Gloss Black Diamond Turned Mirrors Smoked Magnesium Satellite Logos 2+2 Fiber on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Aston Martin spars with WEC over Valkyrie's exit from racing

Confirming an earlier rumor, Aston Martin announced it has stopped developing the track-going version of the Valkyrie it planned to enter in the World Endurance Championship's (WEC) new Hypercar category. It blamed its decision on a recent change in the regulations, but the sanctioning body responded that's not the full story. The British company explained it's unhappy with the WEC's decision to harmonize the Hypercar class with the LMDh category and the WeatherTech Sportscar Championship during the early 2020s. Without providing additional details, it declared the Valkyrie will not make its racing debut at the Silverstone track in August 2020 and it will not challenge Glickenhaus, Toyota, Peugeot and others in the 2021 edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans. It added it's considering canceling the program altogether, meaning the Valkyrie would never race. Aston Martin isn't quitting racing; far from it. It will continue to enter the Vantage GTE in WEC events around the world, and the Racing Point Formula One team will be rebranded Aston Martin after the 2020 season. The sudden and unexpected entry into Formula One led by investor Lawrence Stroll may have played a role in convincing executives to cancel the Hypercar program. Racing is expensive, and Aston isn't doing well. The Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) that regulates the WEC doused cold water on Aston's explanation. It opined the harmonization doesn't impact the category, and it pledged to prove this claim when it releases additional technical specifications in March 2020. It instead blamed the decision to withdraw the Valkyrie from racing on the highly-publicized financial issues that have plagued Aston since 2019. "The decision announced by Aston Martin is very regrettable but perhaps not unexpected in light of the persistent rumors over the last six months concerning the fragility of the brand's exposure in the rapidly-evolving automotive market," it wrote. As of writing, executives haven't responded to these allegations. Aston Martin and the FIA both noted they're open to working with each other to find a solution, but the carmaker's statement is highly ambiguous. It affirms Aston's future presence in the racing world will be "defined by its activities at the highest level of both single-seater competition and endurance GT racing" and glaringly leaves the Hypercar category behind. To us, it sounds like the program has already been consigned to the attic.

2020 Virtual Geneva Motor Show Editors' Picks

There may not have been an actual Geneva Motor Show this year, but there were still loads of car reveals that happened the week that the show would have happened. So we still wanted to highlight what our favorites of the would-be show. Our list of cars seemed to match the theme of the reveals, too, highlighting over-the-top supercars and forward thinking electric vehicles. Scroll down to see our favorites. Fifth Place: Aston Martin V12 Speedster - 21 points Managing Editor, Greg Rasa: Astons are works of art, and this one's ready for the Louvre. The design nods to Aston history are nifty. It looks like a jet fighter, except those have canopies. Not sure what 186 mph would be like in this, but don't try it in summer when there are bugs. Contributing Editor, Joe Lorio: Admittedly, this one is a little silly. A $950,000 sports car with no roof? A 700-hp two-seater with no windshield? But the offerings at the Geneva auto show have always tilted toward absurdity, and Aston’s V12 Speedster is endearingly outrageous as a fighter plane for the street. Third Place (Tie): Volkswagen ID.4 - 26 points Senior Producer, Chris McGraw: I don't have much to say about this other than I am a huge fan of more EVs coming to the market, which is why two-thirds of my picks are electric, including the ID.4. Producer, Alex Malberg: Any new fully-electric crossover is a vote for me. The fact it doesn't look terrible and VW will be including AWD later are bonuses.  Third Place (Tie): Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio GTA - 26 points Road Test Editor, Zac Palmer: Hard to argue with the logic of this one. The Giulia Quadrifoglio is already the best driver in this class of hot sedans, so why not extend the lead with a special model. That wing is Type R levels of high, and I completely approve. Associate Editor, Byron Hurd: Love this car. Love it, love it, love it. It's beautiful, aggressive and fast. I'd take it over an M3 or C63 any day. As cool as the GTAm is, though, I'd rather stick to the four-seat GTA. Something about a four-door car with two seats just doesn't really work for me. I haven't alienated ALL of my friends quite yet. Second Place: Hyundai Prophecy - 35 points Senior Editor, Green, John Snyder: I get whiffs of the Genesis Coupe from this sleek concept. I like the focus on form, with interesting details to discover if you look for them. West Coast Editor, James Riswick: Does it look like a Porsche? Sure, but Porsches look neat.

2020 Aston Martin Vantage AMR First Drive Review | It has a manual!

NURBURG, Germany — The new Aston Martin Vantage AMR has a manual transmission. In the precision-engineered, sequential dual-clutch automated hell-scape in which we now dwell, that might be enough copy for a full review. But driving this boisterous menace around the perfect, sweeping, foothilly roads around Germany's Nurburgring (but not on the ‘Ring itself), I discovered that the seven-speed stick shift makes the Vantage approximately 77% more engaging. For this, we have Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer to thank. “Andy committed to always having a manual in the lineup,” said transmission engineer James Owen, at the Aston Martin Racing (AMR) Performance Center at the edge of the ‘Ring, when I asked, insolently, why this car exists. “And as the sports derivative of our sportiest, most focused sports car, Vantage, itÂ’s right for the lineup.” A bit more about that transmission, because it should be dwelled upon: It is built by famed Italian manufacturer Dana Graziano, which has been building transmissions for the likes of Ferrari, Maserati and Alfa Romeo since the middle of the past century. It has a dogleg high-ratio first gear that requires some increased load to knock into. It rev-matches on downshifts, and also allows no-lift upshifts, so you can keep the pedal floored between gears to minimize transitions. ItÂ’s air cooled, for less weight. And it has a Launch Control feature that works like this: clutch down, find first, stomp on the gas, wait for the little light to appear on the dash, clutch out progressively but quickly. Glory. It was, in fact, surprising just how much the gearbox changed my relationship with the Vantage, a car I already liked. The AMR doesnÂ’t add any power, the Mercedes-sourced 4.0-liter turbo V8 still sits at 503 hp. But the torque figures are down significantly, from the 505 pound-feet available in the automatic to 461 with the manual. Remember, this is the first time a manual has been paired with this engine, be it by Aston Martin or Mercedes-AMG. Despite losing 200 pounds from the Vantage's curb weight – through the use of the lighter transmission, forged wheels, carbon ceramic brakes, carbon fiber body and trim bits, and the switch from an electronic differential to a limited-slip one – itÂ’s nearly a half-second slower from 0-60 than the base Vantage (3.9 seconds vs 3.5).