If Only It Were Street Legal: The Aston Martin Vulcan
The Aston Martin Vulcan is a rare, fast, and expensive luxury vehicle made for the racetrack.
Written by Serena Aburahma
Reviewed by Kathleen Flear
It's no secret that rivals Ferrari and Lamborghini get most of the attention in the world of supercars and hypercars. While these Italian carmakers do deserve a lot of credit, we shouldn't overlook some of the brilliant designs that came out of Great Britain. Specifically, we're talking about the
Aston Martin
Vulcan. Aston Martin already has a stellar reputation for building fantastic vehicles. After all, it is a favorite brand of both James Bond and the Prince of Wales. Despite having one of the best reputations in the world, Aston Martin designers were not satisfied. Instead of resting on their previous successes, they built the very impressive Vulcan.
The birth of the Aston Martin Vulcan
The Aston Martin Vulcan's origin story is a bit of a mystery. But legend has it that the Vulcan was the brainchild of chief engineer Fraser Dunn and Director of Advanced Operations and Motorsport David King.
The two were overlooking the designs of prototypes of the One-77, and decided it was time for an updated version, per
Top Gear
. The two decided to make some sweeping changes, including using carbon for the bodywork instead of aluminum.This new, updated One-77 was originally supposed to be named the One-77 R, but the team decided it needed a more prestigious name. They chose "Vulcan", which carries overtones of British engineering history.
Back in the Cold War days, the UK had a prestigious bomber named Vulcan. Aston Martin decided that this name would be fitting for their new car. It would be like if Chevy released a new hypercar and decided to name it B-52.
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What makes the Aston Martin Vulcan so special?
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This speed demon is worthy of the Vulcan name. It carries a beefy V12 engine that is naturally aspirated. The engineers designed the car to be raced on the track, so they didn't have to worry about pesky street-legal regulations.
There are no airbags, no stereo system, and the windows are fixed. Adding any of those would have added more weight, making the Vulcan less speedy. As a result, this car produces a whopping 800 hp and produces a top speed of 225 mph. Its acceleration is a little disappointing by hypercar standards. After converting to metric, its 0-62 MPH is 3 seconds.
Can you buy one of these speed demons?
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Theoretically, you can buy an Aston Martin Vulcan, but that is easier said than done. For starters, only 24 were made. You would have to persuade one of the current owners to sell it to you.
Price would be another matter. Vulcans originally sold for £1.8 million, or about $2.44 million USD. It's fair to assume that these vehicles have only appreciated in value since their debut.
Lastly, if you want to drive it around town, it will need some serious modifications to become street legal. Rumor has it that these alterations will cost around $406,000 USD.
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