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Soundcheck: Aston Martin Valkyrie begins to scream

In July, Aston Martin published the first video of the Valkyrie on track at Britain's Silverstone Circuit during the Formula One Grand Prix weekend there. Test driver Chris Goodwin didn't push the 1,160-horsepower coupe to its limits, merely massaging the throttle for the camera a few times. The English carmaker headed back to Silverstone this month with a group of guests in tow, and this time the test driver put a little more muscle into the fly-bys. Since the track was wet, the soundtrack still can't be considered the ultimate experience, but even so, the 6.5-liter Cosworth V12 sounds exceptionally good. This new video injects a high-pitched wail that was missing in July, the kind of wicked, soaring keen that jellies one's organs and notifies the mind of blinding terrors on approach. In fact, the Valkyrie now makes all the noises Formula 1 fans wished the F1 race cars could make. That's no hyperbole, either. Compare the modern Cosworth to the 3.5-liter Honda V12 in the 1991 McLaren MP4/6, the resemblance is clear. Remove the street-legal equipment on the Aston Martin and let Goodwin uncork it, as we expect to happen in next year's World Endurance Championship, and it's clear the WEC might have the best sounding racers in all of motorsport. Deliveries are scheduled to begin before the end of the year, so Aston Martin should be wrapping up its validation testing on Verification Prototype 1 if it hasn't already. After that come competition entries into the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC). And after that, someone will need to convince at least one owner to drive the Valkyrie on the street so that we can all enjoy the noise.

Aston Martin DBX Luggage Test | Is there actually U in Aston's SUV?

Does it really matter how much stuff can fit in the cargo area of an Aston Martin? Yes! The brand has forever been known as the purveyor of GT cars, those intended specifically for grand touring over some significant distance where bringing along some stuff is likely. Two suitcases at the minimum, I'd say, with a decent amount of space inside for odds, ends, purses and/or little dogs. Good luck doing that in an Audi R8.  The Aston Martin DBX is an extension of that concept, admittedly to an extreme degree. Your tour is going to be so grand that you'll need even more stuff or have a bigger dog or need to bring the kids along or need to travel some distance over a rugged road. I like to think of it as a family GT car.  So, how family friendly is it? Well, the vast wheelbase provides a stunning amount of back seat space. I could easily fit my son's enormous Britax Boulevard rear-facing car seat and still have more than enough room for all 6-foot-3 of me to sit comfortably in the front passenger seat. I didn't even need to put it that far forward. That's rare. I've had to move up minivan front seats. Does the Aston Martin DBX have space for a rear-facing car seat? pic.twitter.com/RRYNN4O0li — Autoblog (@therealautoblog) February 13, 2022 But I'm here to talk cargo capacity, which is officially listed at 22.3 cubic-feet behind the back seat. I can tell you right now that's deceptive — there's far more than that would imply. Aston Martin, much like Mercedes-Benz, Porsche and perhaps Land Rover, must be using a different measurement than most in the industry. A capacity of 22.3 cubic-feet would be in the midcompact SUV range, in between a Mazda CX-30 and Kia Seltos. I can definitively say it has more space than those. In fact, it has more space than compact luxury SUVs like the Genesis GV70, which is listed at 28.9. I would not be surprised if it would be in the low 30s if Aston Martin used a different measurement. You're not going to find may cargo areas with nicer carpet than this thing. Having a rubberized floor covering to keep in the garage would be a good idea. Now, like most SUVs, the DBX includes a cargo cover. It certainly isn't normal, though. It's a rigid piece, which is common among hatchbacks and crossover-coupes that have low rooflines that don't really afford much usable space between the cargo cover line and roof. That's not quite the case here.

Aston Martin's AM-RB 001 hypercar headlines the Canadian Auto Show

We've been hearing about the Aston Martin Red Bull AM-RB 001 for the better part of a year, and Thursday morning Aston revealed the imposing hypercar for the first time at an auto show. Kicking off the Canadian International Auto Show in Toronto, Aston chief executive Andy Palmer called it "the defining hypercar of this decade and a hugely desirable investment for collectors and enthusiasts," according to a statement. The reveal comes the day after Aston highlighted its technical partners for the hypercar, which is being developed in tandem with Red Bull Advanced Technologies. The AM-RB 001's debut comes not far from the base of Canadian motorsports expert and auto supplier Multimatic, which will make the carbon-fiber MonoCell for the hypercar. Aston also said Wednesday that Cosworth will produce the naturally aspirated V12 engine, Rimac will make the battery for the electric motor, and Ricardo will supply the seven-speed gearbox. Aston said the "original full-sized model" of the AM-RB 001 will be on display in Toronto alongside the company's other spotlight car from last year, the DB11. .@astonmartin's Dr. Andy Palmer (@AndyatAston) kicks off Media Day at #CIAS2017 unveiling the #AMRB001. #AstonMartin pic.twitter.com/R2Frr83xc6 — Canadian AutoShow (@autoshowcanada) February 16, 2017 Related Video: