The bailout saga continues to hit British carmaker, Aston Martin, in embarrassing ways. Seriously, how did Aston Martin get here? Just over a week ago, CEO Andy Palmer shared that the carmakers’ new business strategy is to be the “British Ferrari,” meaning that they would prioritize making the Aston Martin brand more exclusive.  Instead of making large quantities of wholesale vehicles, the carmaker will focus more on made-to-order ones.

To help Aston Martin achieve its new goal, they were fortunate enough to get Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll on board as an investor who actually gained experience as a Ferrari importer. Stroll also oversees the Racing Point F1 Team. Now, Aston Martin has another billionaire on board. 

Introducing Ernesto Bertarell, the richest man in Switzerland

Ernesto Bertarell is a Swiss businessman that comes from a wealthy Italian family whose main claim to fame is related to the manufacturing of a popular fertility drug. The Bertarell family also has heavily invested in the real estate market in both Switzerland and London, plus the relatively new tech sector with Forestay Capital. 

It was also revealed that Austrian investor Toto Wolff now has a 4.77 percent stake in Aston Martin. Wolff is a multimillionaire who owns 30 percent of the Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport Formula One Team.  We’re still waiting to learn more about Aston Martin’s new investors from the company itself since this information is was only made available by regulatory filings as published by European automotive news outlets. 

Aston Martin still focused on beginning a new era 

The Aston Martin team and car enthusiasts alike were excited about the carmaker’s first-ever SUV, the DBX.  COVID-19 has derailed production plans but Aston Martin still expects to make DBX deliveries this summer. While success for Aston Martin depends on the DBX in the near future, the carmaker also plans to change the game with its new 3.0-liter V6 engine. 

The brand-new Aston Martin turbocharged V6 engine will take replace its current 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 engine manufactured by Mercedes-AMG. Current Aston Martin models also use the Mercedes-AMG 5.2-liter twin-turbo V12 engine. 

The V6 engine is key to the long-term success of the Aston Martin brand. CEO Andy Palmer explained that creating the company’s own new powertrain is a “tall order” but they expect the investment to be worth it. 

The new engine design will assist Aston Martin with its mission to electrify its model lineup with traditional hybrid vehicle offerings as well as plug-in hybrid options. The refreshed powertrain will also help the carmaker meet the requirements of the European emission standards. 

Aston Martin’s in-house V6 engine will first debut in 2022 in the highly-anticipated Valhalla, a mid-engine sports car that is designed as a tier below the brand’s first-ever concept car, the Valkyrie and the track-only Valkyrie AMR Pro. The Aston Martin Valhalla, Valkyrie, and Valkyrie AMR Pro were all created in collaboration with the Red Bull Racing Formula 1 Team. 

If things continue to go as planned in fall 2020, we’ll getter a better look at the Valhalla’s design in the forthcoming “No Time to Die” James Bon movie set to be released in November.