We've had a lot of updates on the Aston Martin/Red Bull Advanced Technologies hypercar that's in development, which up until now has had the slightly clunky moniker of AM-RB 001. Well, no more - the two companies took the opportunity of the Geneva Motor Show to announce that this near-mythical beast will get a properly mythical name: Valkyrie.
Does that mean the car's sound system can only play Wagner?
Don't be facetious. And anyway, as the Valkyrie is focused on epic performance on road, and - for 25 of the 175 cars that will be built - the track, it's likely there won't BE a sound system on-board. Instead, the name was chosen because Aston has used nameplates beginning with a 'V' since the Vantage first arrived way back in 1951.
The car's not as old-fashioned as the name's origin, is it?
Hardly. It's a hybrid hypercar that is being made by some of the great, good and somewhat mythical names of the motoring pantheon, such as Cosworth, Ricardo, AF Racing and more, but it's as cutting edge as anything on the roads. Or, er... the tracks.
And what do the Aston top brass have to say about all this?
Over to Marek Reichman, Aston's chief creative officer, who explained: "The Aston Martin Valkyrie is an incredibly special car that demands an equally remarkable name; an uncompromising car that leaves nothing in reserve. The connotations of power and honour, of being chosen by the gods are so evocative, and so pertinent to a car that only a fortunate few will ever experience."
