Aston Martin has taken the roof off its 1,079PS plug-in hybrid Valhalla, and it says the new Spider can still reach its 350km/h top speed with the cockpit open.
Removing the roof from a mid-engined supercar usually costs something, whether that’s stiffness, top speed or aero balance. Aston Martin says its new Valhalla Spider gives up very little. The brand calls it the fastest open-cockpit Aston Martin ever made.
The Spider follows the Valhalla Coupe, which arrived earlier this year. It is also Aston Martin’s first mid-engined open-top production supercar. It makes its global debut this weekend at the 2026 Concours at Wynn Las Vegas.
Three Roof Setups, Three Speed Limits
The roof arrangement is the most important detail here. A removable black fabric roof comes as standard, although the press material marks this with an asterisk, so specification may vary by market. With the fabric roof fitted, speed is limited to 200km/h (124mph).
Buyers who want to use the full top speed with the roof on can option a carbon fibre hard top. That allows the electronically limited 350km/h (217mph) Vmax. Aston Martin also says the car can reach that figure with the roof off entirely. A rain cover is supplied, but only for use while parked.
So the cloth roof is effectively the slow option. That’s an unusual position for an open-top car to be in.
Managing the Air
Without a roof, airflow over the cabin becomes a problem. Aston Martin’s answer is a clip-in wind deflector, fitted once the roof panel comes off. It lifts air over the occupants while directing cooling air down towards the engine snorkel. That snorkel has been reprofiled for the Spider and stands 35mm taller.
With the roof on, the deflector folds into three pieces and goes into new 15-litre stowage spaces in the sills. Aston Martin has also recalibrated the active aerodynamics and stability control for roof-on and roof-off driving. It quotes more than 600kg of maximum downforce, but only with the roof fitted.
Familiar Hybrid Hardware
The powertrain carries over unchanged. A 4.0-litre twin-turbo flat-plane crank V8 produces 828PS on its own. Aston Martin says its 207bhp per litre is the highest specific output of any engine the company has built. Three electric motors and a high-performance battery add 251PS, for a combined 1,079PS and 1,100Nm.
Two motors drive the front axle and provide torque vectoring. The third sits alongside the eight-speed dual-clutch gearbox and works with the V8 on the rear axle. The two axles have no mechanical link, so a central control system manages drive to each wheel.
Small Changes Inside and Out
The Spider uses a version of the Coupe’s carbon fibre tub. It was developed with Aston Martin Performance Technologies, the consulting arm of the brand’s Formula 1 team. The dihedral doors remain, now frameless and with smoother operation. Their glass is slightly more curved, which makes getting in and out easier with the roof fitted.
A new carbon Touring Seat comes as standard for added comfort. However, owners can keep the Coupe’s more supportive seat at no extra cost. Aston Martin has not released pricing, production numbers or acceleration figures.
Chief executive Adrian Hallmark describes the Spider as building on the Coupe’s list of firsts for the brand. What stands out to us is that Aston Martin has kept the Coupe’s full speed capability on a car where the driver can choose between roof on and roof off.
