Motorcycles

225-horsepower Aston/Brough superbike makes scorching EICMA debut

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An outrageously spectacular collaboration between Aston Martin and Brough Superior, with an abundance of performance to boot
Aston Martin
An outrageously spectacular collaboration between Aston Martin and Brough Superior, with an abundance of performance to boot
Aston Martin
The tank fin doesn't look like it'd be particularly comfy to lay on down the straight, and it chops the dash in half. But it does look cool
Aston Martin
That cheeky-peeky carbon weave makes me feel funny
Aston Martin
Top-down on a what could've been an all-British collaboration, if Brough Superior wasn't French now
Aston Martin
High-mounted pipe, finned tail and a carbon disc for the rear wheel
Aston Martin
A remix of every high-performance aerodynamic shape ever invented
Aston Martin
The Aston design team have taken the look of this machine to the next level, it's sumptuous
Aston Martin
Just look at all those aero shapes; the spoiler under the nosecone is designed to send air up through a slit to create a virtual windscreen for the rider
Aston Martin
An all-new V-twin engine, CNC machined from billet aluminum, provides a meaty 225 horsepower
Aston Martin
View gallery - 9 images

A thousand lifetimes ago, at EICMA 2019, Aston Martin and Brough Superior teamed up on an eye-popping AMB 001 turbo sportsbike. In the post-apocalyptic wasteland of 2022, this sliver of unobtanium gets a souped-up 225-horsepower Pro stablemate.

These Aston-Broughs would be some of the oddest-looking motorcycles on the road, if they were allowed on the road. They're not; they're design-led special-edition branding indulgences that can only legally be ridden on racetracks, and they're certainly not designed to race.

But they're incredibly eye-catching all the same, particularly the new Pro model with its snakey "Verdant Jade" paint job, "Photon Lime" accents and titillating glimpses of carbon weave peeking out like high-performance undergarments. Marek Reichmann and the Aston design team can be relied upon to do a spectacular job, and here the accent is on high-performance aero shapes, with enough purposeful-looking wings, splitters, spoilers and fins to create a very convincing impression that you could ride the AMB 001 Pro upside down in a tunnel given a big blob of Blu-Tak on the seat.

Just look at all those aero shapes; the spoiler under the nosecone is designed to send air up through a slit to create a virtual windscreen for the rider
Aston Martin

Such is the presence of all this technical-looking bodywork that you barely notice the interesting girder-forked monoshock front end – or indeed the carbon rims, the rear of which is a solid carbon disc.

It's not just a cosmetic and bodywork makeover, though; the Pro gets an entirely different engine from the 185-horsepower turbo unit in the original AMB 001. Sticking with the liter-capacity 88-degree v-twin theme, Brough has built a new 997cc donk with wet cylinder liners. It's fully CNC-machined from billet aluminum, which Aston Martin claims is a first for a "production" bike.

The new motor – naturally aspirated, this time – is tuned for a very impressive 225 horsepower. With just 175 kg (386 lb) to shift, the power-to-weight ratio here is a very entertaining 1.28 horsepower per kilogram. That'll keep most riders awake. Aston celebrates a 99.4% weight saving here in its branding badges, which are now lacquered-over stickers some 30% thinner than a human hair. Righty-o lads, but you only have to look to the 231 hp, 152 kg (335 lb) Ducati Superleggera from 2020, with its 1.54 hp/kg power to weight figure to see how far the Aston falls short of a truly focused track slayer.

High-mounted pipe, finned tail and a carbon disc for the rear wheel
Aston Martin

It doesn't matter; people will queue up to gawk at the AMB Pro in a public collection no matter what lap times it pulls. It's a truly remarkable piece of design. And considering how striking this machine is, it's by no means a particularly expensive thing to add to a star-studded garage. Autoevolution is reporting a price tag under US$150,000 for each of the 88 AMB 001 Pro bikes that will be built.

Expensive for a motorcycle, sure, but I doubt buyers are looking at this thing as a motorcycle, it's more of a collector's item and art piece. Ten points to any owner that gets out, gives this thing a bit of gumboot, balls up the slicks and puts in some hot laps.

Enjoy more photos in the gallery.

Source: Aston Martin / Brough Superior

View gallery - 9 images
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2 comments
Daveb
Gotta say, that thing is easy on the eyes
David V
Shame to design and build such a beautiful bike that will never be ridden anywhere. Just parked in a safe garage and resold on in 5 years.
So no kudos for Aston Martin or Brough for me.