Aston Martin unveil V8 Vantage production car

05-Mar-2005 • Casino Royale

Aston Martin's big story at the Geneva Show is the official unveiling of the V8 Vantage. The Vantage first appeared as a concept at the 2003 Detroit Show, but this is the production version, which completes Aston's three-model line-up. The Vanquish S remains at the top of the trio, followed by the DB9. The Vantage is the affordable, agile Aston and, in the words of company CEO Ulrich Bez, "is the culmination of the first phase of reinvigorating the Aston Martin brand around the world that began in the year 2000".

Under the bonnet lies a 4.3-litre V8 engine built - like those found in the Vanquish and DB9 - at Aston's engine production facility in Cologne. Since Aston Martin is part of Ford's Premier Automotive Group, it would be reasonable to assume that some component sharing has gone on between companies, but Product Development Director Jeremy Main insists that it hasn't.

"The V8 engine is unique to Aston Martin," he says. "We share expertise within the PAG organisation, but this design is totally new and not a shared engine. Every significant part of it is unique from the specification of the cylinder block to the cylinder heads, crankshaft, connecting rods, pistons, camshafts, inlet and exhaust manifolds, lubrication system and engine management."

The engine is, by the standards of something that size, a bit of a screamer. Maximum power of 380bhp comes in at 7000rpm, and you have to get up to 5000rpm to take advantage of all the 302lb/ft or torque that's on offer. Driven thus, the Vantage will go from 0-62mph in five seconds flat and continue to 175mph. To bring it back to a halt, there are ventilated brake discs (355mm grooved at the front, 330mm non-grooved behind) and four-pot calipers all round. Electronic assistance for . . . well, just about everything really, comes from ABS, EBD, traction control, brake assist, dynamic stability control and positive torque control.

For the performance figures mentioned above, assume the six-speed manual gearbox, which is all that will be available when the Vantage first goes on sale. Alternatives - not so far specified - will appear later.

Thanks to `Graham` for the alert.