New Aston Martin GT at Spa 24?

[Purist]

I've been going back over a number of the various GT races from 2010, and one car has me scratching my head a bit.

At the 2010 Spa 24 Hours, there was an Aston Martin GT of some variety running in Gulf colors. The car was #64, and depending on the source, it was running under Excelsior, Brussels Racing, or AMR. The only designation I have found listed for it is as a DBRS9. The trouble is, it does NOT have the bodywork of a DB9 or V8 Vantage, at least not any bodywork that I've seen before. Also, the DB9 variants are supposed to have V12s, but this car very definitely sounded like it had a V8.

My best guess is that this latest car is a new DBS V8 GT3. The nearest looking car to it that I can think of is the 1970s Aston Martin DBS V8 race car that went to Le Mans a few times, and when it went in 1979, it had twin Garrett turbos on it; it's the car that was featured in the Aston Martin "Victory by Design".

If anybody can shed some light on this particular, new Aston Martin, I would appreciate it.

Thank you.

[Speed-King]

I supposse you are referring to this car: http://www.racingsportscars.com/phot...-08-01-064.jpg

It was a regular competitor in Belcar's GT3-class in 2009 and occassionally showed up in 2010. So basically it can't be anything other than a regular DBRS9.

[Purist]

It's a bit difficult to get Belcar races over here, but yes, that looks like the car.

It just leaves me wondering though, with the apparent factory backing in the Spa 24, the non-standard bodywork, and that it was running a V8 instead of a V12, what was going on with that car.

[Félix]

The new Aston Martin GT that's coming up - for 2012 - is a GT3 Vantage RS V12. Hexis wants to be in charge.

[cmk]

Honestly, I've looked at all the photos I could find on DSC and E-I and I don't see anything unusual about the bodywork of that car - it's identical to its teammate and looks exactly like a bog standard DBRS9. All sources cite it running a V12, and I don't remember anything mentioned about a different engine when the programme for Brussels Racing was announced last year. I can't find a picture of it with its bonnet off, but such a picture of the team car clearly shows a standard V12. Are you imagining things?

[lemansfan]

http://s3.directupload.net/file/d/2404/5xxu9ems_jpg


Think you mean this Aston !!

[Purist]

MotorsTV went onboard it at multiple points, and particularly when they're onboard during the pace lap, it sounds like a rumbling V8 under the hood. The high-pitched whine you always hear with it is the straight-cut gears in the transmission. Just after half an hour in, there's another onboard clip, and though there isn't the rumble, the engine note sounds too low in pitch, and not smooth/steady enough, to be the V12.

That particular car looks lower and wider overall than the other GT Astons, even its team car. And, yes, I have found the gallery shots at supercars.net. The two smaller openings down low and to either side seem further from the center than normal, but the openings themselves look narrower. The upper portion of the grille seems to have less arch to it than usual, and the two side sections seem to have wider (side-to-side) openings than normal. Also, the top center opening appears to be shorter (in height) than the center opening down low, whereas on the more standard looking cars, the two aperatures seem to have fairly similar height to one another.

If it's all just optical illusion, then hell, they've done a damn good job in my eye.

[TF110]

So that's a DBRS9 correct?

[Tim the Grey]

I was there. We had 2 N24 GT4 Vantages, and 2 DBRS9s in GT3. The Gulf car was run by Vincent Vosse, and is his regular car in Belgian GT racing, as said by Speed King.

There were no other Astons in last year's Spa 24. Now, if you ask about Nurburgring 24, then you DO get new model AMs running there, usually with guests, including the Chairman, driving.

[Graham Goodwin]

Originally Posted by Purist

MotorsTV went onboard it at multiple points, and particularly when they're onboard during the pace lap, it sounds like a rumbling V8 under the hood. The high-pitched whine you always hear with it is the straight-cut gears in the transmission. Just after half an hour in, there's another onboard clip, and though there isn't the rumble, the engine note sounds too low in pitch, and not smooth/steady enough, to be the V12.

That particular car looks lower and wider overall than the other GT Astons, even its team car. And, yes, I have found the gallery shots at supercars.net. The two smaller openings down low and to either side seem further from the center than normal, but the openings themselves look narrower. The upper portion of the grille seems to have less arch to it than usual, and the two side sections seem to have wider (side-to-side) openings than normal. Also, the top center opening appears to be shorter (in height) than the center opening down low, whereas on the more standard looking cars, the two aperatures seem to have fairly similar height to one another.

If it's all just optical illusion, then hell, they've done a damn good job in my eye.

It ran in GT3, GT3 is a homologated class - There is no V8 engined roadgoing DB9 therefore it could not be a V8 engined car. Unless that is the scrutineers and entire media room were all blind and/ or deaf.

As stated above the same team ran a bog standard DBRS9 all season - It's something of a stretch to believe they re-engineered the car for a single race - It's way more than a stretch to believe that they did so solely for a 24 hour race and that nobody said anything publicly about it.

Sorry - nothing to see - move along

[Victor_RO]

There's always the possibility of someone in the TV truck screwing up feeds and giving out audio from a V8-engined car during an onboard of the DBRS9.

[lemansfan]

Sure that this is a DBRS9 . Have a look at the left Cylinder series .

http://s13.directupload.net/file/d/2405/5yhnmcrf_jpg