You're going to have to explain this one...
Pictured above is a conceptual sketch for a brand-new Aston Martin. It's all we have to go on following an announcement from Aston that it will put a new hypercar into production in late 2021. For now, Aston will refer to it simply as 'Project 003' (following on from projects 001 and 002 - the Valkyrie and Valkyrie AMR Pro respectively), though it has released just enough titbits of information to justify a news article such as this.
Such as...
Well, Project 003 will be a mid-engined car for a start, and presumably rear-wheel drive. Behind the (again we're presuming) two-seat cabin will be a turbocharged petrol-electric hybrid system. Given the layout and hypercar billing, we'd have to guess that it'll be the Mercedes-AMG twin-turbo V8 back there, with a small, in series, electric motor between it and the automatic transmission.
Not a lot to go on!
Indeed, though Aston also let slip that the new car will use active aerodynamics and active suspension for 'for outstanding levels of downforce in a road-legal car'. No doubt working with Adrian Newey on the Valkyrie twins has given Aston's aerodynamicists food for thought.
So, it's a road car?
Yes it is, homologated for sale in all markets and available in left- or right-hand drive. Aston were very specific in referring to the production numbers, saying it's limited to '500 coupe examples globally', which makes us wonder if an open-topped Volante version is also on the cards.
What did Aston's boss have to say about it?
Andy Palmer, said: "It was always the intention for the Aston Martin Valkyrie to be a once-in-a lifetime project, however, it was also vital to us that Valkyrie would create a legacy: a direct descendent that would also set new standards within its own area of the hypercar market, creating a bloodline of highly specialised, limited production machines that can exist in parallel with Aston Martin's series production models. I'm thrilled to announce that this car is the Project '003', and our next step into a dynamic and exacting arena."
Shane O' Donoghue - 20 Sep 2018