Watch pro drivers joyride in $83.4 million worth of Aston Martin cars

By Bruce Brown April 26, 2017

It’s all in good fun when three employees rip it up inside and out at British luxury sports car maker Aston Martin’s new St Athan plant in South Wales. A promotional video shows off the new super spacious facility along with 65 million pounds ($83.4 million) worth of Aston Martin hardware.

Image used with permission by copyright holder

Aston Martin has already started redeveloping the St Athan plant’s three super hangers into a state-of-the-art luxury vehicle factory. The St Athan facility is Aston Martin’s second U.K. manufacturing plant.

The film was produced to celebrate the transfer of ownership to Aston Martin. It is not a typical blue sky corporate production panning wide open spaces and exalting the company’s past and future people and products, however. In this corporate video, the cars are the stars, which is only fitting — as well as great fun.

Image used with permission by copyright holder

The premise of the video is three employees, after delivering cars to the lineup of 28 varied historic and current Aston Martins, decide to break in early the next morning to have some fun with the impressive lineup of sports cars and race cars. Two Aston Martin Racing’s World Endurance Championship (WEC) drivers, Darren Turner and Nicki Thiim, are joined by Aston Martin Chief Engineer Matt Becker.

The drivers sneak by snoozing guards at the factory gate. The cars include a restored 1921 A3, a 1958 DBR1, a One-77, a number of Vantages, a Rapide S, an Aston Martin Vulcan, and more. There is even a Cygnet minicar that stays still while two other cars blast around it like wolves circling a lone sheep.

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aston martin joyride video factory fun — Image used with permission by copyright holder

aston martin joyride video james bond — Image used with permission by copyright holder

aston martin joyride video circling a cygnet — Image used with permission by copyright holder

aston martin joyride video smoky donut — Image used with permission by copyright holder

The drivers take the cars out three at a time and spend most of their time drifting and blowing wide donuts around each other. It’s all great fun until President and CEO Andy Palmer shows up. Suddenly the drivers disappear.

Image used with permission by copyright holder

Palmer grills three security guards who claim to have heard nothing. After telling them they can forget about getting company cars, Palmer puts the guards to work cleaning up skid marks in one of the hangers.

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Digital Trends Contributing Editor Bruce Brown is a member of the Smart Homes and Commerce teams. Bruce uses smart devices…

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