Gaydon, England - Aston Martin says that its new normally aspirated 6.5-litre V12 engine that will power the Valkyrie hypercar is the “ultimate expression of the internal combustion engine” and it’s hard to argue with that bold assertion.
And now the British sports car specialist has decided to reveal some of its secrets as well as let us in on just how glorious it sounds, through the video that you view below.
What excites us most about the new 65-degree V12 is that it revs all the way to 11 100rpm, with the maximum output of 745.7kW produced at 10 500 revs, while peak torque of 740Nm is produced lower down at 7000. But that’s just the internal combustion side of things - Aston Martin says it will be further boosted by a battery hybrid system, which will be detailed at a later stage.
For high-revving, sonorous delights on the old-school kind, Aston Martin avoided going the turbocharged route:
“To anyone with a drop of petrol in their blood, a high-revving naturally aspirated V12 is the absolute pinnacle. Nothing sounds better or encapsulates the emotion and excitement of the internal combustion engine more completely,” says Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer.
“Despite the apparently insurmountable challenges it presented, there was never any question that the Aston Martin Valkyrie would make do with anything less.”
Aston Martin Valkyrie.
Developed in conjunction with Cosworth, the V12 is surprisingly light for its size, tipping the scales at just 206kg, and plenty of Formula One know-how went into its engineering as well as material selection.
The majority of its components, apart from major castings such as the block and cylinder heads, are born from an ultra-fine machining process that optimises weight and maximises strength. Examples include the titanium conrods and billet machined crankshaft that, thanks to extensive machining and heat treatment, is 50 percent lighter than the shaft in the Aston Martin One-77’s V12.