Larry Kosilla is a media super star. He’s amassed millions of followers, many millions of views, and the admiration of anyone that washes a car. That’s one reason why he has unique access to machines like this Aston Martin Valkyrie. But to me, he’ll always simply be Larry. He appears in my phone like Batman – at random moments, without warning. Conversations usually proceed as follows:
“Yo”
“Yo”
“I have an (XYZ rare car). Leaves tomorrow. Wanna shoot it? I can’t move it and you have an hour. Bye!”
This is the way. Luckily an hour is all I need, and an hour more than most ever get.
What makes the Aston Martin Valkyrie so special?
Larry never wastes my time with yawn-inducing cars like some sort of Ferrari 360 Modena or the like. They are always extremely rare, and they are also things I cannot drive, for about 800 reasons. Like the fact that each Valkyrie is custom-fitted to its owner, so my head (and Larry’s, who did in fact need to move it), sticks out of the bubble cockpit. Yup – can’t even close the door.
The Valkyrie is unlike anything I’ve seen before, aside from an F1 car. That’s because it’s about as close to an F1 car as a road-legal production car can get. It’s produced by Aston, but designed in conjunction with Red Bull Racing, making this their first road car. Max Verstappen has driven it. So has Alex Albon.
But what really sets this car apart is who designed it – Adrian Newey, Red Bull’s Chief Technical Officer (now at Aston). He grew up with Jeremy Clarkson and is a big reason why Red Bull has had the success they’ve had. He’d always wanted to design a road car, and this is his first attempt. Pretty good eh?
How fast is the Aston Martin Valkyrie?
This car looks fast, and the machinery behind it doesn’t disappoint. First, though this is a hybrid with a KERS system, there’s real dino muscle too. A naturally-aspirated V-12 pushes out 1,001 horsepower on its own, while a Rimac-designed battery comes up with another 138 horses, for 1139 total. Thanks to a carbon fiber body, the Aston weighs less than 2,300 pounds and can get to sixty in less than 2.4 seconds.
That doesn’t sound that fast, right? An M4 CS will do it in 2.7. Yet cars like the Valkyrie are proof of concept for this blog – numbers don’t matter here.
Wait, so I can drive this thing on a road?
Yes, but. The Valkyrie is sold in the U.S. under the NHTSA’s Show and Display exemption, which limits owners to 2,500 miles per year. Now, having climbed inside I can tell you that I think 2,500 miles per year is more than you need – imagine flying an F-14 out of Newark Airport to ferry cargo back and forth. It is supremely ill-equipped for such a task.
You pretty much need a starter cart to get it going like a jet too. To start the car…actually, I have no idea how. Larry said the process takes over two minutes, and you just sort of wait for it to warm up. Once it’s going, you can’t just shut it off and start it up again. This is a very finicky, precious thing, and it’s most apparent when you’re…
Getting in…
Is not necessarily a process, but it’s not the car you want to have on standby when your wife is about to give birth. First, bend down and feel around for what is essentially a tiny black plastic button. A small notch on the door to indicate where it is would have been nice.
Lift that door up, and then you can unlatch the canopy. Yea – canopy like on a jet, just look at it. Despite both openings, it doesn’t leave you much room to climb aboard. Aston will measure you and design the seats to fit you, but if you think BMW buckets are firm, these carbon shelves are like strapping the car onto your back. You’re a part of it. At least the steering wheel detaches.
There isn’t much luxury – but lots of tech. No mirrors here, just cameras that show what’s around you. Everything is matte carbon fiber, and it’s beautifully done.
Going Gulfing
I admit to being surprised by the Gulf livery on this example. Aston Martin is known for their teal green hue, and I’ve always thought that painting a car in Gulf colors was like painting a Mercedes in tri-color M stripes. But the history of the colors goes far beyond the Ford GT40 – it’s actually from aviation.
Major Alford J. Williams, Gulf’s aviation manager in the 1930s, ordered two modified biplanes from Grumman. In December 1936, Williams took delivery of the orange Grumman G-22 “Gulfhawk II” adorned with the Gulf Oil color scheme and company logo.
Before long, Gulf expanded their business to include sponsorships (even advertising during Apollo missions), and road maps. From there, racing was a natural progression, and Gulf Oil vice president Grady Davis entered his own Ford GT40 to compete at Daytona International Speedway in 1967. Since then, it’s been seen on so many brands and race cars that it’s impossible to feel synonymous with one maker. Here, it makes the Aston that much more special.
So what’s next from Larry? Don’t know – guess I’ll just stare at my phone.
Aston Martin Valkyrie gallery
