Fifty years after the DB4GT Zagato, and following in the wheel tracks of several subsequent collaborations with the Italian design house, Aston Martin has unveiled the new V12 Zagato concept.
Its debut will be at the Villa D'Este Concours on 21st May 2011, which takes place near Lake Como in Italy. Aston Martin is going to use the occasion to ‘gauge customer interest’, despite already confirming that a strictly limited run of cars will be built.
But the V12 Zagato isn’t just going to be a road car. In the tradition of previous Aston Martin Zagatos a race programme is planned, starting off with the four hour VLN Nürburgring race on 28th May 2011, and then followed by a 24 hour event at the same venue on 25th and 26th June 2011.
Unsurprisingly for a Zagato creation, the looks are arguably more challenging than those of a series production Aston Martin.
Even Marek Reichman, Director of Design at Aston Martin, described it as ‘an elegant yet brutal design which reflects the great balance between race performance and pure Aston Martin style. The original DB4GT Zagato was a true icon, powerful and graceful; the new design is a true representation of the spirit of DB4GT Zagato. The muscular organic forms define the thoroughbred nature of the car's racing credentials.’
Regardless of whether the styling divides opinion, there’s no disputing the craftsmanship that has gone into building the car. Sitting atop the bonded aluminium structure (borrowed from the V12 Vantage) is a handmade aluminium body, assembled using traditional techniques. The front wings, for example, are each made from seven separate pieces of metal, while the roof panel alone uses five pieces.
No word on prices yet, but that probably won’t be of much concern to prospective owners.
| Aston Martin V12 Zagato (Endurance Race Specification) |
| Body |
| Type | Two door, two seat coupe |
| Chassis | Bonded aluminium structure |
| Body | Hand crafted aluminium |
| Roll cage | FIA compliant; steel |
| Fuel system | 120 litre endurance racing fuel tank |
| Suspension | All-round independent double wishbone with fully adjustable Multimatic DSSV dampers |
| Front brakes | Ventilated floating grooved discs with 6 piston callipers |
| Rear brakes | Ventilated floating grooved discs with 4 piston callipers |
| Engine |
| Type | All alloy, quad overhead cam 48-valve 5,935 cc V12 |
| Location | Front mid-mounted |
| Power | 510 bhp (380 kW / 517 PS) |
| Torque | 570 Nm (420 lb/ft) |
| Compression ratio | 10.9:1 |
| Transmission |
| Drive | Rear-wheel drive; limited slip differential; magnesium alloy torque tube with carbon fibre propeller shaft |
| Gearbox | Six-speed automated manual gearbox with auto shift manual / select shift manual (ASM / SSM) electric hydraulic control system; rear-mid mounted |
| Clutch | Twin plate competition |
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