It’s been a wild year for the motorcycle industry, but the Aston Martin/Brough Superior team-up is still very much a go. The new AMB 001 hyperbike has been testing at the track, and engineers are also bench testing the bike’s turbo’d engine.
The Aston Martin/Brough Superior AMB 001 first broke cover in November, 2019. From the start, this hyperbike wasn’t designed to be street-legal. It’s a track-only machine, with a turbocharged V-twin making 180 hp, with a dry weight listed at 180 kg. It’s got a set of aerodynamic winglets, a double wishbone front suspension, and the body is made of structural carbon fibre. All in all, it’s interesting engineering, but alas, priced at 108,000 euros, and only planned for a super-limited release of 100 units.
Now, Aston Martin says the machine is undergoing track testing; you can see the evidence above. What are the test pilots looking at? Aston Martin says the track time allows the test team to assess the chassis geometry, the ergonomics and the bike’s dynamic behaviour: “In the same way that Aston Martin’s vehicle dynamics engineers can ‘read’ a car, Brough Superior’s test rider feeds back on all areas of performance, from the overall dynamic feel of the bike to details regarding cornering, braking, acceleration and the like.“
As for the engine’s bench testing regimen, Aston Martin isn’t saying much. There’s a V-twin engine, with a turbocharger that includes an intercooler, and that’s about all we know. True to the rest of its image-based marketing, the presser says “this imposing radiator with its striking oversized/wide intake manifold, gives the V-twin a supercar engine appearance.“
Aston Martin says the bike will go into production this fall, once testing is done, with production at the Brough Superior factory in Toulouse, France.
I’m sure all bikes are spoken for and will only see collectors squirrel them away. For a fraction of the price you can grab an H2R that is superior in every way. Alas, it lacks the haughty credentials.