Last Saturday we were invited to check out one of Aston Martins latest creations, The new Vantage. Aston Martin defines the new Vantage as having a bold new look, intensified performance and dynamics.
Previously when judging from pictures, many people (including myself) thought that the new Vantage looked like an MX-5. That statement was flattened immediately when I had seen the new Vantage in person. To me, this bold new Vantage is one of the hottest looking Aston Martins out there.
This Vantage was finished in an AML special paint job, Lime Essence, which was complimented with a ton of gloss black accents. The front grille wad also finished in black which gave it a stealthy look. This Vantage was wearing 20″ Forged Wheels finished in a textured dark colour to match the black bits of the car completing the look.
Design
Aston Martin completely re-invented the looks of the new Vantage. It has a distinctive design language with an “athletic, predatory stance” while still keeping it a fine gentlemen’s car. A very new distinctive and stunning design element is the rear muscular overhangs by the rear wheels. Aston Martin has given the new Vantage a new style of head lights and tail lights which forms a dramatic form of individuality from the other models of the Aston Martin range.
Interior
The new Vantage boasts a high waist interior theme with a lower driving position which gives a more focused driving experience. An element that I loved from other models was the “waterfall style” design of the center console. However, the new Vantage did not get that design feature and instead was given a more modern look by including a touch pad and a centrally mounted 8” LCD screen. The Vantage is trimmed extensively with Alcantara and with an option to include coloured stitching. This shows both the sporty and luxuriousness of the car and reminds you that it was built with excellent craftsmanship. The interior is breathtaking and I’ll just have to let the images do the speaking for me.
Aero
We can see that Aston Martin was well aware and kept aerodynamics in mind when they were designing the new Vantage. The front splitter directs airflow underneath the car channeling cooling air to where it is needed. The rear diffuser is also fed with clean airflow and prevents turbulence generated by the rear wheels.
Rare on production car: The new side gills helps downforce.
Power
The new Vantage is powered by a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 engine creating 510PS (375 KW) and 685Nm of torque. It is accompanied by an eight-speed ZF transmission which helps the car propel from 0 to 100 km/h in just 3.6 seconds and has a top speed 314km/h.
It should have great handling since it has a mid-mounted engine with a 50:50 weight distribution and for the first time on an Aston Martin, it features an Electronic Rear Differential (E-Diff). It’s a rear wheel drive that weighs 1530kg which means it will be a fun car to drive.
Even though the Vantage is a strict two-seater, I think it would make an excellent daily driver car. There is a ton of storage space in the front as well as 350 liters of boot space.
Pricing for the new Vantage will start at around R2.6 million which is absolutely worth every penny in my eyes. We can expect to see the customer cars landing in SA soon.
[…] Read my review of the new Vantage online at http://www.lifeaboutcars.com/2018/03/launch-new-vantage-landed-sa/ […]