8 ASTON MARTIN V12 VANTAGE

MEADEN RACED ONE, Richard Porter spends his evenings searching for them online, and both placed Aston Martin’s V12 Vantage mid-table (seventh and sixth respectively) in their Perfect 10s. And what’s not to like? The V8-engined Vantage had been built around Aston Martin’s then-new VH platform and had the looks and kerb appeal to seduce a new generation of Aston buyers, but it came up short when asked to lock horns with a 911 Carrera. So Aston responded by adding 50 per cent more cylinders to create a car that was now quite possibly one-third engine.

The appeal of a V12 Vantage is hard to ignore, whether it’s the perfect proportions of the Callum/fisker body, or because this little thug of a car pulls at your emotions with its glorious 12-cylinder heart pulsating away, or because it’s a tricky, slippery eel of a sports car, one minute as comforting as the first sip of your favourite beer, the next the equivalent of not spotting the milk has curdled in your coffee before you take your first mouthful; the risks making the rewards taste so much sweeter.

Ultimately, cars such as the V12 Vantage make us grateful that there are still people within car companies who push to make them happen and there are (just) enough like-minded customers to justify their existence.