Aston Martin reveals new sports car inspired by racing star

Aston Martin has unveiled its new Valiant sports car, designed in partnership with Spanish racing driver and two-time world champion, Fernando Alonso.

The cars, of which there are only 38 in the world, are thought to cost around £2 million per unit (€2.37 million), excluding tax in the UK.

Aston Martin has confirmed that all of the cars have already been pre-sold, and that deliveries will begin in the fourth quarter of this year.

This will follow the public presentation of the car at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in July.

Fernando Alonso, who is currently competing for Aston Martin in Formula One, said that his experience of Aston’s Martin’s earlier Valour model inspired him to create “a more extreme, race car inspired version that was track focused, while also delivering a thrilling drive on-road”.

Valour, Valiant’s predecessor, was a limited edition vehicle launched to celebrate Aston Martin’s 110th anniversary last year. All 110 cars, with an estimated value of more than €1.4 million, sold out within two weeks.

When creating Valiant, Alonso worked closely with the “Q by Aston Martin” team, a division that pays homage to the infamous James Bond novels.

“I believe we have created a masterpiece,” added Alonso.

In an attempt to drive profit growth, Aston Martin is focusing its energy on manufacturing more new cars, meaning it has halted production of old models.

Even so, the firm describes Valiant as a vehicle “harking back and howling forward” –  in the sense that it takes notes from the Aston Martin DBS V8.

The DBS V8 became part of racing legend when it competed in Le Mans in the 1970s, although its nickname, “the Muncher”, allegedly stuck because of the car’s tendency to eat through its brake disks.

The modern Valiant model features all-carbon fibre bodywork and is powered by a 5.2-litre twin-turbo V12 engine.

It is the latest member of Aston Martin’s collectible specials, joining cars like the Valkyrie, Vantage, and Valhalla models.

“Valiant continues a strong lineage of Aston Martins that deliver true driving intensity both on-road and on-track with the ultimate hypercar,” said Aston Martin.

“While both Valour and Valiant take inspiration from the brands iconic heritage in their design, they sit firmly in Aston Martin’s modern performance future delivering class leading power, driving dynamics and cutting-edge technology, ensuring Aston Martin’s appeal to true driving connoisseurs.”

The carmaker is hoping that new models will help it to turn a corner after some downbeat earnings data.

In the first quarter of 2024, adjusted loss before tax was £110.5 million (€130.9 million), compared with £57.3 million (€67.85 million) in the previous year.

Annual wholesale volumes fell by 35% in the Americas, by 30% in the UK, and by 17% in the wider Europe, Middle East and Africa region. Asia-Pacific volumes were down 14%.