lift system to assist the car in clearing speed bumps and ramps.
To ensure the car handles and stops well, the Valhalla has bespoke Michelin tyres in staggered sizes (20 inches for the front and 21 inches for the rear), along with Carbon Ceramic Matrix brakes. The car also has a combination of active aerodynamic surfaces that can produce 600kg of downforce at 241km/h.
The Valhalla’s cockpit is accessed via a pair of dihedral doors with cut-outs for the roof to make getting in and out easier than expected.
Inside, there’s more space compared to the Valkyrie, but the interface remains simple and scaled back so that the focus remains on driving the car. However, the infotainment unit does include a touchscreen display, and the system has the convenience of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
PRICE AND AVAILABILITY
Aston Martin says the Valhalla’s production run is limited to 999 units. Five have been allocated to Singapore, but according to Wearnes Automotive, three are spoken for.
The Valhalla starts from around $1,000,000 before taxes and COE. According to a Wearnes spokesperson, registering the car now would cost approximately $4.8 million.
This story was first published on Sgcarmart.
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