Aston Martin has begun the test phase with the Valkyrie AMR Pro – the Le Mans hypercar (LMH) is set to compete in the World Endurance Championship and IMSA Series from 2025
The test program at Aston Martin has begun: During testing at Silverstone, which took place earlier this year, the British luxury brand completed its first laps with the Valkyrie AMR Pro, which will serve as the basis for the future LMH racer. From 2025, Aston Martin will compete in the World Endurance Championship (WEC) and the American IMSA SportsCar Championship
Adam Carter, head of the endurance department at Aston Martin, clarified, however, that this was merely an “early system test” in which “some basic software work” was carried out. The test, which took place “on an extremely cold day at Silverstone”, was therefore of little significance.
The Aston Martin Valkyrie AMR Pro, which was used in the first test drives, emerged from the original LMH project, which was presented as part of the 2019 24 Hours of Le Mans. However, as the British luxury brand’s plans were then put on hold, the vehicle evolved into a “road-legal racing car”.
“The AMR Pro is basically a Le Mans prototype that you can buy and use as a race car – a 1000 hp car weighing 1000 kilograms with the performance of an LMP1,” explains Carter. “The LMH is based on the AMR Pro and offers many possibilities without having to compromise.”
Carter makes no secret of the fact that the vehicle will also be used in the upcoming test drives in the coming weeks and months. “It’s going to be very intensive testing because the platform is already in place, so we can move forward with some very focused goals,” he says.
“We have very clear goals for the tests,” says Carter. Aston Martin says it is on schedule with the development of the announced Valkyrie LMH, with the race car due to take to the track for the first time towards the end of the second quarter of this year.
The Aston Martin Valkyrie is being developed as an LMH without a hybrid system. Propulsion is provided by the 6.5-liter V12 engine, which is also used in the road car.