Aston Martin seems to have found a niche for itself with super-exclusive supercars. It revealed the Valour last year, a retro-styled, manual-equipped coupe that would only have 110 examples. But some customers wanted an even more special car, more specifically, Aston Martin F1 racer and two-time world champion Fernando Alonso. He wanted his Valour to be lighter and more powerful, and that’s what led to the even more exclusive Valiant you see above.
The basics are pretty similar, particularly the chassis and the powertrain, the latter being a twin-turbo 5.2-liter V12 with a six-speed manual transmission and rear-wheel drive. But it makes an extra 30 horsepower for a total of 735, while torque stays put at 555 pound-feet.
The other major performance upgrade for the Valiant is the suspension. It’s still adaptive, but now it uses adaptive versions of Multimatic’s famed spool-valve shocks.
Aston didn’t give total weight savings, but the Valiant is almost certainly lighter after shaving off pounds from the Valour in all variety of places. It saved 6.6 pounds with a 3D-printed rear subframe, and 19 pounds with a magnesium torque tube. A lithium-ion battery saves 25.4 pounds, and the magnesium wheels save a total of 30.9 pounds. Aston says that even the carbon fiber grille, which allows for additional airflow, has saved some weight.
That grille is the least of the exterior changes, though. The Valiant gains a much more aggressive front spoiler, side skirts and rear wing. It has a fully functional rear diffuser and fender vents, too. The wheels feature carbon fiber covers to reduce drag, but are also shaped to pull air across the carbon ceramic brakes. The whole rear end is now a single clamshell piece, too, with just a hinged rear window area to access some cargo space.
The interior is another highlight, particularly the shifter. All of the shifter’s guts are on display through the cutaway center console, and the lever and knob are beautiful metal pieces. The steering wheel is smaller in diameter compared to the Valour’s, and it does away with all switchgear. Recaro seats are nestled in a half roll cage that features anchor points for racing harnesses. And the doors have light mesh panels and fabric door pulls.
There’s no price associated with the Valiant, though it’s surely exorbitant. Odds are Aston has already found buyers for all the Valiants, too. It only had to find 38, after all. And the lucky customers will be getting their cars at the end of the year. And the world will get to see the Valiant head up the hill at Goodwood Festival of Speed next month.
