This is the AM37, a small yet powerful luxury yacht envisaged by the Aston Martin design team, and created in collaboration with naval architect Mulder Design and Dutch firm Quintessence Yachts. It marks the first product to form a family of yachts by this dynamic trio.
“As a designer there are many things I would love to work with and homes and boats are at the top of the list,” offers Aston Martin’s design director Marek Reichman. “The beauty of the boat is that it is a combination of both. It is dynamic and acts as a home.”
The physical vessel will be launched in September, and we are at the company headquarters to view the sketches, clay model and renderings that offer a glimpse into the production boat.
The name refers to its relatively small size at 37 foot. It will be available in two trim levels – the AM37 leisure boat that is capable of reaching 50 knots (57mph) and an S line sport yacht that promises speeds of up to 60 knots (69mph).
Much like the latest Vulcan, the AM37 utilizes carbon fiber in its construction, using a clever vacuum infusion technology to build a scalpel-sharp hull that is at the center of its design. “The curved hull goes into a negative and positive,” explains Reichman. “When you see it you will think you can’t possibly do that!”
The design also helps manipulate the sound created when water hits the hull. “You can either have that augmented with the deep rumbling of the engine, or have the [relative] silence of the water on the hull,” says Reichman. “The rush is so exhilarating — the sound of the sail filling with wind.”
The team also added a big diffuser to the back of the boat, causing the water to pass through in a very different way that adds to this sound as well as helps achieve comfort at high speed. “It creates a very different wave pattern at the back of the boat too,” smiles the designer.
Reichman is visibly excited about this latest project as he reveals, “it has an incredible deck that covers the open space so you can walk onto the boat from land. Then once on-board it slides back and exposes the whole interior. No one has done this before!”
The AM37 is essentially molded from one piece, which was a challenge for the automotive team who worked with the marine engineers to see how, and if, certain processes could evolve.
Reichman says it was very much a two-way learning process. “Boats can be technologically advanced yet each industry has its processes and you can challenge these.”
