Rally teams will now be able to run the world's most prestigious rally car - a 420 HP version of the Aston Martin V8 Vantage with modified suspension and tailor-made roll-cage.

The Aston Martin Rally GT has been developed by Aston Martin Racing, a partnership between Prodrive and Aston Martin thus combining David Richards' Banbury company's unparalleled expertise in rallying (after years of success for Subaru) with the current circuit programme with the DBR9 and DBRS9, recent victors at the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta. .

The new car is based on the Aston Martin V8 Vantage, but extensively re-engineered by Prodrive, and uses the experience gained with one car's competition in three French Rally Championship events this year, coming second in the Series GT class on its debut at the Lyon-Charbonnières Rally.



As with the circuit cars, the Rally GT uses a standard road car chassis which is fitted with a Prodrive-designed roll cage for safety and increased torsional rigidity. The engine is closely based on the all-alloy road car 4.3 litre V8 unit but has been tuned to make it more flexible and responsive for the demands of rallying, producing 420 HP (est) and 410Nm (est) torque.

The suspension on the Rally GT carries over the road car’s wishbones, but has new competition Eibach springs and three-way adjustable EXE-TC dampers. The standard road car transmission is kept on the rally car, but this can be upgraded to a six-speed, close ratio dog engagement gearbox, developed specifically for the Rally GT.



A limited number of Rally GTs will be produced by Aston Martin Racing and the first cars will be available at the end of 2006.

Editor's Note: Whilst we are familiar with the current DBR9 programme and the company's efforts on the Sports Car World Championship stage in the 1950s, it should not be forgotten that many cars were rallied both pre- and post-war in the true classics of endurance such as the Monte Carlo Rally, the RAC International Rally, the Liege-Rome-Liege, the Tour de France and the Alpine Rally.

Text: Classic Driver
Photos: Aston Martin Racing - Strictly Copyright