There will “always be demand” for combustion-engined cars, according to Aston Martin executive chairman Lawrence Stroll, who has pledged to keep selling them for as long as he is legally allowed to.
Aston Martin recently pushed back its plans to launch its first electric car in 2025 to 2027 and has increased investments in plug-in hybrid technology accordingly.
Stroll expects plug-in hybrids to be far more than a ‘bridging’ technology and that they will remain on sale well into the middle of the 2030s and beyond. Aston customers have told dealers that they said they want “sounds and smells” and favour ICE technology for their cars, according to Stroll.
Aston’s first EV
Aston Martin has developed a bespoke EV architecture and plans to launch four electric cars on it, including a GT, SUV, crossover and ‘mid-engined’ supercar, but they won’t hit the market before 2027 after a reveal of the first model in late 2026.
“We have designed and ready one platform to take four different vehicles,” Stroll told Autocar. “We have all the products technically engineered and physically designed.
“We planned to launch at the end of 2025 and were ready to do so, but it seems there is a lot more hype in EVs, politically driven or whatever, than consumer demand, particularly at an Aston Martin price point.”
He added that demand for electric cars is particularly weak in the luxury segments, as Aston Martins were typically not ‘first’ cars for their customers and used more for leisure.
Stroll said Aston “will get there” with electric cars, “but at the previously date, definitely not”.
PHEV investment
In delaying the EVs, Stroll said that Aston had “decided to invest very heavily in PHEVs”, technology he said would “play out for a long while and we will have an extensive offering”.
The company’s PHEV technology will be based around V8s, as customers aren’t keen on V6s, said Stroll. The V8 engines will still be sourced from Mercedes-AMG throughout the PHEV era. Stroll said Aston would add hybrid technology to its V12, too.
The PHEVs will be based on Aston Martin’s existing architectures and will likely be introduced into existing model lines. Stroll wouldn’t confirm which Aston would be the first to get plug-in hybrid technology, yet the Aston Martin DBX would be an obvious contender given its position as Aston’s best-selling car.
Indeed, when it comes to EVs, Stroll expects SUVs to become fully electric in the luxury segments before sports cars.
