ALL-NEW 2018 ASTON MARTIN VANTAGE GETS A TWIN-TURBO V8 WITH 503 HP
Bona fide sports car based on concept seen in Bond film, writes Costas Mouzouris.
GAYDON, U.K. Aston Martin began a restructuring process in 2015, and according to company chief executive Andy Palmer, “that restructuring means that cash is in the bank.” It also means the company can invest in new products. One of them is an allnew Vantage, which hadn’t seen a major change since the current generation was introduced in 2005.
The new Vantage sports a flowing silhouette that reveals its DB10 lineage, and is claimed to be the sportiest Aston Martin to date. If you’re unfamiliar with the DB10, it was never commercially available, but was a concept car that appeared in the James Bond film Spectre in 2015.
The new Vantage has a menacing face, with squinting LED headlights, a gaping, mouth-like grille with a prominent splitter below, as well as a sleek profile that culminates in an aggressive rear end with a massive rear diffuser that provide clues to the car’s new-found reliance on aerodynamic downforce. Side gills just aft of the front wheel are designed to reduce pressure in the wheel wells, which also reduces lift.
Under the hood is a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 sourced from Mercedes-AMG, claiming 503 horsepower and 505 poundfeet of peak torque and capable of pushing the Vantage from zero to 100 km/h in about 3.6 seconds. The front-mounted engine has been placed low and as far rearward as engineers could get it without intruding into the cockpit, contributing to an ideal 50/50 weight distribution. Dry weight is down to 1,530 kilograms, which is almost 200 kg lighter than the V12-powered DB11.
The engine drives a rearmounted, eight-speed ZF automatic transmission through a carbon-fibre driveshaft that rides in an alloy torque tube. Possible later availability of a manual gearbox was neither confirmed nor denied by Aston Martin reps, though several nudge-nudge, wink-wink hints suggested that a seven-speed stick is a possibility.
For the first time in any Aston Martin, the Vantage is equipped with electronically controlled differential, which combines with the braking system to assist cornering via torque vectoring. It is also linked to selectable drive modes — Sport, Sport Plus and Track — that vary its torque delivery characteristics. According to Aston Martin chief engineer Matt Becker, the differential has been tuned to give the car a “playful nature.” Speed-sensitive electric steering has a tighter lock-to-lock ratio than the DB11, and has been tuned for more aggressive off-centre feel.
The new Vantage uses a bonded aluminum chassis, which was introduced in the DB11, but 70 per cent of it is constructed with new components. The rear frame is now solidly mounted for increased rear lateral stiffness.
This more rigid chassis provides a roll-per-G — or degrees of roll per cornering G-force — of about 2.2 degrees, compared to three degrees on the DB11. Interior road noise is said to be compromised as a result of this stiffer chassis, but as Becker so eloquently put it, “Who cares?”
“Ride is very important, so we still have a car that’s very comfortable, very agile,” he added.
The front suspension components are shared with the DB11, but evidence of its sportier nature comes with the latest variation of Aston Martin’s Skyhook adaptive suspension. It provides progressively firmer damping characteristics in the various drive modes. Wheelbase is 100 millimetres shorter than the DB11, at 2,704.
Alcantara and leather abound in a lavishly appointed interior, and there’s more interior space, especially beneficial for tall drivers, as headroom has been increased notably.
An eight-inch LCD screen sits high in the centre of the dash, and switchgear is manual, with centre stack-mounted rocker switches and rotary dials operating the dual-zone climate-control system.
An array of buttons and a large rotary dial in the centre console provide control for the sound and navigation systems; the starter and gear selection buttons are splayed in an inverted V below the climate controls.
Despite its starting price of $172,495, heated seats are optional, as are driver assists such as blind-spot alert, parking assist, and even cruise control. There are four options packages available — Sport, Exterior Black, Tech, and Comfort — that include a varied selection of exterior and interior options.
Aston Martin has invested in several new cars since its restructuring, including different variations of particular models, including the to-be-announced soft-top Volante version of the Vantage, all of which will be introduced by 2019.
“Right now we are in harvest mode,” says Palmer, “and the new Vantage is but one of seven new model variants we have already invested in.”
The company has also purchased a new factory in South Wales, and is working on its first SUV, dubbed the DBX, which is set for launch in 2019.
Since its introduction in 2005, the “Gaydon-era” Vantage has become Aston Martin’s bestselling automobile and the improved, sportier next-generation Vantage should arrive at dealers in mid-2018.