Video: listen to the Aston Martin Valkyrie’s 1,000bhp V12

There won’t be many more engines like this naturally-aspirated V12. It’s among the last of a dying breed. Developed by Cosworth and Aston Martin for the extreme but road-legal Valkyrie hypercar, this 6.5-litre motor makes 1,000bhp at 10,500rpm, and 546lb ft at 7,000rpm. It redlines at 11,100rpm and it sounds…like nothing we’ve ever heard before. 

Just as impressive as those power figures is the weight – the whole engine, which is a fully-stressed element of the chassis, weighs just 206kg. And that’s not very much at all. This is thanks to F1 tech and some serious lightweighting – not easy, given the project specifically avoided fancy alloys whose longevity isn’t yet known. The crankshaft, for example, which is machined from a solid steel bar, is less than half the weight of the Aston Martin One-77’s. 

Bruce Wood, Cosworth’s Managing Director, said the V12 is “way beyond anything previously seen in a road car application”. Meanwhile Aston’s boss Dr. Andy Palmer said “nothing sounds better or encapsulates the emotion and excitement of the internal combustion engine more completely” than a naturally-aspirated V12, and that he doubts the Valkyrie’s engine “will ever be surpassed”. 

Have a listen, and get talked around the motor by TG’s own Jack Rix in the video above. It’s your move, Mercedes One…