Something wicked this way comes, courtesy of Aston Martin and Red Bull Racing. Their co-developed supercar has been hyped for some time now, but the full measure of its power had not yet been realized.
The Wall Street Journal spoke with project engineer David King to understand the caliber of car under construction and the revelations are staggering. Due to its sophisticated aerodynamic design, the AM-RB 001 will generation 4,000 pounds of downforce. That’s enough for the track-specific variant to drive upside down (assuming the right speed is achieved). Road going examples won’t make quite as much downforce, but they’re still certain to hold fast to the pavement.
“Nothing remotely like it has ever been tried on a road car,” said King. The amount of downforce will be controlled by an active suspension system based on driving conditions. In addition to the air-flow pressure, the supercar will corner at 4.0G, roughly equivalent to modern Formula 1 cars.
So it will grip very, very well. What about acceleration? With just 2,200 pounds to get moving and a 1,000-horsepower V12 providing thrust, speed won’t be an issue. Reportedly, the AM-RB 001 will go from a standstill to 200 mph in just 10 seconds. For reference, the 1,341hp Koenigsegg One:1 supercar hustles to 186 mph in 11.92 seconds. Power to weight ratio rules all, kids.
Thought we’re talking about the AM-RB as if it’s right around the corner, production is still a few years off, and when models are assembled, all will certainly have been spoken for. Only 175 road cars and 25 track cars are planned, each with a price tag of at least $3 million. While that may sound like a lot, consider that the collaboration car will almost certainly be the quickest vehicle on the market when it goes on sale. The ultra wealthy tend to fork over small fortunes for that kind of prestige.
