In an effort to prove that hybrid technology and electric motors can improve the driving experience, automotive electronics supplier Bosch has built a 740 hp, all-wheel-drive, V12-powered Aston Martin hybrid supercar. As a professional car guy, let me assure you: this car is yummy!
Under the hood, the curvy Aston DB9 keeps its familiar, 510 hp 6.0L V12, but that ICE engine is supplemented by a pair of electric motors driving the front wheels. The added boost of the hybrid drivetrain bumps the hybrid Aston Martin’s total output from 510 to “over 740bhp”, according to Bosch engineers. Speaking of engineers, Bosch has had more than 70 engineers working on the car since November 2012 (the hybrid Aston Martin was finished at the end of May, less than a month ago).
That, dear friends, is a lot of brain-power!
With that much high-IQ thinking behind it, it should come as no surprise that this one-off hybrid Aston has some pretty slick features, like vectoring for more neutral handling, as well as mods to Bosch’s latest traction-control systems that allow steering, throttle and steering/handling characteristics to be tuned “on the fly” by the driver, with advanced software taking into account tire temperatures, track conditions, and even the number of passengers and their weight distribution in the car!
Bosch claims that there are currently no plans for a hybrid Aston Martin, but that this hybrid hardware/software package is modular enough to be fitted to any number of vehicles currently using Bosch’s firmware … that list includes Ferrari, Lamborghini, Mercedes-Benz, GM, and other. With that in mind, we may yet still see some of the hybrid Aston’s features in a future showroom, yet!
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