Aston Martin has unveiled the second generation Vantage GTE with which it will compete in the 2018/19 World Endurance Championship.

The car was unveiled alongside its road-going counterpart in London overnight.

Development of the new car is already well advanced, with work beginning in February last year and the prototype build completed in May this year.

Powered by an AMG-Mercedes four-litre twin-turbo, front-mounted engine testing began in August, chalking up more than 13,000km of testing, including a 30-hour endurance run at the Navarra circuit in Spain.

Testing has also been carried out at Sebring in Florida, where the car used Michelin tyres, Aston Martin having used Dunlop rubber for the past two seasons.

“We’ve spent every second optimising the design right until the build of our test car, which has paid dividends during our current testing schedule,” said Dan Sayers, Aston Martin Racing Technical Director.

“It’s terrific to be involved in this exciting new chapter for Aston Martin Racing,” added John Gaw, Aston Martin Racing’s Managing Director.

“The increasingly tough competition in the GTE class and the prospect of two visits to Le Mans and a return to Sebring within the 2018/19 super-season is thoroughly tantalising.

“To conduct the development process of this car so closely with Aston Martin’s design and engineering teams was essential for both road and race car to retain the same underlying DNA.

“We believe the Vantage GTE will bring further success worldwide to Aston Martin Racing in the coming years.”

The opening round of the 2018/19 World Endurance Championship is the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps in early May.

The 13-month season then heads to Le Mans for the first of two visits, with the 2019 event the final round of the revamped championship.