Aston Martin has confirmed it will not launch a battery-electric vehicle until the early 2030s, describing itself as a «BEV delayer» and committing to its V8 and V12 engines for at least another decade. The British marque had previously targeted an electric launch in 2030, but shifting consumer sentiment and the availability of regulatory headroom have allowed it to push that date back.
Chief executive Adrian Hallmark said the company only needs to offer a zero-emission model shortly before 2035 to meet legislation in certain markets, and he declined to set a precise date. «I’m not going to give an absolute date, because it’s imprecise. It could be 2035, it might be 2033, but it’s in that three-year window. It’s not 2031,» he said. The company’s largest shareholder, billionaire Lawrence Stroll, is understood to have little appetite for an electric model in the mould of the controversial Ferrari Luce.
When Aston Martin does eventually release an EV, it will draw on established partnerships. The company has a deal with Lucid that gives it access to the American firm’s latest systems, and it plans to strengthen its relationship with Mercedes-Benz for future electric powertrains and electronics. Hallmark said the company has time to evaluate how battery technology, markets and legislation evolve before committing significant investment. «Looking at BEVs in the future, even if [we launch our first in] 2033, we’ve got three years where we can keep looking, keep thinking and keep evaluating different technologies and how they’re changing, and the markets and the legislation,» he said. «And it’s only then that we would need to kick off investment. So today we’ve got very low-level investment, but it’s research and study, not even single-digit millions of investment.»
In the meantime, Aston Martin has a «roadmap» to keep its current V8 and V12 engines alive through to the end of 2035. Hybridisation will help keep those powertrains compliant and competitive, but Hallmark ruled out plug-in hybrid versions of the company’s core models, citing the added weight and complexity of such systems. The Valhalla supercar, which uses a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 with a plug-in hybrid setup comprising three electric motors and a 6.1 kWh battery pack, will remain the only PHEV in the range.
The decision places Aston Martin among a group of luxury and performance carmakers that have adjusted their electrification timetables as demand for EVs has cooled in key markets. For customers, the strategy means the familiar V8 and V12 soundtrack will continue for close to another decade, while the company retains the flexibility to adopt electric technology when it judges the time is right.