Aston Martin DBR9 debuts

[Fogelhund]

Downloadable, high res pictures available at.

http://www.newspress.co.uk/LINKS/36646ast/index.html

Aston Martin Racing has unveiled the DBR9, which will spearhead the British
marque's return to international motor racing in 2005.

The car was shown to a selected audience for the first time on 4th November
2004 at Aston Martin's headquarters at Gaydon in the UK. An intensive
testing programme now follows for Aston Martin Racing prior to the DBR9's
debut race scheduled for the 12 hours of Sebring, Florida, in March 2005.

Aston Martin Racing will run two cars at Sebring and then move to Europe to
prepare for the Le Mans 24 hours in June 2005. This will mark Aston Martin's
return to the race which was won outright in 1959 with Roy Salvadori and
Carroll Shelby. In recognition of this, the DBR9 will follow the Le
Mans-winning DBR1 and Works DB3S and carry the same green and yellow livery
as the cars which dominated sports car racing in the late 1950s.

Aston Martin Racing will build 12 Works cars, which will be run by three
Works teams in the major international GT series. A limited run of only 20
racing cars, prepared to the same specification, will also be built and made
available to selected customers to race or keep in private collections.

The DBR9 GT racing car is based on the latest Aston Martin production sports
car - the DB9 - but is significantly modified for competition use. The
DB9's bonded-aluminium body architecture is shared with the DBR9 and
provides both with a lightweight rigid chassis. The race engine uses the
same aluminium cylinder block and head as the DB9's 450bhp 6-litre V12 unit,
but with racing modification it is expected to produce in the region of
600bhp.

The DB9's double wishbone suspension configuration is retained on the DBR9,
but features uprated components and a revised geometry for racing purposes.
Formula One style carbon brakes are fitted front and rear and a competition,
six-speed sequential gearbox is mounted at the rear axle.

The DBR9 was styled by Aston Martin Racing's own design team who made
extensive use of Computational Fluid Dynamics to optimise the aerodynamics
before producing the final body surface. The panels are hand made from
carbon-fibre composite, helping the car to meet its 1,100kg minimum weight
and giving it a power to weight ratio of 550bhp per tonne - more than double
that of the road car.

Dr Ulrich Bez, Chief Executive Officer of Aston Martin, said: "We need to
create heightened awareness for Aston Martin around the world and motor
sport will allow us to do this.

"We took four years to find the ideal partner in David Richards and Prodrive
and together have created Aston Martin Racing. The DBR9 is the first step
in our return to motor sport and I know that our customers and enthusiasts
alike are looking forward to seeing Aston Martin racing again at an
international level in 2005."

Sorry if this is a long Cut/Paste. This came as email, not as a link to PR site.

[ActiveMS]

err, but the above pictures dont look like photo's to me, more like computer generated, even the high res ones??

[MulsanneMike]

Interesting leading edge splitter profile:

[Cadete]

ActiveMS, the pics seem to have too much attention to details to be computer generated, these ones really look like a racing car, not like the computer generated pics we got some months ago. Besides, today is the day the car is going to be officially launched, so it should be the real thing.

[Asa]

It looks amazing! I think it will give the Maserati a good run for its money.

[Wout]

Aston Martin Racing will build 12 Works cars, which will be run by three Works teams in the major international GT series.

So, each team running four cars!
Major series: FIA GT, LMES and ALMS or are there other possibilities?

[TerryC]

Looking very nice. Would you guys prefer this one over the Maserati?

[Wout]

Originally posted by TerryC
Looking very nice. Would you guys prefer this one over the Maserati?

Definitely!

[Mopar]

you can really see the 550 prodrive influences. it looks great!

[SALEEN S7R]

Originally posted by TerryC
Looking very nice. Would you guys prefer this one over the Maserati?

My heart says yes. But my head says no, if I was a team owner looking at entering GT racing and wanted the best possible car right now Id have to think its the Maserati.

[marcosgt]

If those are photos, I'm Jan Lammers!

Cheers.

[paul-collins]

dsc has a showroom image of the front-on view as Fogelhund posted.

The shadows in the PR shot actually kind of obscure how agressive the car looks.

What a monster! Absolutely beautiful!

(Japanese announcers are going to have a fit with drivers names, too, just as they did the last time the two rumoured drivers were teammates. Think 1993 Ligier.)

[RacingManiac]

holy cow....this car is perfect.....the color, and yellow outline...it screams Aston...

I think this will be very competitive with the ACO spec Maser...

[Silk Cut Jaguar]

Originally posted by paul-collins

(Japanese announcers are going to have a fit with drivers names, too, just as they did the last time the two rumoured drivers were teammates. Think 1993 Ligier.)

There is a story on the ITV site saying Blundell and Brundle are starting their own sportscar team and ideally would want to run Aston Martins in 2006.

That said, the Aston is stunning. Looks wise I'd rate it far higher than the MC12 and with ProDrive behind it one would think it will give Maserati a run for its money to.

[Dani Filth]

Originally posted by TerryC
Looking very nice. Would you guys prefer this one over the Maserati?

the car is stunning . but i still pick Mazza

[jhansen]

Stunning race car! And I agree that the Prodrive styling influence is evident. As for the picture, I remember seeing a similar type picture of the 550 on their website. It just has a different kind of background, like a portrait picture.

[TerryC]

Looking forward to seeing/hearing more of this beauty...

[Adam43]

Well it terms of looks, what can I say? What have they done to such a beautiful car? More Max Power Nova than Aston Martin. IMHO. *swims against the tide* Maybe when I see it moving I'll get a different impression.

Still, they are decent colours and I hope it does well. And it probably sounds great.

[PascaLM]

Very nice and impressive car. It looks terrific.

[TerryC]

Some fresh news from DSC,
"The company anticipates that 12 works cars will be built, to be run by three works teams in the major international GT series – beginning in 2006. 20 more cars will be built, prepared to the same specification, and made available to selected customers to race, or to keep in private collections.

For 2005 it will be Sebring and Le Mans, and then unspecified races later on in the year."

[RacingManiac]

Hope to see this in ALMS actually.....

[tblincoe]

you will see it in the ALMS in 2005 at sebring, and at all the races in 2006.

as for the photos, those are actual pictures of the real car, not computer generated.

i think that the car is absolutely awesome in appearance. the photos on DSC really make this car look like a beast to be reckoned with. really a great example of british power and engineering. can't wait to hear that AM V12 scream!!!

[Aysedasi]

Gorgeous.


'nuff said.

[RacingManiac]

Originally posted by AdamAshmore
Well it terms of looks, what can I say? What have they done to such a beautiful car? More Max Power Nova than Aston Martin. IMHO. *swims against the tide* Maybe when I see it moving I'll get a different impression.

Still, they are decent colours and I hope it does well. And it probably sounds great.

Such is the modern requirement of "production based" GT racing though....the wings, the splitter, the wide fender and the louvers are necessary evil....

[Adam43]

It isn't as beautiful as this: Click Here. I agree with awesome, but not gorgeous. Although I prefer the colour of the racer.

I don't really see the relation to the 550 either, other than the generic bodykits they all have nowadays. Although I think I may have found some simularities with the bodykit on this possible other Prodrive car: Click Here. I jest.

A snip at half a million. Where is my cheque book?