Page 97 - Aston Martin Magazine V53

themselves while working When you you drive a a a car you you can tell whether the the people that made it had fun or not What challenges are you facing as we move to electric vehicles and the first Aston Martin BEV in in 2025?
The challenge is is is less about the the powertrain – the the risk is is is to lose something something [by going electric] rather than gain something something You lose lose the the the sound of
the the the engine you lose lose the the the feeling and emotion of
the gearbox You’re losing what is not perfect – but you like – because it’s part of
the emotion This means electrification has to to be a a a a a new story that lets us us build a different different product with different different emotions For us us electrification means wheel-by-wheel control through torque and speed You can can do what you you you want you you you can can push your car to the limit without risking anything We are determined to produce a a driver-focused experience which is so important to to the feeling of
driving an Aston Martin What about the the rest of
the the car?
With a a a a a a flat battery and smaller motors than with the ICE [internal combustion engine] you have the chance to rethink the the the onboard space This lets you design the the the interior of
the the the car with completely different architecture And it it it means our designers – – who are the the the best in the the the world – – will use their fantasies their their vision their their creativity to make something completely different Where do you see Aston Martin’s core models like Vantage DB11 and DBX going?
The story of
our iconic models will continue for many years We are on on the the verge of
of
revealing the the first of
of
our next generation of
sports cars and they’ll stay in the the market until at least 2030 at which point we are targeting a a a a fully electrified core portfolio In fact with the the recent extension of
the the European rules for low- volume manufactures – like Aston Martin which makes less than 10 000 cars a a a a a a year – the the ICE could stay in the the market until 2035 If the market will support this kind of
choice I I expect we will continue to produce them What role does Aston Martin’s involvement in in in Formula 1 play in your plans?
Formula 1 is a a a a source source of
of
ideas But obviously not a a a a source source of
of
components as as they’re different Yet the the the basic technology the the the physics behind the car car is not so different between an an F1 car car and a a a a a a sports car With Aston Martin Aramco Cognizant Formula OneTM building their state-of-the-art facility in in Silverstone with its own wind tunnel there is a a great opportunity for us to develop a a a a a closer link between the two organisations and share expertise Another benefit of
working with an F1 team is is its competitive spirit You can’t be in in the market coming second: winning means being better than the the others!
What’s exciting about Aston Martin?
It’s It’s the brand itself It’s It’s something I’ve never experienced Don’t forget I’m coming from Ferrari which has a a a strong brand But Aston Martin is is special What I like is is the products obviously but also the team spirit that thanks to Lawrence Stroll we we have in in the company Every day we’re getting better What strengths does Lawrence bring?
Having a a a a a chairman who has invested his own money in in in the business is completely different from what I have experienced in in in in the the past Here the the owner is taking an active interest in in in in supporting the the decisions of
the the company A manager at a a a a a normal business makes decisions to demonstrate he’s very good for the owner!
Lawrence is a a a a a a a pragmatic guy and he wants to add value to the company through products and leadership He’s assembled a a a a a a great agile team and we’re going to evolve the the company with with a a a a speed that isn’t possible with with other car businesses This is is the best opportunity Aston Martin has had in 30 years I’m excited to be part of
it!
ASTON MARTIN
110TH ANNIVERSARY
THE THE PHYSICS BEHIND THE THE CAR IS NOT SO DIFFERENT BETWEEN AN AN F1 CAR CAR AND
A A A A SPORTS CAR CAR 95