RE: Aston Martin Rapide AMR spied

RE: Aston Martin Rapide AMR spied

Monday 16th April 2018

Aston Martin Rapide AMR spied

Don't forget the big four-door Aston is getting the AMR treatment too!



With so much going on at Aston Martin at the moment, it could be very easy to forget about the Rapide. Since its most recent facelift - which brought the introduction of the eight-speed automatic - look at what's happened: all the Vantage run-out models before the new one, a Vanquish S, the Zagato Vanquishes, the whole DB11 range and whatever else is happening behind the scenes. Less than four years is a long time for 'Second Century' Aston.

The 'AMR' range of cars has also been announced since 2014 - indeed it was at Geneva last year - and these are the first pictures of a Rapide AMR. Those who remember the AMR news from 2017 however will recall that this car will be an 'AMR Line', Aston's second tier of performance derivative, rather than the AMR Pro that saw the Vantage become a track-only monster limited to just seven units.


So what can we expect? Well, as the pictures show, a more aggressive vehicle than we've come to know the Rapide as thus far. See the huge intakes in the bonnet, the completely new front bumper, the extra lip on the rear spoiler and the fresh alloy wheel design. Ah yes, and the signature AMR green accents. It's recognisably still a Rapide then, but seemingly a rather more potent one.

That should extend to the drivetrain, too; of course the Rapide uses the old V12 rather than the new twin-turbo unit, producing 560hp. Now that same engine makes 600hp in the Vanquish S, so you would have to hope that the Rapide AMR Line is making at least that when its time comes. Anything more than 612hp would surpass both BMW M5 and Mercedes-AMG E63 - and while neither are conventional rivals, it's always nice to have some bragging rights.


We don't know anything else for now, although there's more than enough already to be very excited by. When Aston Martin will find the time to launch the Rapide AMR Line is anyone's guess, though we'd bank on a reveal somewhere suitably lavish towards the end of 2018. Let's hope they make more than seven...

 

 

 

 

Images: S. Baldauf/S.B. Medien

Author
Discussion

The Leaper

Original Poster:

4,937 posts

205 months

Monday 16th April 2018
quotequote all
Mystery solved! I saw what seemed to be a 4 door Aston on the M25 a few days ago complete with green highlights on the rear etc., and now I know what it was.

dazwalsh

6,095 posts

140 months

Monday 16th April 2018
quotequote all
Whoever chose lime green for the details needs firing, no infact worse... locking up

E65Ross

34,946 posts

211 months

Monday 16th April 2018
quotequote all
I thought they'd stopped production of the Rapide!

thecremeegg

1,952 posts

202 months

Monday 16th April 2018
quotequote all
Surely this needs a complete refresh now?

Esceptico

7,334 posts

108 months

Monday 16th April 2018
quotequote all
E65Ross said:
I thought they'd stopped production of the Rapide!
This. So long since I have seen one I had forgotten they were still in production.

Macboy

732 posts

204 months

Monday 16th April 2018
quotequote all
I think I read they sold 124 globally last year and I would imagine half or more are in China so this AMR project would appear to be utterly pointless as no one wants the standard car let alone one with more performance (something the original was not criticised for lacking - leg and headroom yes, power, not so much).

AdamV12AMR

1,379 posts

155 months

Monday 16th April 2018
quotequote all
article said:
Those who remember the AMR news from 2017 however will recall that this car will be an 'AMR Line', Aston's second tier of performance derivative, rather than the AMR Pro
I really don’t think ‘AMR Line’ is a thing. My understanding is that it’s either ‘AMR’ (warmed-up road car) or ‘AMR Pro’ (super low-volume, mega-money track special).

Unlike the V8 Vantage AMR, I believe all future AMR cars will be mechanically upgraded over the base car. The V12 Vantage AMR features the GT12/VanqS engine as referenced in the article, as an example.

Murphy16

254 posts

81 months

Monday 16th April 2018
quotequote all
I genuinely forgot this car existed.

smilo996

2,755 posts

169 months

Monday 16th April 2018
quotequote all
Such a good looking car and with the V12, what is not to like, except the numb legs of rear passengers.
I wonder if this will get a stretched version of the DB11 platform before of after the DBX is launched?

topless360

2,763 posts

217 months

Tuesday 17th April 2018
quotequote all
The want is strong! Drove the Rapide S a couple of years back and I was amazed by it at the time. It felt like more of a drivers car than the DB11 and disguised its size and weight incredibly well. You could easily forget you were driving a big 4 seat executive car.

anonymous-user

53 months

Tuesday 17th April 2018
quotequote all
The Rapide was always a bit of a marmite car, and never got much attention (or praise). I didn't pay much attention myself until late last year. In the 'S' variant, I remember hearing that at Millbrook it was often the quickest car tested by joe public because it inspired much more confidence with its stability, it's quite unflappable when pressing on. A very underestimated car by all accounts.

wtdoom

3,742 posts

207 months

Wednesday 18th April 2018
quotequote all
Doom has name down for one , will replace family 4x4 with AMR Rapide.
Can’t imagine I will have another chance at a car with an engine like this ever again

Zad

12,695 posts

235 months

Wednesday 18th April 2018
quotequote all
Until the next one comes out. AM is a global brand, selling to the US, China etc. Even if the UK succumbs to emissions and all the rest, the other markets will continue to demand big fast expensive cars with strong brand names for some time to come I think.

gigglebug

2,611 posts

121 months

Wednesday 18th April 2018
quotequote all
wtdoom said:
Doom has name down for one , will replace family 4x4 with AMR Rapide.
Can’t imagine I will have another chance at a car with an engine like this ever again
Is Doom talking about themselves in the third person? Gigglebug doesn't like it when people do that!

99dndd

2,079 posts

88 months

Wednesday 18th April 2018
quotequote all
I'd rather have a Panamera Turbo.

wtdoom

3,742 posts

207 months

Thursday 19th April 2018
quotequote all
Zad said:
Until the next one comes out. AM is a global brand, selling to the US, China etc. Even if the UK succumbs to emissions and all the rest, the other markets will continue to demand big fast expensive cars with strong brand names for some time to come I think.
Next one will be a 4x4 and turbo , this one is a600 plus ho naturally aspirated v12 !

anonymous-user

53 months

Thursday 19th April 2018
quotequote all
Zad said:
Until the next one comes out. AM is a global brand, selling to the US, China etc. Even if the UK succumbs to emissions and all the rest, the other markets will continue to demand big fast expensive cars with strong brand names for some time to come I think.
On the contrary, overseas markets lap up the downsized cars more so than the N/A V12's. It's the very reason the Lusso T and DB11 V8 exist. Capacities under 4.0 litres don't get taxed anywhere near as much in China and other countries where the VED system is based on cubic capacity.

BVB

1,097 posts

152 months

Monday 23rd April 2018
quotequote all

Do you think it annoys Aston that Ford Mondeo's have cloned their look these last few years?....

Venturist

3,472 posts

194 months

Monday 23rd April 2018
quotequote all
BVB said:
Do you think it annoys Aston that Ford Mondeo's have cloned their look these last few years?....
Absolute clone, the amount of times I’ve seen a Mondeo out on the road and thought it was a Rapide! Almost as bad as how often you see a Beetle and mistake it for a Veyron! Anyway a Rapide is just two Ford Mondeos welded together isn’t it? Common knowledge init.