Aston Martin Broughs delivered: First customers receive 183bhp/180kg track-only turbo twin

The phenomenal, ultra-exclusive, Aston Martin Brough Superior AMB 001 lives at last – and is heading to customers with even more power than originally hoped.

First revealed in November 2019, the AMB 001 was unveiled as a concept track bike in a joint venture between Brough Superior and Aston Martin.

Related articles on MCN

• Video interview: Brough CEO Thierry Henriette talks about the AMB 001
• See the Aston Martin Brough AMB 001 in action on track
• Brough Superior SS100 review

Using a turbocharged version of Brough’s 997cc V-twin bolted to an all-new carbon-fibre monocoque chassis, the project team were aiming for a claimed 180bhp and an ultra-light target weight of just 180kg. The outlandish aerodynamic styling was also designed to be a ‘high performance work of art’.

Just 100 were to be built at Brough’s factory in Toulouse, in southern France, each priced at €98,000 (about £81,500) with 90 of the 100-bike run already sold.

Now Brough have announced that, following an extensive track development programme, the first 30 examples have been built and delivered to their lucky owners as far afield as Japan, Australia, Singapore and North America.

The AMB 001, as its name suggests, is the first joint venture between the two brands with the idea being, according to Brough, to ‘create a piece of automotive art for the motorbike connoisseur’.

Inspiration was taken from the current generation of mid-engined Aston Martin supercars while classic Brough Superior design features, such as the CNC-machined aluminium double-wishbone front suspension, were carried over from the brand’s road motorcycles. 

Other highlighted features include forged aluminium wheels, licks of chrome and carbon fibre everywhere, and top-spec radial brakes etched with the Brough Superior logo.

Each example is built to the customer’s requirements, too, so no two bikes will be exactly the same. 

Brough Superior President, Thierry Henriette said: “We are happy to have met our performance targets, with a power output of 183hp and a dry weight of 185kg. 

“AMB 001 is an original track bike that stirs the senses and delivers on performance. It impresses with its permanently available engine torque, power that can be felt from the first rotation of the throttle,” he continued. 

“It reassures with its powerful braking and a stable chassis, which allows late braking. The characteristic whistle of the turbo completes the unique presence of this extraordinary motorcycle.” 

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Video: Aston Martin Brough Superior AMB 001 testing on track

First published 8 February 2021 by Gareth Evans

Aston Martin and Brough Superior have started dynamic prototype testing of the AMB 001 – an ultra-exclusive track-only motorcycle set for first deliveries before the end of 2020.

Limited to 100 units worldwide, the Aston Martin bike in these images wears the British firm’s traditional car prototype camouflage as it’s seen tearing around the Pau-Arnos circuit in France.

Set to cost £96,936 (108,000 Euros including VAT), the AMB 001 features a turbocharged motor with 180hp, but the main aim of this circuit testing is to hone the bike’s chassis and ‘validate its geometry’.  

Brough Superior CEO Thierry Henriette said: “One of the key design features of the AMB 001 is an aluminium fin that runs along the full length of a carbon fibre tank, passing under the saddle and out onto the rear. The body holding the fin and supporting the saddle is one of the areas where we called on the unique knowledge of Mecano ID, who joined the project to apply specialist aerospace-quality carbon fibre skills to the exclusive AMB 001.

Aston Martin Executive Vice President and Chief Creative Officer, Marek Reichman said: “Everybody involved has managed to make tremendous progress with the development of AMB 001, despite the challenges we have all been facing. This special motorcycle is, like our road cars, the result of beautiful design melding with modern technology to produce a bike that any collector will be proud of. We are delighted to see how much progress has been made, both on and off track and look forward to the moment when production starts for this stunning machine.”

Keep an eye out on MCN for more details on the AMB 001 as they emerge.

Aston Martin Brough Superior AMB 001 specs

• 997cc V-twin turbo engine with 
• 180hp and 180kg dry weight
• Load-bearing engine and carbon-fibre subframe 
• Forged aluminium wheels
• Carbon-fibre bodywork

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Video interview: Aston Martin and Brough Superior AMB 001

First published 14 February 2020 by Dan Sutherland

As its understated name subtly hints at, the AMB 001 is the first collaboration between Aston Martin and Brough Superior.

Two of Britain’s most famous automotive brands have united to produce what’s set to be the most exotic, expensive and rarest new bike of 2020.

Limited to 100 units, each costing €108,000 (around £93,000), the AMB 001 is a track-only, non-road-legal machine. At its heart is a turbocharged, 180bhp version of the 997cc 88° V-twin powering Brough’s current range.

Not having to meet any noise or emissions standards certainly helps when upping the power from the naturally aspirated motor’s 101bhp…

Further information describes the turbocharger as having ‘variable geometry’. This high-tech design often uses pivoting vanes or an adjustable collar on the compressor to effectively simulate changing the size of a turbocharger throughout an engine’s rev range.

In practice, this should make for minimal lag and optimum boost at all rpm. The AMB 001 also features an intercooler to reduce the temperature of the compressed air entering the engine, further improving power.

Like Brough’s existing bikes, the Aston Martin bike uses a machined titanium backbone frame, with a double-wishbone fork up front. At the rear is a carbon fibre subframe, while some of the carbon bodywork is structural too.

There’s even a carbon fibre fin that runs the length of the bike, over the top of the tank and nestles up to the colour TFT dash, aping the style of the Aston Martin Valkyrie hypercar. Adorning this fin is the legendary Aston Martin wing logo – not just paint or a decal, but a nine-micron-thick laser-cut sliver of stainless steel sitting beneath the lacquer.

They’re not the bike’s only wings. Integrated into the bodywork are downforce-producing winglets, their shape taken from an S-shaped curve found on the front of Aston Martins. Another nod to its four-wheeled siblings can be found in the AMB 001’s Stirling Green paintscheme, as traditionally used on Aston’s racing vehicles.

The bikes will be hand-built at Brough’s headquarters in Toulouse, France, with the first models due for delivery at the end of 2020. While the AMB 001 lives in the world of ultra-exotica for now, it’s described as marking ‘the first chapter’ of the partnership between Aston and Brough.

Fingers crossed the second chapter comes with a more affordable price tag.

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Aston Martin team up with Brough Superior for new bike project

First reported 24/10/19

Aston Martin and Brough Superior have announced that they will be unveiling a motorbike at the Eicma motorcycle show in Milan on Tuesday, November 5.

The luxury car maker will put their famous winged badge on a motorcycle for the first time but the bike will be a ‘strictly limited edition’ run.

There’s no word on what it will cost (if you have to ask, etc) but with Aston Martins costing as much as a house, and the 2018 Brough Superior SS100 costing £59,999, the collaboration between the two is likely to be eye-wateringly expensive.

But the brands are not giving much away at this stage, releasing a vaguely motorbike-shaped collection of black lines as a teaser image.

“This is a fascinating and very popular project for myself and my team,” said Aston Martin’s Chief Creative Officer, Marek Reichman.

“The opportunity to collaborate with Brough Superior has given us the chance to bring our own unique views on how beauty and engineering can combine to create a highly emotive piece of vehicle design.”