Aston Martin’s 110th Birthday Present Is A V12 Monster With A Manual

For my last birthday, I got a voucher for a surf lesson off Long Island. I’m yet to cash it in, but I’m sure it’ll be great fun when I do. But if you’re a carmaker, and not a car journalist, your birthday presents come a bit bigger than a surf voucher. In fact, if you’re a 110-year-old car maker called Aston Martin, your birthday presents are pretty special indeed.

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To mark its 110th trip around the sun, British marque Aston Martin has thrown the covers off an all-new, limited edition monster it calls the Valour. The company will build just 110 examples of the new car, and it sounds like quite a beast.

At its beating heart, the Valour is powered by a 5.2 liter, twin-turbo V12 engine that kicks out an eye-watering 715 hp. Instead of pairing this with a sophisticated automatic transmission, Aston Martin has harked back to the good old days and given this a bespoke six-speed manual transmission with one of the most satisfying-looking shifters out there.

Good shifter. Image: Aston Martin

To help get all that power onto the road, the Valour is equipped with a mechanical limited-slip differential, as well as electronic traction and stability control systems. And, when you need to come to a stop, the new car is fitted with carbon ceramic brakes in the form of 16-inch discs up front and 14-inch rotors at the rear.

But there’s more to this car than outright performance. As such, Aston has given the Valour a look that it says evokes the styling of the V8 Vantage from the 1970s and 1980s — incidentally, my favorite Aston Martin.

Good tail lights. Image: Aston Martin

As such, the Valour has a more angular look than the new DB12, especially around the front end, which is dominated by an elongated grille, retro round headlights and an eyebrow-like grille that Aston says gives the car a “menacing” look. Up front, there’s also a swooping hood that covers that V12 and comes with a horseshoe-shaped vent and twin intakes to keep the motor cool.

At the rear of the car, there’s a lighting array that looks right off the Aston Martin Valkyrie and a polished aluminum accent that runs the width of the car. Back here, you’ll also spy a massive diffuser to help with downforce, and a triple tailpipe exhaust system pumps that V12 engine note out to the masses.

The rear end also features a lip-style spoiler, which is reminiscent of the Victor from the mid 2010s and the flick found at the back of cars like the DB6. On the whole, this car looks slick.

Good car. Image: Aston Martin

Aston Martin says that production of the Valour production is due to begin later this year, with deliveries expected to begin before the end of 2023. There’s no word yet on price, but if you have to ask that question you already can’t afford one.