Big toys for rich boys.
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Who needs car shows when you can simply walk on the streets of London to check out high-end models? A year-round automotive festival, the United Kingdom’s capital typically hosts the most exotic vehicles in the world, and these days you might be lucky enough to stumble upon two local products. Believed to be the first delivered to a UK customer, this yellow Aston Martin Valkyrie with red accents is only one of the 150 road-going hypercars to be made.
As it stands, the Gaydon-based marque has allegedly delivered roughly 27 cars out of a total of 38 assembled, according to Autocar. Some of these early examples have been plagued with software issues, but Aston Martin chairman Lawrence Stroll says customers are nevertheless enjoying their hypercars.
This video showing a Valkyrie arriving at Topaz Detailing gives us an idea of how brutal the V12 sounds even when the car is barely moving. The naturally aspirated 6.5-liter Cosworth engine revs to 11,000 rpm and works with a Rimac-developed hybrid system to provide a combined output of 1,140 horsepower. Featured here is the coupe, but AM is also making a Valkyrie Spider capped at 85 copies in both left- and right-hand-drive configurations.
Although older, the McLaren Senna is also a sight to behold as we’re dealing with the rarer version featuring a full carbon fiber body. The peeps from Woking made 500 units, but this Senna is actually rarer than the Valkyrie. McLaren Special Operations (MSO) limited the bare carbon version to five cars, and as seen in the press images, the “naked” hypercar has striking yellow accents and green brake calipers.
The Senna by MSO has no fewer than 67 body parts made from carbon fiber that took nearly 1,000 hours to produce, plus another 250 hours for the Solar Yellow finish. See those center-lock wheels? Also developed by MSO, the set uses a combination of carbon fiber and aluminum to make it 10 percent lighter than the stock Senna wheels. Each weighs just 7.5 kilograms (16.5 pounds).
Of the countless (more or less) special McLarens we’ve seen in recent years, the Senna remains one of the most spectacular. Its styling is not for everyone, but the main goal during development was to maximize aerodynamic efficiency above anything else. The yellow and green details took inspiration from Ayrton Senna’s helmet livery for a car that had an original sticker price of £1,050,000 or a whopping £300,000 more than a standard Senna.
Keyword: Aston Martin Valkyrie And Full Carbon McLaren Senna Make A Splash In London