| | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2013 Aston Martin Hybrid Hydrogen Rapide S 
Aston Martin has revealed today the first details on a Hybrid Hydrogen-powered Rapide S that will be raced at the 41st ADAC Zurich 24 Hours of Nürburgring next month. The model will be based on the standard four-door sedan and will become the first zero CO2 emissions sports car to complete a race-pace lap at the Nürburgring 24-hour race. The model is powered by a twin-turbocharged 6.0-liter V-12 engine and can be run on pure gasoline, pure gaseous hydrogen or a combination of the two. In pure hydrogen mode, Aston Martin will race the Nordschleife while emitting just water. The new Aston Martin Hybrid Hydrogen Rapide S features a special Hybrid Hydrogen system that includes a hydrogen fuel rail, storage tanks and proprietary engine management system. The system includes four ultra-high-strength carbon-fiber tanks that can hold 7.7 pounds of hydrogen stored at a 350-bar pressure. Its official race debut will be made in the ADAC Zurich Nürburgring 24 Hours race on May 19th and 20th where it will have to take on more than 150 other cars. Update 5/16/2013: Aston Martin has revealed the official images of the new Aston Martin Hybrid Hydrogen Rapide S in its full blue-and-white racing livery and with its carbon-fiber dash. Full story
Aston Martin Rapide S Runs Nurburgring on Hydrogen
About two weeks ago, Aston Martin unveiled the Hybrid Hydrogen Rapide S, which has been announced to race the 41st ADAC Zurich 24 Hours of Nürburgring next month. It looks like the company didn’t want to wait that long and it took the prototype to Nordschleife for a testing session. The test was completed on Saturday, April 27th when Aston Martin wrote a new page in history, as the Hybrid Hydrogen Rapide S became the first hydrogen-fueled model to lap the 24 km (14-mile) Nordschleife circuit in Germany with zero CO2 emissions. Behind the wheel was Aston Martin Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Ulrich Bez. After this test, the Hybrid Hydrogen four-door sedan will also become the first hydrogen-powered car to compete in an international event and the first zero CO2 emission car to pace the Nürburgring 24-hour race. The car will compete in the experimental class (E1-XP) after passing rigorous technical and safety tests. Click past the jump to read more about the Aston Martin Hybrid Hydrogen Rapide S. Full story
2014 Aston Martin Rapide SPeople are talking about a more powerful version of the Aston Martin Rapide ever since the standard model was dropped onto the market in 2010. In the past few months, the new Rapide S has been caught testing a few times, and now it has finally made its world debut. The new Rapide S replaces the old Rapide in the company’s lineup and has been described as "the most powerful four-door Aston Martin to date." The model is powered by an improved version of the new AM11 naturally aspirated 6.0-litre V-12 powerplant that adds in some extra ponies. Along with the engine improvement, the Rapide S will receive a revised front grille and rear lip spoiler. There is also an optional Carbon Exterior Pack that further improves the sporty appearance of the luxury sedan. The new Aston Martin Rapide S will be put on sale next month. Updated 04/08/2013: Aston Martin has unveiled a video featuring Director of Product Development Ian Minards offering an overview of the many innovative technical and engineering features, including the assertive new front grille. Enjoy! Hit the jump to read more about the new Aston Martin Rapide S. Full story 2013 Aston Martin Rapide Shooting Brake "Jet 2+2" Concept by Bertone
A few days after posting a teaser about a Geneva-bound model that Bertone was working on, we finally get to see the car beneath the shadows. Turns out, it’s an Aston Martin. More specifically, an Aston Martin Rapide Shooting Brake called the Jet 2+2. The Italian design and coachbuilder is apparently building this one-off concept, showcasing the mighty Aston Martin Rapide and turning it into a shooting brake. Granted, the Rapide is Aston Martin’s first four-door sedan in their lineup and as such, an expansion to shooting brake territory could’ve been in order down the road. But seeing as Aston Martin and Bertone have a history of working together in the past, including the creation of the Jet 2 concept back in 2004, it only seemed appropriate that the Italian coachbuilder would be tasked by Aston to create a strict one-off model. Aston Martin and Bertone have yet to reveal official details surrounding the Rapide Shooting Brake Jet 2+2, but Autocar managed to find out some info about the one-off concept. Find out what the initial word is surrounding the Rapide Shooting Brake Jet 2+2 after the jump Full story Spy Shots: Aston Martin Rapide strips down to almost nothing Initially, we thought that Aston Martin was working on a Rapide S version of its luxury sedan, but now it looks like this is actually just a facelift version of the Rapide. These photos show the Rapide in all its glory, with only one strip of tape where the front number plate is fitted serving as the cammo. When compared to the current Rapide, the one showed in these pictures features a different front bumper, a much bigger grille, and a different air intake at the lower part. At the back, the most significant change is the bigger rear spoiler. Under the hood, it seems that Aston Martin is retaining its usual 6.0 liter V12 engine, but will more than likely provide a modest power increase from the current 470 HP. Expect to see the new Aston Martin Rapide launched at the end of 2012 or in early 2013.
Report: 2013 Aston Martin Rapide to Receive a Power Boost, but No S Model It is well known among the automotive world that the Aston Martin Rapide has always been the black sheep of the luxury sports sedan market. Its 470-horsepower, 5.9-liter V-12 engine has always fallen short of the competition, like the 518-pony Mercedes-Benz CLS 63 AMG and 500-horsepower Panamera Turbo. To make matters worse, it starts off at over $110,000 more than the Mercedes and over $70,000 more than the Porsche. This all points to a big reason for Aston Martin refreshing the Rapide for 2013. Granted, the base price will not change, but its performance will. Initially, we all expected to see an available a higher-performance Rapide S in 2013. According to reports, however, a Rapide S is not in the works. Car and Driver is reporting that Aston Martin is fitting the 5.9-liter V-12 plant from the 2013 Vanquish, which produces 565 horsepower, into the slightly redesigned Rapide. The exact horsepower figures are not compete for the Rapide, but we expect it to be slightly de-tuned to not compete with the Vanquish. You can look for the 2013 Aston Martin Rapide to punch out somewhere in the 545-horsepower range to give it a bump over its cheaper competitors. Is this really enough to push the Aston in front of the competition? We say no, but it should help level out the market slightly. With the additional horsepower in the base Rapide, there is no need for a Rapide S model, per Car and Driver, so don’t look for one this year. Apparently, all of the style changes we have seen from the spy shots and renderings are all included on the base model, if the reports are accurate. It’s nice to see Aston Martin thinking about ways to make its extremely expensive sedan a little more worth the extra money, but would you still pay over $100K more for the Aston over the Mercedes? 2012 Aston Martin Rapide by Kahn Design
The Aston Martin Rapide is regarded as the British automaker’s first venture into the four-door, luxury car segment. That being said, it’s not all that surprising that it’s become quite an attractive car for aftermarket companies, including British tuner Kahn Design. Even if the Rapide is already considered one of the finest sports sedans in the world, the fact that you can fork over $200,000 for one means that you probably have enough loose change to get it fixed up even more. Kahn Design has you covered in that regard, thanks to a new program that gives the Rapide an edgier look all while retaining it’s classic and elegant profile. The British tuner added a slew of new components in the car, including mesh elements to the front bumper, aluminum billet bonnet vents, black brake calipers, a new sports exhaust system, a lowered suspension, and a new set of 21" RSX wheels that have been finished in a bright silver shade. Inside, Kahn Design has prepared a luxe of new digs, too, particularly a new Alcantara sports steering wheel, soft English leather, and bare-metal switches. For a car that looks the way it does and boasts of a 6.0-liter V12 engine that delivers a total of 470 horsepower and 443 lb/ft of peak torque at 5000 rpm, there are a few things that the Aston Martin Rapide needs to be even more impressive than it is. But Kahn Design rolls in a different way. Knowing them the way we do, anything they work on has "improvements" written all over them. TopSpeed Rendering: 2013 Aston Martin Rapide S Only days ago, we were showing off some newly uncovered spy shots of the soon-to-be-unveiled Aston Martin Rapide S, but with the bikini-style camouflage it was wearing, it was hard to tell what we were really in store for. To counteract this censorship by Aston, we turned to our crack rendering team to use those spy shots to whip us up a clear look at this new model. To be perfectly honest, according to the spy shots and our artist’s rendering, there’s really not too many outward differences between the 2012 model and this prototype. The first thing we notice is the addition of a front spoiler just below the grille. Speaking of the grille, it appears to be just slightly larger than the one on the 2012 model, as are the air intakes on the lower grille. On the back end, we can see that the spoiler boasts a new shape, as it angles upward at a steeper angle near the center. It’s hard to tell on the spy shots what exactly is going on with the taillights, but given the fact that the camo cuts them off at one point, we can assume that they will be revised as well. The biggest revision to the Rapide S is something you will never see, but you certainly will feel. The 6.0-liter V-12 engine under the Rapide’s sleek hood has been re-tuned to pump out an additional 40 to 50 horsepower, increasing its already impressive output numbers to somewhere between 500 and 520 ponies. With this increase, Aston also plans to keep the Rapide’s fuel economy steady at its already wallet-draining 13 mpg city and 19 mpg highway. Then again, if you are snagging up a car that retails at more than $200K, gas mileage is likely at the bottom of your required features. We’ll keep a close watch on this upcoming new Aston Martin and update you with any new information that comes up.
Spy shots: Aston Martin Rapide S caught testing for the first time Aston Martin Rapide S has been rumored for quite some time now, but just now Aston Martin decided to take the car out for some testing sessions. And luckily for us our spy photographers were in the right place at the right time and managed to shot some images of the next Rapide S. As you can see the prototype is heavily camouflaged and its pretty difficult to see what changes will be made for the luxury sedan, but the spoiler looks as it will go deeper than on the normal Rapide, and the grille has also grown and will receive bigger air intakes - proof that under the hood there will be a more powerful engine. At the back the rear lights have also been changed and the spoiler is also bigger and more sculpted. Under the hood Aston Martin will place the same 6.0 Liter V12 engine, but with output will go up to about 500 - 520 HP. It has also been rumored that the next Rapide S will also get a modified chassis setup. Expect to see the new Rapide S launched by the end of the year.
Aston Martin V12 Rapide set for Alaskan adventure
The Aston Martin V12 Rapide isn’t exactly the type of car that you’d bring out on a date with Mother Nature. Sure, it can get dirty once in a while, but for the most part, it belongs in the metropolis with paved concrete streets as its jungle. So imagine our surprise when we found out that the British luxury sports saloon is being prepared for an expedition unlike anything it has ever done in the past, James Bond movies included. Aston Martin is preparing the V12 Rapide for a three-day excursion into the heart of the harsh Alaskan wilderness as a way of slamming home the point that the Rapide is more than just stunning good looks and powerhouse powertrain; it can also survive the test of endurance and durability amidst some pretty serious conditions surrounding it. The entire trip will take the V12 Rapide across 1,230 miles in Alaska, beginning in Anchorage all the way to the town of Fairbanks through the Prudhoe Bay all the way up to the town of Deadhorse just a stone’s throw away from the Arctic Ocean. Continued after the jump. Full story | Aston-Martin Rapide latest reviews:Aston-Martin Rapide tuning:
Find us on Facebook | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|