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Aston Martin deal with Red Bull means F1 tech for Vanquish

Aston Martin and Red Bull Racing made no secret that their AM-RB 001 hypercar (rendering above) would use Formula One tech, but the cutting-edge motorsports knowledge will also trickle down to more accessible Aston Martin vehicles. "Some of the technologies we are developing with Red Bull Technologies and Adrian [Newey] will undoubtedly flow through to the next Vanquish," Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer told Drive. He thinks the model's price is high enough to allow the use of F1 tech. "I am particularly interested in structural carbon fiber and KERS type technology that you could easily see working in that car," said Palmer. The AM-RB 001 is due for 2018, and the new Vanquish would come afterward. Aston Martin and Red Bull hope their hypercar project sets benchmarks in the class. "The McLaren F1 is the perfect analogy of what we're trying to do - bring Formula One to the road in a genuine and authentic manner," Palmer told Drive. He claims that simulations already show the AM-RB 001 could lap Silverstone quicker than an F1 car. For context, the slowest qualifying time in the British Grand Prix last year was a 1:39.377 lap around the nearly 3.7 mile track. With projects like the hypercar, the next Vanquish, and the latest DB11, Aston Martin has a busy launch calendar over the next few years. A next-gen Vantage is in the company's plans, and there's the DBX crossover, too. The British sports car maker also wants to do two limited-edition models a year, like the Vantage GT12 and Vulcan in 2015. The vehicles for 2016 and 2017 are still mysteries, but 2018 would bring the electric Rapide and the AM-RB 001, according to Palmer. When combined with Mercedes powertrains and technology in future models, the company hopes to appeal to more customers. Related Video:

First Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato continuation body completed

Last fall, we reported how Aston Martin was bringing back the DB4 GT Zagato model as a continuation series of 19 cars to celebrate Zagato's 100 years. Building the new classics has begun at Aston's Heritage Division at its Newport Pagnell facility, and the first body has now been completed. Aston Martin says the cars, which are only sold paired with new DBS GT Zagatos, are built using "a blend" of David Brown-era old-world craftsmanship and modern applications. As an example, a digital body buck now exists to help craft the panels, which are hand-formed from 1.2-millimeter-thick aluminum sheets in 1950s style. The adjacent gallery shows the unhurried style in which these very limited-edition, new/old Astons are built, and how a ball-peen hammer is still the tool of choice there. Underneath the aluminum, in a lightweight tubular frame, sits a Tadek Marek-designed 380-horsepower "twin spark" straight-six engine, paired to a four-speed manual gearbox and a limited-slip differential. Power is up about 50hp in comparison to an earlier DB4 continuation model. We only need to take a look at classic Astons to see what the DB4 GT Zagato continuation cars will look like, but the design of the modern DBS GT Zagato counterparts is still to be officially revealed. The DBS Superleggera-based twin-turbo V12 cars were previewed in a set of renderings late last month, and they are expected to come with at least 715 horsepower and 664 lb-ft of torque. The continuation DB4 GT Zagatos will reach owners in the third quarter of 2019, and the DBS GT Zagatos will follow in 2020. The car combos are priced at almost $8 million. Featured Gallery Aston Martin DB4 GT Continuation Build Image Credit: Aston Martin Aston Martin Classics zagato

Aston Martin confirms DP-100 for Gran Turismo 6 and Goodwood debut

Gran Turismo 6 is set to come to life this weekend at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. That's where Mercedes-AMG will run its Vision Gran Turismo and Nissan will show a full-size mockup of its Concept 2020 Vision Gran Turismo. Now Aston Martin has announced it's getting in on the action as well with its Design Prototype 100. Aston has released a video two teaser images to give us a hint at what it's working on, but will reveal the finished product in the Supercar Paddock at Goodwood tomorrow, although we don't know if that will be in the form of a scale model, a full-size show car, a series of design sketches or a virtual rendition existing only in the game. From the look of the two images, though, it appears that we're dealing with an LMP-style racer with Aston's ubiquitous V12 mounted in the middle of a carbon-fiber chassis. What we do know for certain is that, when it's released for download next month, it will be the latest (but certainly not the last) in a long line of concepts designed specifically for driving on the PlayStation 3.