Aston Martin turned 110 this year, and to celebrate the automaker on Tuesday launched a brutish V-12 sports car called the Valour.
Arriving for the 2024 model year, just 110 examples will be built for worldwide sale, and Aston Martin is in the process of allocating those built slots.
Based on the Aston Martin bonded-aluminum sports car platform that underpins all of the brand's models, the car is reminiscent of the Victor supercar unveiled in 2020, a one-off creation based on the platform of Aston Martin's One-77 supercar. Like that model, the Valour features retro styling inspired by the muscle car-like V8 Vantage of the 1970s and '80s and DBS V8-based RHAM/1 race car nicknamed the Muncher that ran in multiple 24 Hours of Le Mans races during the '70s.
“At Aston Martin our design is always progressive, but when it comes to celebrating a significant milestone, in this instance our 110th birthday, we allow ourselves a little latitude,” Miles Nurnberger, Aston Martin's director of design, said in a statement. “Consequently, Valour is gloriously unapologetic—an old-school brute refined and reimagined through the lens of 2023.”
2024 Aston Martin Valour
The Valour packs Aston Martin's turbocharged 5.2-liter V-12, tuned here to deliver 705 hp. Instead of the automatic transmissions the engine is normally hooked to, including in the final V12 Vantage, the engine gets a bespoke 6-speed manual transmission for Valour duty. Drive goes to the rear wheels via a mechanical limited-slip differential.
Aston Martin might not offer such a combination again, as the automaker refers to the Valour as a tribute to a golden era of driving.
Beyond the drivetrain, the Valour benefits from a unique suspension setup with adaptive dampers, springs, and anti-roll bars, in addition to specific tuning of the car's stability and traction control systems and various drive modes. The chassis also features reinforcements like shear panels front and rear, bracing around the gas tank, and a rear strut tower brace.
2024 Aston Martin Valour
2024 Aston Martin Valour
2024 Aston Martin Valour
Stopping power comes from standard carbon-ceramic brake rotors clamped down by 6-piston calipers up front and 4-piston calipers in the rear. The brake package is housed within a set of 21-inch wheels with a pattern similar to the wheels used on the DBS 770 Ultimate. The wheels mount Michelin Pilot Sport S 5 tires that debuted on the new DB12, and measure a meaty 325/30 at the rear. The front pair are 275/35s.
The body is crafted almost entirely from carbon fiber and includes a large clamshell hood with a horseshoe vent and twin NACA ducts. The carbon fiber is exposed in many areas, including in the cabin where it can be found on the doors and center console. The interior is also dressed in classic materials like woolen tweed inspired by the coverings of Aston Martin’s 1959 Le Mans-winning DBR1, which add even more character. Buyers will have plenty of additional personalization options to choose from, too, including hand-painted liveries, Aston Martin said.
Production of the Valour will start in the third quarter of the year. The first examples are slated to be delivered before 2023 is out. Pricing information hasn't been revealed, but expect the Valour to command between $1 million and $2 million.
