Shanghai Auto Show 2017: Aston Martin Debuts High-Performance Brand - AMR

Aston Martin debuted its high-performance brand, AMR, in China at the Shanghai Auto Show. Along with the new brand, the British carmaker also presented the Rapide AMR, thus marking's the car's Asian debut. AMR, demonstrating the company's motor sport prowess, takes technology and inspiration from motor racing to augment its model range's sporting finesse by the means of enhanced performance, sharper dynamics, and more powerful design language. Additionally, AMR Pro, second tier of the brand, promises to be "an uncompromising demonstration of AMR's 'Track to Tarmac' philosophy whereby race technology is transferred to road cars." The difference between the two is that the development of the core AMR models will be part of Aston Martin's central vehicle engineering teams, whereas development of all AMR Pro models will be led by Q by Aston Martin Advanced Operations.

Aston Martin Rapide AMR is powered by a 6-litre V12

Dr Andy Palmer, President and CEO, Aston Martin, said, "AMR is something we have wanted to bring to fruition for some time. Cars such as the Vantage GT8 and Vantage GT12 confirmed that our customers love raw, race-bred models, but we also knew there was an opportunity to create cars that offer a sharper performance focus but stop short of those truly hard-core, special series models. With the AMR brand we have the perfect platform to deliver both. The Rapide AMR unveiled here in Shanghai, and the Vantage AMR Pro shown at the 2017 Geneva show are both confirmed for production: The Rapide as a run of only 210 cars; the Vantage in an extremely limited series of no more than 7 cars. This is the start of something very exciting - a programme that will eventually see an AMR version of every model in the Aston Martin range."

Aston Martin Rapide AMR also gets a new interior treatment

The Aston Martin Rapide AMR, representing the first tier of AMR, builds up the four-door sports car with a sweeping suite of power, chassis, and styling upgrades, plus a stunning new interior treatment. It is powered by a 592 bhp 6-litre naturally aspirated V12 engine and is capable of achieving a top speed of 338 kmph, making it the fastest four-door in the world. The car is confirmed for production and will see a run of only 210 units.