Aston Martin sues Swiss car dealer over Valkyrie deposits
Aston is suing Nebula Project over Valkyrie deposits worth £15m that were allegedly taken from customers but not passed on to the parent company.
A dispute over deposits for Aston Martin’s Valkyrie hypercar looks to be heading to court after the British company opened legal proceedings against Swiss dealer Nebula Project. Aston Martin accuses the dealer of withholding deposits taken for the £2.5m, V12 machine after the pair entered into a contract in 2016.
Under the agreement, Nebula would help finance the development of the Valkyrie by finding customers and would receive commission on any sales. It took a number of deposits for cars that Aston Martin says it has not received.
The manufacturer has now terminated its relationship with Nebula Project but insists that it is committed to working with the affected customers to make sure they still get their cars on time. Aston Martin has also ended its relationship with a number of other companies in Switzerland linked to Nebula Project, including the operators of the Aston Martin St. Gallen dealership.
In a statement to the Stock Exchange, Aston Martin says that the episode is expected to cost the company in the region of £15 million in profits but that it is still on target to reach 10,000 sales and £500m in pre-tax profits by 2025. Since it signed the deal with Nebula in 2016, Aston has received investment from Mercedes-Benz further strengthening its technical partnership, while Lawrence Stroll has taken a majority share in the business, appointing himself as Executive Chairman and replacing Dr Andy Palmer with former AMG CEO Tobias Moers. Between them Project horizon has been created, built around expanding the DBX GT and sportscar families, committing to the mid-engined Valhalla and Vanquish supercars as well as focusing the company on an electric future beyond 2025.
Around 200 examples of the Aston Martin Valkyrie are scheduled to be built with all having already found owners, but this groundbreaking halo car will still be central to the brand’s profile and future growth. A technological tour de force with a Cosworth-developed 6.5-litre V12 revving to an incredible 10,500rpm, the car generates a total of 1,160bhp with KERS-style hybrid assistance. Although delayed by the COVID pandemic, the first Valkyrie deliveries are expected before the end of this year.
