Aston Martin currently produces a grand total of zero battery electric vehicles.
British performance car manufacturer Aston Martin is currently in the middle of an electrification program but as with all British car manufacturers, more money from their government is always welcome. The company’s high-performance electrification strategy was recently awarded £9 million through the Advanced Propulsion Centre UK, which also gave Lotus some EV money back in 2020. This £9 million, roughly converting to about RM52 million, will be used to research and develop Aston Martin’s modular battery electric vehicle platform.
While it sounds like a lot of money, £9 million is actually a drop in the ocean when you compare it to Aston Martin’s total commitment towards its transition from internal combustion engines (ICE) vehicles to battery electric vehicles. The luxury automotive brand is putting aside £2 billion over the next 5 years to this end. That’s roughly £400 million a year! What difference does £9 million make in that scale, we wonder?
Hopefully Aston Martin can make that money back. The brand is targeting its first battery electric vehicle launch in 2025 and intends to only launch electrified vehicles starting 2026. By 2030, the coompany’s ‘core range’ is expected to be fully electrified. That being said, it’s tough to know where the ‘core range’ of a high performance brand like Aston Martin starts and ends.
The work towards battery electric vehicles for Aston Martin is parked under Project ELEVATION, which involves 5 other partners:
- Manufacturing Technology Centre
- Expert Tooling & Automation
- Creative Composites
- Fuzzly Logic Studio
- WMG, University of Warwick
The project is currently developing a lightweight, 800V traction battery pack and twin front electric drive unit in a modular BEV platform. This platform is able to be shaped into a variety of vehicle types from SUV to supercar.
Roberto Fedeli, Group Chief Technology Officer of Aston Martin, said: “The award of funding from the APC is another major boost to our electrification strategy and constant strive for innovation. Providing further resources to explore the possibilities of our bespoke BEV platform, it will help achieve our ambition to be an in-house BEV technology leader in the ultra-luxury, high-performance segment. We look forward to progressing this project with our collaborative partners and thank the APC for their incredible support.”
