Yahoo Autos Aston Martin's V-12 Power Will Live Through the Decade
To experience V-12 power is to be granted entry into a special, insular group of automotive enthusiasts. Reserved for the cream of the crop, V-12 engines are few and far between these days, as engine displacement shrinks under the weight of emissions regulations, but Aston Martin isn't letting go of its precious 12 cylinders without a fight.
The legendary British automaker launched the newest incarnation of its Vanquish grand tourer on Monday and the presence of its clean-sheet V-12 engine is perhaps the strongest pride of all. Making 823 hp and 737 lb-ft of torque out of a 5.2-liter twin-turbocharged V-12, the new engine promises to be a work of art and a tool for speed alike. The powerplant is here to stick around too, according to Aston Martin's Head of Product and Market Strategy Alex Long.
"From our perspective, the engine will see us at least until the end of the decade," Long said in a media roundtable in New York City. "In terms of the work that's gone on from the engineering team, from emissions compliance and all the monitoring technologies, there's been huge exploration of combustion efficiency and cleanliness and so on."
Speaking with members of the media at a sneak peek of the Vanquish earlier this summer, Long explained that Aston Martin is in a unique market that allows it to continue producing V-12 engines. Low production numbers (only around 1000 units will be made) mean that the company is exempt from some of the more stringent emissions standards applied to mass-market cars. Additionally, with plans to continue implementing hybrid technology within its lineup, the need for the brand to offset fleet emissions averages from its V-12 models should decrease over time, too.
Bureaucracy from governing bodies and emissions standards aren't the only things Aston is concerned about, though. Long said that continuing the V-12 lineage in its flagship model is about showing enthusiasts and its competitors alike that innovation on the efficiency front will translate into improved power delivery as well. Sure, electrification is on its way to becoming the cornerstone of power creation (see Lamborghini's Revuelto and Temerario), but Aston Martin will take its time getting there.
"V-12 is the critical part of the [Vanquish] program," Long said. " Electrification is happening first of all in terms of augmenting ICE powertrains with electrification to deliver high levels of performance. And I think that's where we see electrification and hybridization coming for us as a brand as well."
Aston Martin's Chief Creative Officer Marek Reichman also explained that demand for V-12-engined models is strong, referencing an application-to-allocation ratio of over 2:1 for the sharpened track toy that is the Aston Martin Valkyrie. These days, V-12 engines are only available in special cars, ones that are typically only available through exclusive allocation processes, leaving future demand essentially guaranteed. Save for whopping changes to emissions regulations, Reichman and Long don't see anything standing in the way of selling 12-cylinder models through the end of the decade.
"As long as V-12s have authenticity in the product that they come in, then this is kind of the final flourishing version of the V-12," Long said.
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