Hot New Aston Martin Sub-Brand Taps Racecar Style And Performance

Aston Martin has launched a new sub-brand called AMR, bridging the gap between its road and race cars.

The new two-grade badge, which will eventually grace special versions of every Aston Martin model, will act as a suffix after the main model name. The first stage, AMR, will focus on design, noise and bespoke luxury, while a more serious AMR Pro grade will signify racecar tech that has been transferred to the road.

Aston has revealed two stunning concept examples to show what it means. The Rapide AMR has the same 6.0-litre V12 as the regular car but connected to a new quad-exhaust system. The full-height grille, front splitter, side sills and ‘aero flip’ boot spoiler have all been tweaked for extra visual impact, not to mention the new 21-inch wheels. Only 210 will be built.

Carbonfibre is everywhere, with lots of exterior trim accessories in carbon, plus carbonfibre seats trimmed in Dark Knight Alcantara (no deliberate Batman connection), carbonfibre centre console and matching door trim.

On the more serious side, the Vantage AMR Pro is the most powerful factory V8 Vantage ever built for the road. It uses a 500bhp development of the firm’s GT4 racing engine and rides on fully-adjustable race-spec suspension, competition engine and gearbox mounts, and 19-inch wheels measuring 9.5 and 11.5 inches wide at the front and rear respectively, complete with Michelin Pilot Cup 2 tyres. Bit of a beast, then, and it’ll be ultra-rare, too. Just seven are set to leave the factory.

The Vantage AMR Pro even uses the same bonnet and rear wing as the race-winning World Endurance Championship car. For the Geneva show it’s painted in the same colours as the Rapide AMR, and like that car it makes extensive use of carbonfibre. There’s a custom roll cage, because racecar, and the grille, front splitter, sills and rear diffuser have all been adapted for this car.

They’re both ready for production, too. Aston Martin CEO, Dr Andy Palmer, said:

“As passionate enthusiasts of Aston Martin’s competition pedigree, AMR is something we have wanted to bring to fruition for some time. Cars such as the Vantage GT8 and Vantage GT12 confirmed that our customers love raw, race-bred models, but we also knew there was an opportunity to create cars that offer a sharper performance focus but stop short of those truly hardcore, special series models. [These cars] are the start of something very exciting.”