Aston Martin Valkyrie’s V12 Confirmed to Produce 1,160 Earth-Shattering Horsepower
The Valkyrie is officially the most powerful naturally aspirated road car ever built.
Aston Martin has confirmed record-setting powertrain specifications for its upcoming $3.3M Valkyrie hypercar, which will be powered by a naturally aspirated, 6.5-liter, 65-degree V12, developed from the ground up by Cosworth for use specifically in the Valkyrie.
The ultra-customizable hypercar can rev as high as 11,100 rpm, though peak power comes a few hundred shy of that figure, at 10,500 rpm, where the V12 cranks out precisely 1,000 horsepower. Maximum torque comes at 6,000 and totals 546 pound-feet. Not only do these figures make the Valkyrie's engine the most powerful naturally aspirated motor ever fitted to a road car, but they also make it the most power-dense with 153.8 horsepower per liter—better than even many turbocharged engines.
Aston's advertised power figure of 1,160 horses is achieved by coupling the 1,000-horsepower V12 to a racing-grade, Rimac-influenced Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS), which gives the already potent car an electric boost at the push of a button. It contributes another 160 horsepower and 207 pound-feet of torque to achieve the car's touted performance figures.
First prototypes of the Valkyrie are currently under construction and will precede the car's limited production run of 150 vehicles, all of which are already sold out. Afterward, presumably, will come the even more exclusive run of the track-only Valkyrie AMR Pro, of which only 25 will be built.
Aston Martin has encouraged Valkyrie clients to spec their cars individually and has offered customization options such as a layer of gold leaf beneath the car's paint. One buyer even ground up lunar dust for use in his Valkyrie's paint.
"Aston Martin Valkyrie is set to be the ultimate hypercar in the automotive world and these performance figures underline that statement," said David King, Aston Martin's vice president. "Red Bull Advanced Technologies, Cosworth, Rimac and Integral Powertrain Ltd. have been fantastic partners in the development of this powertrain, ensuring that we have already created a hybrid system that is emissions-compliant and ready to begin fitting to our first physical prototypes. I am, as I'm sure the rest of the world is, incredibly excited to see and hear the first of these cars on track."
