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Aston Martin reveals AMR23 Formula 1 car for 2023 season

Aston Martin took a Union Jack wrap off of its new Formula 1 race car today. The AMR23 marks the third wholly Aston Martin-branded car to race F1 in the modern era. Finished in an eye-catching dark green, yellow and black livery, probably one of the best in F1, the car wears sponsorship from Aramco, the Saudi Arabian oil company, and Cognizant, an American IT company. The AMR23 can be visually distinguished from last year's car by its larger mirrors and updated 2023-spec roll structure. However, Technical Director Dan Fallows said at the reveal that around two-thirds of the car would continue to evolve as the season progressed.  Aston Martin debuted the AMR23 at its brand new 37,000 square foot engineering facility at Silverstone Circuit in the UK. The campus will serve as the headquarters for the team and contains a state-of-the-art race simulator and wind tunnel. The revamp came courtesy of Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll, team owner and executive chairman of the Aston Martin car company. The AMR23 will be driven by two-time Drivers' Championship winner Fernando Alonso, as well as Lance Stroll.  "The second half of 2022 showed real signs of progress as we worked hard on car development. For this year, our aim must be to build a car that can fully deliver on its performance potential from the first moment it hits the track," said Team Principal Mike Krack. "Making a strong start to the year, and then maintaining that momentum, is necessary if we are to make further advances towards the front of the grid." The Aston Martin F1 team finished in seventh place for the 2022 season with a total of 55 points in the Constructors' Championship. Related video:

Look for Jaguar C-X75 in your new James Bond Scalextric set

Scalextric, the slot-car racing set, has produced sets themed around James Bond films for years. You can get the Range Rover from Skyfall, the Alfa Romeo from Quantum of Solace, the DBS from Casino Royale, and almost all of the sets include the Aston Martin DB5; there was a limited-edition three-car series of DB5s around the movie Goldeneye, back in 1995. They'll be doing it again for the coming Spectre film, Pocket-lint.com saying that the set will come later this year and looks like it will include the Jaguar C-X75. That treat, as well as the DB10, haven't been completed for the toy set yet because they haven't been finalized for the film. A new DB5 run will be available for the garage, limited to 4,500 units and featuring a manually raised rear shield and an automatic ejector seat triggered if the car bumps a bollard along the track during feisty driving. The expected price is 100 pounds ($152 US), which includes track, and it should be out sometime before the movie arrives in theaters in November. Featured Gallery James Bond 'Spectre' Scalextric set News Source: Pocket-lintImage Credit: Pocket-lint Celebrities Toys/Games TV/Movies Aston Martin Jaguar spectre jaguar c-x75 aston martin db10 scalextric

Aston Martin owners rev up for possible sale or stock IPO

LONDON — Aston Martin's owners have hired financial advisory firm Lazard to prepare for a stock market listing or sale of the British sports car maker made famous by fictional spy James Bond, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. Italian private equity fund Investindustrial and a group of Kuwaiti investors, who together own more than 90 percent of the marque, are hoping to cash in on a recovery in sales and are in the initial stages of a strategic review. They have hired investment bank Lazard to work on a preliminary plan and could either opt for an initial public offering (IPO) in the third or fourth quarter of 2018 or a trade sale, two of the sources said on Friday. A deal could value the maker of the sports car driven by Britain's Prince William on his wedding day at between 2 billion and 3 billion pounds ($4 billion), one of the sources said, adding a listing was the most likely option. However, no final decision had been taken and the investors could decide to retain control, the sources added. Investindustrial declined to comment while Aston Martin and Lazard did not return requests for comment. Adeem Investment, one of the Kuwaiti investors, was not immediately available. If successful, a float of Aston Martin would be a milestone deal for the 104-year-old car manufacturer and would follow the IPO of Italian sportscar maker Ferrari which made its Wall Street debut in 2015 amid strong investor demand. Investindustrial, led by founder Andrea Bonomi, bought 37.5 percent of Aston Martin in 2012 in what was the fund's best-known investment in Britain. The fund, which has clinched a number of Southern European investments since its launch in 1990, is Aston Martin's single biggest investor and is driving the plans, the sources said. Beside Lazard, other investment banks have approached the private equity fund in recent weeks offering advice ahead of a possible IPO, another source said. Yet no other mandates will be awarded this year for the Gaydon-based firm, which is in the midst of a turnaround plan that aims to restore the business to profitability following six years of losses. Aston Martin, which recently unveiled its new Vantage model, is on course to post its first annual pre-tax profit since 2010 as strong demand for the luxury automaker's DB11 sports car boosts its performance.