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Aston Martin reveals new prototype Vantage GT3 race car at Le Mans

Aston Martin is rolling out a prototype version of its new Vantage GT3 at the Michelin Aston Martin Racing Le Mans Festival race this weekend. The race car is a replacement for the V12 Vantage GT3 but won't be homologated for competition until March 1, 2019. It's also showing — but not racing — a new Vantage GT4. Both are based on the Vantage road car. The Vantage GT3 has a dry weight of 2,745 pounds and is powered by the same 4.0-liter turbocharged V8, but the Aston racing tuners have tweaked output to 535 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque, up from 503 hp and 505 lb-ft. It also keeps the road car's lightweight aluminum chassis but adds a steel roll cage, Xtrac six-speed sequential gearbox, Alcon motorsports multi-plate clutch, Ohlins four-way adjustable dampers, Alcon brakes and Bosch Motorsport ABS. It's being helmed by driver Ross Gunn. Aston introduced the V12 Vantage GT3 seven years ago. It's the brand's most successful customer car and most recently won the Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup and British GT series. Aston is keeping the Vantage GT4 on display in its paddock for potential customers and race fans. It's also set to be homologated on March 1, 2019. Related Video: Featured Gallery Aston Martin Vantage GT3, GT4 Image Credit: Aston Martin Aston Martin Coupe Racing Vehicles aston martin v12 vantage aston martin vantage gt3

2019 Aston Martin designed by Daniel Craig is this year's Neiman Marcus car

The Neiman Marcus holdiay gift catalog is known for its extravagant offerings that sometimes involve cars. One year there were gold-painted Infiniti Q60 coupes, and another year there weren't high-powered Mustang convertibles, which ended up at a Michigan Ford dealer. This year, Neiman Marcus is offering some special James Bond-themed 2019 Aston Martin DBS Superleggera supercars. Only seven will be built, and they're all done to the specifications set by current 007 actor Daniel Craig. They're quite attractive and subtle, with a gray-blue paint and matching leather interior. Nothing changes on the performance front, but we doubt anyone will be disappointed by the 715 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of torque produced by the standard twin-turbo 5.2-liter V12. With each car, Neiman Marcus will include a special Omega Seamaster Diver 300M watch, with dials that have the trademark 007 gun barrel rifling design. And of course, only seven of these watches are being made. Buyers of the Aston and its watch will also get tickets to the world premiere of the latest Bond film, "No Time to Die." Also, 12% of the purchase price will go to Opportunity Network, a charitable organization that helps minority and low-income students get into and through college. All of this can be yours for the also-Bond-themed price of $700,007. That's more than twice the $304,995 base price of a normal Superleggera. Such is the cost of exclusivity.

Aston Martin speeds ahead with October IPO worth perhaps $6.7 billion

LONDON — Luxury British carmaker Aston Martin is seeking a valuation of up to 5.07 billion pounds ($6.7 billion) from its stock market flotation and has taken steps to prepare for any eventuality over Brexit, it said on Thursday. The company, famed for making the sports car driven by fictional secret agent James Bond, said last month it was pursuing an initial public offering (IPO), the first British carmaker to do so for decades. The automaker will publish a prospectus later on Thursday and hopes to announce its final pricing on or around Oct. 3. It expects its shares to be admitted to the London Stock Exchange on or around Oct. 8. Carmakers have warned about the impact of any customs checks introduced as a result of a no deal or hard Brexit which could slow down production and add costs when Britain leaves the bloc in March 2019. The boss of Aston, which builds all its cars in Britain, said the company had boosted its stock of engines and components in case free and unfettered trade with the European Union ends in a few months' time. "We're up to five days of engine stock for example and we've got a very large warehouse in Wellesbourne (in central England) where we have at least five days of car stock," Chief Executive Andy Palmer told Reuters, an increase from the previous three days' worth of components held by the firm. "If there are tariffs ... for every car we lose because of a 10 percent tariff into Europe, we presumably pick up from Ferrari and Lamborghini in the other direction because obviously their cars become more expensive in the UK," he said. London and Brussels hope to conclude a Brexit agreement by the end of the year, but fellow carmakers such as BMW and Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) are worried that failure to agree could lead to snarl-ups at motorways and ports, disrupting production. JLR boss Ralf Speth warned last week that the wrong Brexit deal could cost tens of thousands of car jobs and risk production at the firm, Britain's biggest carmaker. Aston, which has set a price range of 17.50 pounds to 22.50 pounds per share for the 25 percent of stock it is floating, is targeting a market capitalization of between 4.02 and 5.07 billion pounds. The carmaker, which has long said it could pursue a listing, has undergone a turnaround plan since Palmer took over in 2014 as it boosts its volumes and expands into new segments with a new factory due to open in 2019.