ASTON MARTIN V8/ VANTAGE

Aston’s four-seater supercar for the 1970s and ’80s has now come of age

Engineer Tadek Marek’s all-aluminium, quad-cam, fuel-injected V8 and the William Towns-designed DBS that had been created to house it were both superb, but extremely costly to build, forcing David Brown to sell Aston Martin in 1972. New owner Company Developments relaunched the model as the Aston Martin V8 with a neat front-end restyle, again by Towns, that lifted the DBS shape into the 1980s.

Sound and heat insulation were improved, Lucas Opus electronic ignition (shared with the V12 E-type) was adopted, air conditioning was standard and a leather steering wheel replaced wood. Like Jaguar, Aston couldn’t meet US emissions regs with fuel injection, so changed to carburettors – four Webers with a larger bonnet bulge. Underfunded Aston Martin went into receivership at the end of 1974, but was revived and incoming MD Alan Curtis put the company back on its feet with new performance options on the V8, including the V8 Vantage in 1977. Victor Gauntlett took control in 1981 and Aston was backed by Greek shipping magnates in the ’80s, though still had financial worries at times.

The Aston V8 is a big, heavy car but fine handling helps it to shrink around the driver and it rarely feels as large as it really is. It’s a genuine four-seater, albeit cramped in the back, with heady performance – especially the Vantage. It’s thirsty, but you don’t buy an Aston for economy.

A very competent DIY mechanic can maintain an Aston V8, though parts are expensive and you’ll need plenty of time. If that’s not you, budget for significant running costs and bear in mind that a good marque specialist will fix it properly in a quarter of the time it’ll take a nonspecialist to mess it up and try to resolve it.

A handful of V8 saloons were turned into convertibles by Banham: although it’s a good conversion, they are worth about the same as hardtop V8s, not as much as genuine Volantes.

A sound but little-used example will cost £50-100,000 to refresh for use; a full rebuild can easily hit £200k for a standard V8, more for a Vantage X-pack or Volante, let alone a Zagato. Bear this – and their restored values – in mind when buying; it may be better to get a lesser model that has recently been restored than a tired example of a more desirable model. Both standard V8s and Zagatos currently look great value compared to X-pack Vantages.

William Towns’ big, bold and brash DBS fired Aston Martin into the ’ 70s. He cleverly tamed its width with the AM V8’s new grille that aped Aston tradition and endured for two decades

Driving an Aston V8 is an unforgettable experience, for all the right reasons. You should find effortless performance, a tremendous soundtrack, comfort and superb handling from all models – if not something needs attention, though be wary of the sheer width compared to most classics on English country lanes

The four-cam V8 engine is magnificent, even bearing the name of the individual who built it, but it does need to be carefully maintained without penny-pinching. Overheating and failed head gaskets mean major bills, as do low oil pressure, excessive oil consumption, rattles and thumps. Check the history for work done

There’s no wood in early V8 interiors, making them relatively inexpensive to restore (it came in ’78). This car has some extra gauges, added in period

The auto gearbox is reliable: check for smooth changes and kickdown, and look out for black oil. Manuals suffer worn bearings, synchros and clutch

Chassis rot behind the front wheel is common and costly to fix: brake and fuel lines run through the outrigger so have to be removed before welding

Check the cooling system for signs of ‘mayonnaise’ (water/oil mixing) and overheating; coolant should be fresh and the radiator free from decay