- 14,660
- The UK
- JASON_ROCKS1998
- JR98 GAMING
For the 1995 24 Hours of Le Mans, Michel Hommell, a French billionaire and owner of Hommell cars, created a DB7 to race in the GT1 class with a 6.2 V8. Aston Martin agreed to sell a DB7 to Hommell while TWR arranged contracts for significant components. Williams supplied the engine, a detuned version of the AMR1 6.3 V8 producing 620HP mated to a 6 speed gearbox.
Although the V8 was not available in the DB7 road car the GT1 rules allowed any engine from that manufacturer to be used and the 6.2 V8 was an option on the Virage. The car was built by Synergie, a Le Mans based constructor, and was significantly lighter than the standard DB7, weighing 1330KG.
It was hastily prepared for the qualifying weekend, driven by Eric Helary and Alain Cudini, and failed to qualify for the 1995 race by the narrowest of margins. The DB7 became victim of the intense GT1 rivalry between the Ferrari F40 and McLaren F1 GTR. Despite being on the reserve list it was still unable to race. The owner was so exasperated about being classified below 3 other cars, he retired from the event.
It's possible that if the car was run in the GT2 class it would've raced and maybe even finished the full 24 Hours. The car currently resides at the Manoire l'Automobile in Britanny, France.
