Since the first reveal of the Aston Martin Valkyrie hypercar in July 2016, Aston Martin, Red Bull Advanced Technologies and project partner AF Racing have been working intensively to further develop the Valkyrie’s aerodynamics, body styling and cockpit packaging.

The teardrop-shaped cockpit’s upper body surfaces and lower tub contours follow the envelope of space available between the huge full length Venturi tunnels that run either side of the cockpit floor. Drawing huge quantities of air beneath the car to feed the rear diffuser, these tunnels are the key to generating the Aston Martin Valkyrie’s extraordinary levels of downforce while keeping the upper body surfaces free from additional aerodynamic devices that would spoil the purity of the styling.

To maximise interior space the seats are mounted directly to the tub, with occupants adopting a reclined ‘feet-up’ position reminiscent of today’s Formula One and Le Mans Prototype race cars, ensuring driver and passenger are extremely safe, perfectly supported and feel completely at one with the car. A four-point harness comes as standard, while an optional six-point harness will be offered for those who intend to do more track driving.

The Aston Martin Design team were keen to keep distractions to a minimum and focus the driver on the road ahead. To this end all switchgear is located on the steering wheel, with all the vital signs shown on a single OLED display screen. The steering wheel is also detachable, both to aid ingress and egress, and to serve as an additional security device.

Great attention has been taken with the glasshouse design to ensure forward and peripheral side-to-side vision is virtually uninterrupted. To avoid any unwanted aerodynamic disturbance or stylistic ‘clutter’ traditional door mirrors have been replaced by discreetly mounted rear facing cameras in each of the Aston Martin Valkyrie’s flanks. These feed two displays which are positioned at the base of each A-post to mimic the view provided by conventional door mirrors. The all-enveloping bodywork and roof-mounted engine air intake means there is no rear window, negating the requirement for a rearview mirror.

Matt Hill, Aston Martin Creative Director of Interiors said of the Aston Martin Valkyrie’s cockpit design: “It’s been a tremendous challenge to make the interior packaging work. We’ve embraced Red Bull Racing’s Formula One ethos and approached from a different angle than conventional road car design. In this instance, we’ve started from a position where you think something is impossible and work at it until you find a way to make it work. We’ve been fighting for millimetres everywhere, but the battle has been worth it, as it’s been fantastic seeing customers try the interior buck for size. They love the ritual of getting in and how it feels to be sat behind the wheel. They’re also genuinely surprised at how the car just seems to swallow them. You really do have to sit in it to believe there is genuine space for two large adults.”

While the essence of the original Aston Martin Valkyrie exterior design remains unchanged, Adrian Newey’s pursuit of downforce and aerodynamic efficiency has driven many detail changes to the bodywork. These requirements have been faithfully incorporated into the design by the Aston Martin Design Team in a genuine case of form following function.

One of the biggest changes in this latest model are openings in the body surface between the cockpit and front wheel arches, Adrian Newey having found that they were the key to achieving considerable gains in front downforce. It was then the job of the Aston Martin Design Team to integrate these new apertures into the overall design and ensure they had aesthetic merit as well as aerodynamic function.

While aerodynamics and downforce are the dominant story, Aston Martin Valkyrie features some delightful details. Some of the most striking are the headlights, which take inspiration from the pure functionality of a Formula One car’s components. Aston Martin’s designers stripped things back to the bare essentials, celebrating the engineering rather than concealing it behind cladding. With the low and high beam elements attached to an intricate exposed anodised aluminium frame not only are the headlamp units a work of art, but they are 30-40 per cent lighter than the lightest series production headlamps available to Aston Martin.

The same approach has been taken with the Aston Martin ‘wings’ badge that adorns the nose. With the regular badge considered too heavy, and a simple sticker not befitting for a car of the Aston Martin Valkyrie’s quality and cutting-edge nature, the Aston Martin Design Team came up with a chemical etched aluminium badge just 70 microns thick. That’s 30 per cent thinner than a human hair, and a remarkable 99.4 per cent lighter than the regular enamel wings badge. The badge (nicknamed the ‘lacewing’) is then attached to the painted body and covered with a perfectly smooth coat of lacquer.

Further detail innovation can be found at the rear of the car, with the centre high mounted stop light (CHMSL). Mounted on the tip of the small shark’s fin that runs down the spine of the Aston Martin Valkyrie’s airbox and rear bodywork, the light is just 5.5mm wide and 9.5mm high. Illuminated by a red LED it is the world’s smallest CHMSL and evidence of how every element of the Aston Martin Valkyrie is scrutinised in the pursuit of eliminating unnecessary weight and drag.

Aston Martin Creative Director of Exterior Design, Miles Nurnberger, said of the Aston martin Valkyrie’s design evolution: “I would say we’re around 95 per cent of the way there with the exterior design. Much of what you see is actually the structure of the car, so this had to be signed-off relatively early in the project. The remaining areas of non-structural bodywork are still subject to evolution and change as Adrian [Newey] continues to explore way of finding more downforce. The new outlets in the body are a case in point. Ordinarily the last thing we’d want to do to one of our surfaces is cut a hole in it, but these vents work the front wings so much harder that they’ve found a significant gain in front downforce. The fact that they are so effective gives them their own functional beauty, but we’ve finessed them without impacting on their functionality. That they also serve as windows through which to view the fabulous wing section front wishbones is a welcome bonus!”

British sports car manufacturer, Caterham, has celebrated 60 years of its revered Seven by bringing together some of the most esteemed examples in its history.

Powering around the twists and turns of the Longcross test track was the original Lotus Seven Series 1. Reaching a top speed of 78mph and featuring a Ford 100E engine and aluminium bodywork, the Series 1 was the ideal, lightweight sports car when it was launched by Colin Chapman in 1957.

Also present was one of only 13 Lotus Seven Twin Cams in existence, with its Twin Cam engine and lightning-sharp steering – and the CSR 260, renowned for being tuned by Formula One engine suppliers, Cosworth. At the time, it was the only Seven model to feature in-board front suspension and independent rear suspension, resulting in a 25 percent increase in torsional stiffness and a sublime ride quality.

Possibly the most iconic car on show was a replica of the Seven ‘Prisoner Edition’ VVC, owned by former Caterham boss Simon Nearn. The real VVC starred in the opening sequence of the cult 1960’s TV show, ‘The Prisoner’.

It wasn’t the only Seven in attendance with fine TV credentials, as the Superlight R500 set pulses racing, too. Piloted by tame racing driver The Stig in 2008, the absurdly fast Seven shot to fame after completing a lap of the Top Gear track in just 1m 17.9s, embarrassing a plethora of supercars with far heftier price tags and winning Top Gear’s ‘Car of the Year’ in the process.

Completing the line-up was the retro, swinging sixties-inspired Sprint and the tarmac-chewing 620S – both from the current Seven range.

Caterham Cars CEO, Graham Macdonald, said: “What a great line-up; an apt number of Sevens, all of which have made their mark in Caterham’s history. It’s great to see how the Series 1 has been developed over the years – you don’t get a better accolade than becoming a Top Gear track icon.

“Over the 60 years of the Seven, we’ve never lost Colin Chapman’s engineering essence – a lightweight, high-powered machine that is fit-for-purpose. Every Seven provides a raw, pure, fun driving experience like no other vehicle. Long may it continue for the next 60 years.”

From the freezing Arctic Circle to the dust and heat of Dubai, the Jaguar E-PACE has been subjected to a diverse testing programmes, ensuring it is not only a driver’s car but a dynamic and entertaining performance SUV too.

Jaguar unleashed hell and high water to ensure that E-PACE worked on all surfaces and in all weathers. More than 150 prototypes were built during a gruelling 25-month test programme which took place across four continents to ensure not only extreme durability but that the vehicle lives up to the Art of Performance philosophy.

From the demanding Nurburgring circuit and high-speed Nardo test track to the deserts of the Middle East, E-PACE has proved itself in the world’s most challenging environments. Jaguar’s engineers braved the -40C temperature of the Arctic Circle and the high altitudes and rivers of China’s most remote provinces to ensure E-PACE can withstand a lifetime of use in the hands of the most active and demanding customers.Jaguar’s new compact performance SUV will face its final test in a world premiere that will be aired on Facebook and YouTube on Thursday 13 July. Jaguar will demonstrate the E-PACE’s combination of agility and true Jaguar performance, as well as how entertaining it is to drive.

Graham Wilkins, Chief Product Engineer, Jaguar E-PACE said: “Our team of world class engineers and dynamics specialists have meticulously tuned and developed a true Jaguar. Months of intense testing on roads and tracks around the world have delivered a compact performance SUV that is true to Jaguar’s performance DNA”

Groupe Renault is proud to celebrate the production of the millionth vehicle at the Renault-Nissan plant in Tangier: a five-seat, Azurite Blue Dacia Lodgy powered by a diesel engine and sold to a customer in Turkey. In all, 474,840 Sanderos, 320,078 Dokkers and 193,181 Lodgys have been manufactured in Tangier since the plant’s inauguration in 2012. In addition to covering the Moroccan market, the models built at the factory are exported to more than 73 destinations.

The inauguration of the Tangier plant’s first production line in February 2012, in the presence of His Majesty the King Mohammed VI and Carlos Ghosn, CEO, Groupe Renault, and the launch of a second line in 2013, marked a turning point in Morocco’s automotive sector. Indeed, it was the birth of the biggest car manufacturing plant south of the Mediterranean.

Today, the plant operates in three eight-hour shifts per day, six days a week, with an annual production capacity of 340,000 vehicles. The Renault-Nissan Tangier plant, a main driver of the Moroccan economy, supports Dacia brand growth by exporting the majority of its production. Half of all Dacias are produced in Morocco at either the Tangier plant or at the SOMACA facility in Casablanca.

Groupe Renault implanted in Morocco since 1928 and is the number one manufacturer in the Moroccan market with its two brands, Dacia and Renault. Four vehicles out of 10 sold in Morocco are sold by the Groupe Renault. The Renault plant in Casablanca (SOMACA) has produced Renault models since 1966, and Dacia model since 2005.

Rolls-Royce has announced the Mayfair location for ‘The Great Eight Phantoms’ – A Rolls-Royce Exhibition. The exhibition will take place at Bonhams on Bond Street, London, the heart of the luxury world. Rolls-Royce also announced that the third Great Phantom to join the exhibition will be Sir Malcolm Campbell’s Phantom II Continental.

At the height of his pursuit of a new land speed record in the 1930’s, Sir Malcolm Campbell began a relationship with Rolls-Royce that would take him to glory and help him celebrate it.

At the end of 1932 Campbell had won prestigious Grand Prix races, broken the land speed world record not once but six times, and had been knighted by King George V. He had nothing left to prove. He was the fastest man on land and yet, as restless as ever, he wanted to take a crack at the 300mph barrier, the automotive equivalent of the four-minute mile. He believed that the only engine that could power his Blue Bird to this speed was a 36.5L Rolls-Royce R aero engine, which generated a staggering 2,300 horsepower.