This is not what one would expect to see at the Monaco Yacht Show, but there it was… Aston Martin’s brand new first-ever posh submarine. Baroque Access finds out all the details
British luxury brand Aston Martin is most famous for its automobiles and yachts, but no longer. The automaker revealed the renderings for its first-ever submersible at the recent Monaco Yacht Show, with a price tag of – wait for it – $4 million. This sub, which fits a driver and two passengers, features an acryic bubble in its cabin that maximizes underwater viewing. It will be able to dive to depths of 1,650 feet and travel at speeds of up to 3.5 miles per hour. With a height of 5.9 feet tall and weighing in at 8,800 pounds ,the Aston Martin submarine will be the smallest and lightest three-person sub in the world.
It is expected to be available to customers around the end of 2018, and will come in a limited edition of about 12. With that suggested multi-million dollar price tag, it’s understandable that not many will be produced.
Aston Martin did reveal a yacht at the Show – the AM37 that first made its debut in September 2016. The price for this luxury yacht is set at a starting figure of $1.64 million, while a car to match, the V8-powered DB11, will set the owner back another $200,000.
For the luxury sub, Aston Martin is collaborating with Triton Submarines, which works out of Florida and produces multi-million dollar subs for wealthy clients. The ideal, according to Aston Martin, is to drive the submersible vehicle from downtown Miami to South Beach. Interestingly enough, Aston Martin is also developing a real estate section to the business. Last year the brand partnered with Miami-based G&G Business Developments to create Aston Martin Residences, a 400-unit waterfront condo project in Downtown Miami that offers sublime views over Biscayne Bay. These units, which are priced from $500,000 to $35 million, are expected to be completed in 2022.
So, is Aston Martin taking James Bond’s storyline literally? In the 1977 movie, The Spy Who Loved Me, Bond drove a Lotus vehicle that could transform into a submarine. Aston Martin, has, in fact, featured in 11 James Bond Films, so perhaps the firm does take the Bond initiative very seriously. The automaker calls this new project a venture into new aspects of luxury. How far are they willing to go? We will just have to wait and see! Perhaps one of these brand new subs will feature in the latest Bond movie about to be created, starring Daniel Craig.
Of course this is all speculation. Right now the project is only at concept stage, code-named ‘Project Neptune’, with a sleek, elegant exterior. According to Aston Martin’s Vice-President and Chief Creative Officer, Marek Reichman, “We have used forms and proportions that express the same devotion to design, engineering and beauty that shape our cars.”