Getting a test drive in the Aston Martin Valkyrie, the hypercar under development with Red Bull Racing, is for now about as likely as us being able to aff ord one. Instead, we drive it the way the engineers do: in the racing simulator.
While the reality is an okay place for most of us—provided the booze doesn’t run out—it poses several problems as an environment in which to develop new cars. Building prototypes years ahead of a new model’s introduction is hugely expensive, as is transporting them to the far-flung areas of the world where they can be tested away from prying eyes. The mules need fuel and tires and multiple versions of all manner of different parts. The technicians that tend to them need hotels and meals—and beer. All of which add to the cost and time necessary to create even the humblest new car.
But when that new car is among the most radical ever made, costs compound so frighteningly as to suffocate any business case. That’s where the other kind of reality, the one prefixed with a V, comes in. Modern computing power means it is now possible to make a software model of a car that is detailed enough to be practically indistinguishable from the real thing, at least when it comes to gathering data. Aston Martin’s upcoming Valkyrie hypercar is essentially the fever dream of Red Bull Racing (RBR) CTO Adrian Newey, a man for whom the realm of Formula 1 has become a playground for his imagination. The only way to drive his Valkyrie, for now, is in the simulator.
Virtual reality not only allows this car to undergo detailed testing before the first physical prototype is finished, but it has also fundamentally enabled the project from the very beginning. Chris Goodwin, Aston’s high-performance test driver and the man leading the Valkyrie’s dynamic development, says, “Without VR, we wouldn’t be able to do a project like this given all the time in the world—it would be unaffordable and it would take years and years.”
Esta historia es de la edición June 2019 de Car and Driver.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición June 2019 de Car and Driver.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Great Aspirations
Highs: Excellent fuel economy, good controls, quiet on the highway. Lows: Bigger outside than inside, just-average dynamics, premium pricing.
Treading Water
Highs: Sharper styling, big new touchscreen, solid electric range. Lows: No all-wheel drive, steep pricing, rivals are quicker.
Higher-Purpose Hybrid
Forget electric range. This plug-in hybrid delivers 791 horsepower.
1979-93 - WHAT TO BUY: SAAB 900
Echoing the design of the long-running 99 that preceded it, the updated and modernized Saab 900 was the car that brought the fringe Swedish brand into its closest proximity to the mainstream, which honestly wasn't that close.
12-Cylinder Salute
Bentley makes 18 Continental GT-based Baturs as a send-off for its W-12.
How to Winch in a Pinch
We head out into the Utah wilderness with the Cameron Advanced Mobility team to learn to off-road like military special forces.
Time Machines
A trip to Duncan Imports prompts an unexpected rendezvous with cars from my past. And want them all back. Well, except maybe the Ram.
Now Hear This
Automakers are going to new lengths to create the sounds of modern cars.
Getting Hammered
Jonathan Hodgman isn't afraid of a challenge, and his shop, Blue Ridge Mercedes, specializes in the difficult task of repairing early AMGS.
2022 GENESIS GV70
Long-Term Test AFTER TRACKING EVERY FILL-UP, SERVICE, PROBLEM, COMPLAINT, DENT, AND DOG HAIR, CAR AND DRIVER PRESENTS THE 40,000-MILE EVALUATION.