Mid engine Aston, the NPX

[pvmike]

Beautiful.

Beyond Rapide
Is NPX Aston’s mid-engined answer?

By JULIAN RENDELL

AutoWeek | Published 04/24/07, 3:05 pm et

Is Aston Martin poised to take on Ferrari with its first mid-engined supercar? That’s the tantalizing prospect made possible by Ford’s sale of the British sports-car maker to a consortium led by Prodrive’s David Richards, backed by Kuwaiti investors and featuring Texan investment banker John Sinders.

Richards, who will chair the new company, said at the press conference announcing the Aston purchase: “Aston has to look at some of the things that are being done by our competitors, like the Audi R8 and the Japanese brands. We believe we can expand quite considerably.”

Richards’ comment could be taken as a sign that he wants to build the Prodrive P2, a 2006 two-seat supercar concept with a Subaru WRX STI powertrain that served as a showcase for the British company’s engineering prowess.

A more likely interpretation, sources suggest, is that Aston will add a range-topping, mid-engined supercar, an obvious gap in the company’s lineup, which is focused on four front-engined, rear-drive models built on the same aluminum chassis.

Officially, Aston says a mid-engined car isn’t part of its five-year plan that runs from 2005 to 2010: “The investors have bought a profitable company with an agreed plan to the end of the decade, and there’s nothing mid-engined in that.”

But Aston CEO Ulrich Bez hinted at an exciting new Aston flagship at the purchase announcement, showing a new product lineup with a model codenamed NPX at its pinnacle. “It’s a sign of the confidence of the company that we could put a model above the Rapide,” said Bez.

Speaking privately, executives also acknowledge that new thinking will be needed post-2010. “There is definitely room above Rapide for a supercar like NPX, but details, like where the engine is, are still a subject to be discussed.”

The Rapide is the four-door, long-wheelbase variant of the DB9 that Aston’s new owners already have promised will be put into production by 2010. Bez estimates Rapide sales at “between 1000 and 2000” annually, at a price near $400,000.

An NPX supercar probably would wear a price tag around $500,000, making it comparable to the Mercedes-Benz SLR and a value compared with the $1.2 million Bugatti Veyron.

Seasoned Aston observers will see some irony in Richards’ comment, because the V8 Vantage was originally planned as a mid-engined Ferrari 360 beater, but cost and speed-to-market considerations caused the car to be redesigned as a front-engined, two-seat variant of the company’s mainstay DB9 model.

Bez, then newly on board at Aston, made the critical call, causing internal conflict with designers and engineers who strongly backed the mid-engined car.

At that time, Bez told AutoWeek that a “front-engined V8 Vantage was the only model that made any sense financially. Aston is a very small company, and it is not sensible to have two completely different body architectures.”

So what has changed? Most significant is that Aston’s business plan has been a huge success, with production up fivefold in five years. The company is now profitable, giving managers the freedom to take some calculated product and investment risks. Plus, one of the reasons for spinning Aston off was to give it access to a larger pot of capital expenditure. According to Aston insiders, Ford’s ongoing financial worries diverted funds from peripheral projects such as new Astons to bread-and-butter models better able to keep the Blue Oval afloat.

These factors, along with the fresh ideas of a new management team, point to the strong probability of a future mid-engined Aston.

 

[clr1024]

Very nice design, nicest Aston Martin, I have ever seen but at $500K might be a tad high in price compared to competition.

 

[Semnos_NSX]

Nice, but I would still take a Saleen S7 for that price tag!!

 

[Zishan]

I agree, that's the best looking Aston Martin I've ever seen! Too bad about the price....

I miss the HSC rumors..... :frown:

 

[BigBull]

I'd take the comfort of the Aston over the looks, performance, or any other characteristic of the S7. Not trying to start a war or anything - but wow! Have you ever driven an S7? I am 6'0" (and not a big frame 6'0" either) and can not begin to tell you how uncomfortable this thing was. (But I'll try.) My head was pressed up against the roof, the door crowded my shoulder and limited the range of my arm while steering when it was closed, and the visibility was a joke. And don't even get me started on getting in and out of the thing. What a workout. I will agree that the S7 looks completely bada$$ but that's where the dream ends for me. Go with the Aston. (Just my $0.02.)

Nice, but I would still take a Saleen S7 for that price tag!!

 

[Ko-nsx]

I love all astons, but that is special. i miss the hsc rumors, too. 500k? Zonda hands down

 

[poet_x]

wish I could see some profile pics...

 

[95EagleAWD]

Maybe 250K would be better.

But it's simply gorgeous...

 

[my1stnsx]

I want one!!!

 

[DrVolkl]

Looks a lot like a viper from the front....looks like the artist photo chopped a viper and stuck an Aston rear end on it with an A5 profile. Nice mix...

 

[booyaolian]

the front looks nothing like a viper

 

[NSXLuvr]

Well atleast a REAL car guy is controlling AM. If I was Richards, I would start out by improving the AMV8 and the Vanquish. Those the "entry level" cars that sell the most. With sucess you can add a Halo car. You can't really start with a Halo car and have mediocore entry level cars.

For example - look at BMW - more that 50% of their sales are 3 series. But that base supports the funding for higher end car that the 3 series owners upgrade too. The opposite is Lambo - Kept making 200 diablo's a year and barely avoiding bancruptcy. When they added the Gallardo they became profitable.

 

[BigBull]

Well atleast a REAL car guy is controlling AM. If I was Richards, I would start out by improving the AMV8 and the Vanquish. Those the "entry level" cars that sell the most. With sucess you can add a Halo car. You can't really start with a Halo car and have mediocore entry level cars.

For example - look at BMW - more that 50% of their sales are 3 series. But that base supports the funding for higher end car that the 3 series owners upgrade too. The opposite is Lambo - Kept making 200 diablo's a year and barely avoiding bancruptcy. When they added the Gallardo they became profitable.

Of course it could also have been due to that fact that Audi / VW group engineered a far superior car to anything that was produced by those companies that had come before them. After all, the Gallardo (the "entry level" Lambo) is now almost $300K for the spyder version. Hardly a 3 series price point when compared to the LP640. I appreciate the point - but let's not oversimplify. We are clearly dealing with a much better product and much deeper pockets when we look at Audi / VW. I would not hang their success solely on the production of the Gallardo.

 

[sgvnsxrated]

Change the grill a little bit, maybe the headlights a little, and from the side, it looks like what the new NSX replacement should have been. Damn you Honda!

 

[Juice]

$500 G is rediculous for an AM car. There is nothing there to support that type of investment into one of their cars. Unless the car does something along the lines of an Enzo, there is nothing to support pricing along the lines of an Enzo. It may have the breeding, but definately not the background.

This article isn't even based in reality.

 

[DrVolkl]

the front looks nothing like a viper

It's just a photo chop that some Autoweek artist made up...it's not like Aston sent out those pictures. I have a strong feeling that they started with a viper, stuck the generic Aston grille on it, messed with the headlights then stuck the Aston rear on a A5 pic...those curves look too damn familiar.