RE: Whiteghost a blast from past13 Apr 2026 18:11
Another great comment fro the FT article:
A-M is a money incinerator.
It loses money on every car it makes, and then those cars go on to further consume the buyer's wealth with appalling depreciation. It's been a financial disaster for shareholders too: share price down 99% from 2018 IPO peak (£3,629 to 42p).
Profit/Loss Per Car Sold (2016–2025) ASP is about £200k
| Year | Units Sold | Revenue (£M) | Loss/Profit Per Car |
| 2025 | 3,352 | 1,258 | −£147k |
| 2024 | 3,639 | 1,584 | −£89k |
| 2023 | 3,481 | 1,633 | −£66k |
| 2022 | ~6,186 | 1,400 | −£31k |
| 2021 | 6,170 | 1,095 | −£31k |
| 2020 | 2,891 | 612 | −£145k |
| 2019 | 5,695 | 997 | −£22k |
| 2018 | 6,351 | 1,097 | −£10k |
| 2017 | 5,073 | 876 | +£15k |
| 2016 | 3,687 | 594 | −£40k |
So that's a cumulative £3.5B losses on ~45k cars (~£78k/car avg. loss)
And having lost about £80k making each car, Aston passes it on to the owner, who then experiences stupendous depreciation, about £100k over 3 years.
Depreciation | Year | Avg. Depreciation | Residual Value |
| 1 | 20–25% | 75–80% |
| 2 | +15% (cum. 35%) | 65% |
| 3 | +10–15% (cum. 45–50%) | 50–55% |
Furthermore, all the important components are bought in from 3rd party suppliers. Mercedes-AMG supplies the entire drivetrain: engine, fuel injection, turbochargers, wiring looms, exhaust manifolds and engine control hardware and software, fully assembled and tested by AMG.
Mercedes uses these engines in many of its own models, which cost tens of thousands less. So, in a way, A-M buyers are paying over the odds for a high performance Mercedes clothed in James Bond-flavoured bodywork.
And yet, even with the unparalleled benefit of decades of Bond mystique, A-M still contrives to lose money, a management achievement which will make for an interesting business school case study. The sheer year-after-year consistency of their failure is truly striking.
There looms the prospect of warranty and servicing voiding/collapse if A-M goes bankrupt, making buying an A-M a dicey proposition at the moment.
I expect that in a few years time we will see the A-M badge on a Chinese manufacturer's sporty halo model, after the brand and IP are snapped up after bankruptcy.
Sign In
Follow the stocks
