For the first time in F1 history, in 2021, Aston Martin will field its official safety and medical cars as it makes its return to the championship this year.
Aston Martin has chosen its Vantage sports car for the critical role of intervening and controlling the pace of a F1 event, while the DBX SUV has been selected to perform the role of the official medical car.
Engineered at the firm’s headquarters in Gaydon, UK, both vehicles are said to have endured significant testing at its Silverstone facility, totting up almost 15,000 km collectively.
They have also been tested in a dyno climate chamber and sport the paint scheme of the Aston Martin Cognizant Formula One Team car.
The 2021 Aston Martin Vantage safety car, its maker says, only has few additional modifications to make it FIA compliant. It also benefits from chassis and aerodynamic improvements.
Modifications have been made to the suspension, steering and dampers, while underbody bracing increases structural stiffness. In addition, Aston has fitted the same cooling system from its Vantage GT4 race car to its F1 safety car.
Due to the necessity to keep F1 cars up to speed, the 2021 Aston Martin Vantage safety car has 535 PS max power and 685 Nm of peak torque from a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8. It can do 0-100 km/hr in 3.5 seconds.
Aston Martin claims it has worked on the transmission for better precision, but the carbon-ceramic brakes are from the production Vantage. Other distinguishable features include bodyside mounted radio antennas, an LED rear number plate and a roof-mounted LED light-bar.
Inside, the safety car features racing seats, 2 screens on the dashboard, a switch control system and a “Marshalling System” integrated into the instrument cluster. It will be piloted by FIA’s appointed driver, Bernd Maylander.
Driven by Alan van der Merwe, the Aston Martin DBX official F1 medical car is powered by the same engine as the safety car, but here it makes 550 PS and 700 Nm. The DBX can do the 0-100 km/hr sprint in 4.5 seconds and reach a top speed of 291 km/hr.
Like the safety car, the medical car has 2 screens to provide live race footage, while an additional screen is present to read live biometric data delivered from the drivers’ gloves.
But, the official F1 medical car carries a substantial amount of medical equipment including a large medical bag, a defibrillator, 2 fire extinguishers and a burn kit.
Both the cars can be first seen during the 3-day pre-season test at Bahrain (12-14th March) and at every F1 race that starts with the first event also at Bahrain on 28th March.
