ASTON MARTIN I PROFILE British luxury sports personified

Luxury sports brands don’t come much bigger than . At 2017’s , the British manufacturer made a number of exciting announcements, led by a speech made by Aston Martin’s CEO, Andy Palmer. But for those not lucky enough to be in atten - dance to hear Mr Palmer’s speech direct from the horse’s mouth, Inside Industry has the next best thing – his full speech, in the written word. Your challenge now is to actually read it, rather than just ogle at the pictures…

wo years ago, I stood here and announced our Second Century Our special projects business is thriving with seven models Plan. We are now one third through that transformation journey announced and sold out since the start of 2015. From the fire- Tand close to the completion of the first phase, namely the breathing supercar to the continuation of the stabilisation of the company. timelessly elegant DB4GT, we are creating the next generation of We filed record financial results both in terms of our fourth future collectable cars. quarter (of 2016) and full year EBITDA performance. More impor - We have expanded and deepened the range of possibilities tantly, we doubled our EBITDA per car on half the production available through our bespoke service, Q by Aston Martin. From volume compared to our peak year in 2007. We can see that the the Collection, shown here for the first time on DB11, through to actions started in 2015 are now delivering measurable results the possibility to create your very own one-of-one model through to the operating profit of the company, which was also positive Commission, we are redefining the meaning of personalisation. before exceptional items. We are also in the process of transforming our manufacturing With the successful Q4 launch of DB11 we have started the total footprint with the expansion of Gaydon as our centre renewal and expansion of our product portfolio that will deliver, on and the addition of St Athan in Wales for our 4 door cars in 2019. average for the course of the plan, a new car every nine months. Between now and 2020, our total global workforce will expand

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by at least 1,000 people. Our unique ‘beyond lean’ manufacturing processes are enabling us to produce highly bespoke products at both scale and outstanding quality through the use of a core set of manufacturing tools; infinitely bespoke cars on a flow production line. And with the appointment of Max Szwaj as our new Vice President and Chief Technical Officer, we have a complete senior leadership team ready to deliver the Second Century Plan and beyond. At the last two Geneva Shows, we have focused on revealing new products for the first time – some expected and some not. This year we wanted to do the same but focus specifically on performance; very high performance. Red Bull Advanced Technologies partnership In March 2016, we announced an exciting partnership with Red Bull Advanced Technologies. Harnessing the combined talents of , , David King and their teams, we outlined the vision for an incredible fusion of F1 inspired design and technology.

12 months on, work is far advanced on the project we codenamed Valkyrie also continues a fine tradition of Aston Martin ‘V’ cars AM-RB001. We are bringing together the who’s-who of world-class which began back in the late 1940’s. Now, seven decades after the technical partners. They include for the normally aspirated Vantage name started it all, Valkyrie propels this uniquely distinctive 6.5-litre , Ricardo for the 7-speed , and Rimac and lyrical family of model names to another level. for the battery system. I am also pleased to announce today another The name Vantage also has special relevance for what hides under key technical partner with the selection of Michelin as the sole these two remaining covers. When Sir David Brown wanted to launch tyre provider. a higher power version of the DB2, he decided on the name Vantage These partnerships build on those already in place with Multimatic, to signify the extra power. And over the following 50 years we created who will also produce the carbon fibre tub, and also with Dow and a Vantage version for almost every model line. Nexcel with whom we are conducting research and development With the success of last year in the World for future technology applications. Endurance Championship, as well as multiple titles and victories So everything is falling into place: we have the best designers, in GT3 and GT4 classes around the world, we decided it was time the best technical team, the best partners and of course the best to honour what Sir David started with the DB2 and combine that customers who are investing in this ground-breaking project. with everything we have learned in racing. AM-RB001 = . AMR higher performance However, up until now we have not exactly had the best name. So I am pleased to announce today that we are creating a new range AM-RB001 has been our project code but it is time to give this car of higher performance cars for the road and track under the newly the best name in the car business - the Aston Martin Valkyrie. created AMR brand. While the name Valkyrie is rooted in ancient mythology, the Aston Every model in our range today – and in the future – will derive Martin Valkyrie is a very forward looking expression of the most at least one AMR derivative. All AMR cars, whether for the track advanced automotive technology available. Valkyrie perfectly cap - or road will be characterised by signature design elements, tures the drama of what is not only the ultimate production Aston higher power output and ride-handling changes appropriate Martin, but what promises to be the defining hypercar of the decade. for each model.

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These models and the AMR brand itself will be underpinned As a four-seat production car already capable of speeds over 200 by an ongoing commitment to GT racing. Supported by our long- miles-per-hour, the Rapide has always been one of the fastest in term racing provider , I am pleased to announce that the world. With a projected top speed of 210mph, the Rapide AMR we are investing into a next generation GT racing car that will promises not only to be the fastest four seater but also the fastest debut next season and ensure our presence in top-tier racing four door car in production. Just 210 of these cars will be made. into the next decade. As you can imagine, our crew at special projects are very moti - In launching AMR, we wanted to give you a taste for the extremes vated by this challenge. of this new brand. The Vantage AMR-Pro is 500 horsepower of WEC Finally, every brand needs a home, or in the case of AMR, many derived power and aerodynamics. Created for track use, the Vantage homes. From its roots in the special projects team in Warwickshire, AMR-Pro represents the simplest translation of a pure racing car we are in the process of establishing a network of track-based AMR and continues the lineage started with the Vantage GT12 and then performance centres. I am pleased to announce that we are con - Vantage GT8. verting our driving centre at the Nürburgring in Germany to the We have taken out over 200kg when compared to the V8 Vantage first of those global centres. In addition to its work on core vehicle road car and as you would expect from an Aston Martin, the interior programmes, The AMR centre at the Nürburgring will offer customers is a combination of beautiful hand-crafted materials and the everything from car preparation for track driving through to vehicle necessary modifications for track use. accessories and driver training. Rapide AMR 2020 ambitions Turning to the Rapide AMR, this is the car I am most excited to bring When I took the job as CEO of Aston Martin in late 2014, little did to production and most excited to have in my garage. The Rapide is I realise that the pace of change would mean that between now a hidden jewel in our range and we have long believed that it could and 2020: we will replace every single car in our range; expand support a much more sporting derivative. our range from four to at least seven different models; have two The Rapide AMR features the 600 PS V12 engine from the Vantage modern manufacturing plants, doubling our current production GT12, a re-tuned sports suspension and showcases many of the capacity to over 10,000 cars per year; recommence production design cues that will mark out our AMR products. at Newport Pagnell; launch the first production electric Aston On the outside, a deeper front mesh grille complements large Martin; launch the first production mid-engined Aston Martin; front driving lights. New design 21 inch wheels, sill extensions launch a new performance brand with AMR; and announce our and a deeper rear splitter with quad exhaust pipes delivers plans for the reintroduction of the marque. both form and function. On the inside, a new lightweight seat And finally, although we won’t launch a fully autonomous car design combines with extensive use of carbon fibre, Alcantara by 2020, we will always have a three-pedal manual transmission and leather. car in our range. Some habits die hard... n

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