Openly, we
can’t wait

First, the good news: Aston Martin is launching the Valhalla as a Spider. Open-top driving pleasure with over 1,000 PS. The bad news: anyone who wants this car will have to wait until the third quarter of 2027. When you look at it in the right light, though, there’s actually some good news in that too. After all, anticipation is half the fun.

Brain research explains why the old saying is true. As early as the 1980s, neuroscientist Wolfram Schultz of the University of Fribourg in Switzerland observed in studies on monkeys that dopamine is triggered primarily by the anticipation of a reward. The US neuroscientist Kent Berridge from the University of Michigan distinguishes between ‘wanting’ and ‘liking’, that is, desire and enjoyment. Dopamine, he wrote in 1998 together with his colleague Terry Robinson, is needed for desire, but not for enjoyment. With cars, there’s something extra. Nobody is genuinely looking forward to sheet metal and carbon fibre. You look forward to the early morning on the mountain pass and to the story you’ll tell about it in the evening, explains ramp editor-in-chief Michael Köckritz in the latest ramp #71 ‘Yabba Dabba Doo!’. Or, in his own words: ‘The subjunctive is the grammar of anticipation.’

The trade press is already hailing the new model in its headlines. Some are hailing it as “never has a convertible been this fast”, whilst others say “Aston Martin is blowing everyone away”. And the Valhalla certainly delivers, with 1,079 PS and 1,100 Nm from its 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 and three electric motors. It sprints to 100 km/h in 2.5 seconds (target figure), and only reaches its top speed at 350 km/h. This applies equally to the open-top version and the model with the optional carbon-fibre hardtop; only with the standard fabric roof does Aston Martin set the top speed at 200 km/h. To ensure the Spider stays planted on the road, the active aerodynamics in race mode press it down onto the tarmac with more than 600 kilograms of downforce at 240 km/h. To achieve this, the rear wing extends by 255 millimetres and acts as an air brake during heavy braking.

Incidentally, a specially developed wind deflector channels the airflow over the occupants’ heads. If you don’t need it, you can fold it into three sections and stow it in the new 15-litre compartments in the footwell. A carbon monocoque, doors that swing upwards and forwards, and a new carbon-fibre touring seat are also part of the package. And for Aston Martin, the Spider marks a first: it is the brand’s first series-production open-top mid-engined supercar.

So there’s just under a year to go until delivery. Plenty of time to configure it and look forward to it. We’ve compiled a list of all the other things to look forward to in the latest ramp #71 ‘Yabba Dabba Doo!’ . This list isn’t exhaustive, but it does include a complete guide to getting the most out of the build-up. Fred Flintstone, whose battle cry lends its name to this issue, would know exactly what to do anyway: get excited and hit the road.

→ Aston Martin Valhalla Spider