Debut alongside the all-new Aston Martin Vantage is its souped-upped twin, the Vantage GTE. The new race car will succeed the team’s most successful competition car of all-time and two-time Le Mans-winning V8 Vantage GTE.
The new FIA World Endurance Championship challenger was built to comply with FIA’s GTE class regulations, taking on extensive optimisation of powertrain, chassis and aerodynamics. Designed and engineered in-house at Aston Martin Racing’s headquarters in Banbury, the development was led by Technical Director Dan Sayers, who was also involved in the development of the V8 Vantage GTE.
Built upon the Vantage road car, the new Vantage GTE’s stance is significantly wider and lower. The ridiculously lengthy front and rear splitters help the race car slice through air with maximum efficiency coupled with the fixed rear wing for maximum downforce. The windows are also replaced with lightweight polycarbonate items.
As an endurance race car, the Vantage GTE has undergone extensive reliability tests, ensuring everything from the Mercedes-AMG sourced 4.0-litre twin turbo V8 engine to the overall drivability can withstand the demanding conditions of a Le Mans 24 Hour race. The race car has over 13,000 km of testing and a successful 30-hour run at the Spanish Circuit of Navarra under its belt.
President of Aston Martin Racing, David King said, “Motorsport is fundamental to the DNA of Aston Martin and our commitment to the FIA World Endurance Championship is stronger than ever. This is a golden era for GT racing and today’s launch of the new Vantage GTE will ensure that Aston Martin Racing remains at the forefront of the world’s greatest endurance series.”
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