This platform is expected to have a chassis cell design that integrates the battery pack into the actual structure to lower the center of gravity and adapts to the engines developed by the British firm YASA, based in Oxford , just 35 miles from Gaydon’s Aston headquarters. .
However, Mercedes ’stake in Aston is now behind that of the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), which will acquire a 16.7% stake in the British firm for £ 78 million.
The PIF also contributed heavily to a huge £ 550m investment package to McLaren earlier this year, and especially in 2019 it became the main sponsor of the American electric vehicle firm Lucid, with an investment of more than $ 1 billion (£ 840 million). Stroll admitted that his involvement, which has been under discussion for “months,” could offer an alternative route to Aston’s electrification plans.
Currently, Lucid only has one car for sale, the luxury Air sedan, and is developing an SUV with the code name Project Gravity, to be placed on top of the same 900 V platform.
The American electric vehicle firm does not currently supply its architecture to any other automaker, but has previously supplied batteries for the Formula E championship. It is building cars in a new $ 700 million ($ 590 million) facility. of pounds sterling) called AMP-1 in Casa Grande, Arizona and plans to significantly increase its production with a new facility in Saudi Arabia that is capable of producing 150,000 cars a year.
Interestingly, Stroll highlighted Croation Rimac’s hypercar suit as a potential partner in a press call following the investment announcement. Although he did not give further details, his confirmation that a halo car is part of Rimac’s product plan and trajectory in the production of low-volume hypercars increases the possibility that companies will partner for a project of low volume and fast that could be online. with Aston launch plans for 2025.
Stroll also stressed that Aston plans to continue to increase competition in electrification within the company, adding: “Electrification is not just about batteries or motors. There is much more, and as our investment in development transitions in electrification, we also plan to develop our own capabilities. “