Aston Martin Vantage

	Aston Martin Vantage
	Debut: 2018 Maker: Aston Martin Predecessor: V8 Vantage (2005)

Published on 23 Apr 2018

The first new Vantage in 12 years gets significantly more performance and sophistication.

Having soldiered on for 12 years, Aston Martin V8 Vantage was finally retired last year. Some 25,000 cars were sold during its long lifecycle, eclipsing DB9 and DB7 as the best selling model in company history. The new Vantage – note that it loses “V8” in its name – is again the company's entry-level sports car. However, it differs from its predecessor in many ways. First of all, this car gets considerably larger. Its 4465mm overall length is 85mm longer than before, if still shorter than a Porsche 911. More crucially, its body width is stretched by 77mm to 1942mm, which exceeds 911 GTS by as much as 90mm! Meanwhile, its wheelbase is lengthened by 104mm to 2704mm, which should improve ride and directional stability. Predictably, the larger car is also more expensive. In UK, it starts from £121,000, a sizeable increase from the previous £93,000, although it still undercuts DB11 V8 by £24,000. In return, you get significantly more performance and sophistication.

The Vantage has taken a new styling direction, too. Design boss Marek Reichman determined to end the Russian doll approach of family styling. He deliberately gave the Vantage a more muscular and aggressive look than the DB11. The front end has a huge mesh mouth stretched right down to the front splitter. It looks like a shaver head and quite odd for a road car, but Reichman argues that it is driven by function, saving excessive decorations and cutting inertia from the nose. Equally a bit strange is the contoured clamshell bonnet, which is necessary to accommodate the taller Mercedes “hot-Vee” V8 while leaving enough clearance to comply with pedestrian safety law. As the front wheels have been enlarged and pushed forward, leaving little space at the front overhang, the Vantage has to adopt very small LED headlamps. Unfortunately, those headlamps look rather characterless, blame to the lack of stylish patterns and graphics.

No more Russian-doll styling. The Vantage is more muscular and aggressive than DB11.

On the plus side, the rear styling should be universally acclaimed, especially its stylish LED stripe light and aggressive diffusers, which generate 77kg of downforce at top speed. Side view of the car is more muscular and less sexy than the DB11, thanks to the shorter wheelbase and a convex shoulder line. Also, you will notice that the wheels are pushed further outside so to achieve a sportier appearance. Despite lighter kerb weight, the 20-inch wheels and Pirelli P-Zero tires are the same size as its larger sibling's.

Like DB11, the Vantage is built on the new generation VH platform. The chassis is still made of bonded aluminum, but it has increased the use of pressed and cast aluminum parts instead of extrusions in order to save space. A carbon-fiber driveshaft runs inside an aluminum torque tube. The body panels are made of aluminum or composites. 30 percent of the structural parts, mainly at the center, are shared with DB11, while the remaining 70 percent are bespoke. The body in white is 20kg lighter than the old car’s, while torsional rigidity is boosted by 30 percent to 35,000 Nm per degree.

New VH platform employs more pressed and cast aluminum.

Suspension is implemented by forged double-wishbones up front and multi-link axle at the rear like its sister car, but its rear subframe is rigidly mounted on the main chassis without bushings for the sharp response and precision demanded by a sports car. The AMG V8 motor is positioned as far back as possible, while the ZF 8-speed automatic transmission is once again located at the rear axle, a trademark layout of modern Astons. That said, its front-to-rear weight distribution is barely 50:50. For your reference, both the DB11 V8 and the old V8 Vantage achieved 49:51.

Some might feel disappointed that the Aston no longer employs its homegrown engine. The last 4.7-liter V8 was originated from Jaguar. It might be down on power, but it was full of character. Fortunately, AMG’s 4-liter V8 is a characterful engine, too. In fact, I can’t think of any mass production V8 better suited to the duty of Vantage. It is not just powerful and torquey but also produces a mighty exhaust note in various applications of AMG. On the Aston, the V8 is given a bespoke, slimmer wet sump (in contrast to the dry sump of AMG GT) as well as bespoke intake and exhaust to produce a unique noise. Its maximum output is 510hp at 6000 rpm, less than the hotter versions of AMG GT – it goes without saying Mercedes saves the best for itself – but 80 horsepower up from the old naturally aspirated V8. Moreover, its torque curve peaks at 505 lbft from 2000 to 5000 rpm, compared with 361 lbft at 5000 rpm of its predecessor. This means performance is lifted to a different league. 0-60 mph now takes only 3.5 seconds instead of 4.6, while top speed is lifted to 195 mph. It is also noticeably faster than the DB11 V8 (187 mph and 3.9 sec), thanks to the 130kg lighter kerb weight.

I can't think of any mass production V8 better suited to the duty of Vantage...

The Vantage employs the same ZF 8-speed automatic transmission as DB11, but its final drive ratio is increased from 2.7:1 to 2.9:1 in order to quicken acceleration and deliver a more urgent feel, admittedly at the price of cruising refinement. Power goes to the rear axle through an electronic LSD, a first for Aston – it must be noted that Ferrari, Porsche, Audi, BMW M and Mercedes-AMG have been using this technology for long. Aston is late to the party, but late is better than never. With active LSD, hopefully its at-the-limit handling could be significantly improved. Adaptive dampers, torque vectoring and electric power steering are also new features to the Vantage. The brakes use ventilated cast-iron discs of 400mm or 360mm, clamped with 6-piston or 4-piston calipers. Ceramic brakes are optional.

Inside the cabin, Marek Reichman trades conventional cockpit design with something funkier – probably too funky for a luxury sports car I think. It looks cheaper and busier than the interior of DB11. Materials are generally expensive, with fine leather, Alcantara and real aluminum, but some controls, like air-con, audio and gearshift paddles, feel cheap for a car at this price. The center console is overcrowded with buttons. Reichman deliberately uses many old-school rotary knobs and toggle switches but the result is over-complication and a nightmare of ergonomics. Fortunately, the Mercedes-sourced touchscreen infotainment system and mouse-like COMAND controller save the game. As before, the Vantage is strictly a 2-seater. This leaves a quite generous 350-liter boot behind the seats.

Materials are generally expensive, but some controls feel cheap...

Once you get into the cockpit, you will find the driving position spot-on and the low-mounted seat supportive. The high waistline makes it feel exotic, but outward visibility is much poorer than Porsche, especially as you cannot see both ends of the car. On the steering wheel there are 2 mode buttons, one controls the adaptive damping and another the rest of the driving characteristics (engine, gearbox, stability control etc.). Each of them offers 3 modes: Sport, Sport+ and Track. Compared with DB11, it loses GT mode and gains Track mode for obvious reasons.

Start the car in Sport mode, the engine comes into life with a deep rumble. The V8 is very potent, unquestionably. It feels punchy at whatever rpm. It has virtually no turbo lag to overcome, responding to throttle quickly and revving smoothly. Its exhaust note is not quite as loud or as raucous as AMG, but at higher revs it morphs into a high-pitched growl not unlike that of the old naturally aspirated V8. The acoustic engineers have done a great job to make it feel more Aston than AMG.

While the dual-clutch gearboxes of AMG GT or Porsche PDK are a tad sharper, the ZF automatic is so well calibrated that you won’t feel short-changed. It responds quickly enough to your input and always shifts seamlessly. It suits the character of Aston.

Dynamically it is a huge leap from the V8 Vantage...

However, what really surprises is the chassis. It has the outstanding balance of the outgoing Vantage GT8 but added more grip and poise. Its steering is sharp but not nervous, although it loses the tactile feedback of the old car (which employed hydraulic steering, sigh!). The nose follows strictly to your commands as the front tires generate terrific grip. Thankfully, the ride is not rock-hard. It is inevitably stiffer than DB11, but still useable on back roads as long as you leave the electronic dampers in the softest mode. Only the excessive road noise – blame to the rigidly mounted rear subframe – robs it the chance as a long-distance cruiser. Push it harder on a twisty road, the Vantage is less incisive than a 911 owing to its extra weight and width. Nevertheless, on a wider track its handling is amazing. Ex-Lotus road test engineer Matt Becker tuned it to be so docile at the limit. Push it beyond the threshold and it will understeer progressively. You can use a quick counter-steer and prod the throttle to adjust its angle of attack in corner. The beautiful balance and the active differential works so well to make it immensely fun to drive. It is fast on a circuit, too.

The new Vantage feels significantly sportier and more entertaining than the DB11. It is also a huge leap from the V8 Vantage. The best Aston yet? In terms of driver appeal, yes, definitely. The best in class? No, sorry. It is considerably more expensive than a 911 GTS (its closest rival in essence) but the Porsche feels lighter, nimbler and more comfortable as well. A 911 GT3 is even more thrilling to drive. You might consider the base 911 Turbo, AMG GT C and Audi R8 V10 as its rivals as well. However, the Aston feels different, and it is competitive enough in most areas to attract buyers. If it lives long enough, it might just rewrite the sales record of its predecessor.

Verdict:

Published on 10 Feb 2020

Vantage AMR

AMR gets less power and slower acceleration. Can the driving experience make up for the loss?

The Aston Martin Racing version of Vantage differs from the standard car mainly in transmission. Instead of the ZF 8-speed automatic, it employs a 7-speed manual built by Graziano. Yes, that is exactly the same gearbox available to the last generation V12 Vantage S later in its life, including the same ratios. The intent is to enhance driver engagement, even at the price of performance – 0-60 mph takes 3.9 seconds, 0.4 more than the automatic version. This is not purely down to the shift time or launch control, but the AMG V8 engine has its maximum torque limited to 461 lbft (down from 505) to avoid damaging the gearbox.

Losing the automatic gearbox also triggers the change of differential. While the ZF auto links to an active differential, the 7-speed manual couples to a mechanical LSD. Is it a deliberate change? I don’t know. Modern electronic differentials usually have their control system linked to the transmission. Perhaps it would be too expensive to redevelop the e-diff to suit the manual gearbox. Anyway, the combination of manual gearbox and mechanical LSD saves 70 kg. This sounds good, but it alters the weight distribution (from 49:51 to less favourable 51:49 as the Vantage places its gearbox at the rear axle). As a result, Aston needs to retune its suspension. The rear springs get softer, the anti-roll bars get stiffer, and all dampers are retuned, so it makes sure the AMR doesn’t understeer more than the standard car.

Another 25kg is shaved by fitting carbon-ceramic brakes and lightweight forged alloy wheels as standard. Predictably, the AMR costs more. At £150,000, it is more expensive than 911 Turbo S, Audi R8 V10 Plus, AMG GT C and McLaren 570S, though by not much. Compared to these wonderful machines, the Aston gets less power and significantly slower acceleration. Can the driving experience make up for the loss?

Handling is sharper and more agile, but the manual gearbox disappoints.

Judging from the gearbox alone, the answer is negative. As before, this 7-speed manual employs a dog-leg first gear, so the shift pattern is all changed from the conventional norm. For a keen driver, it is not easy to adapt his basic instinct to the new way of work. Moreover, the shift quality leaves something to be desired. The gate is tight and the shift is clunky. The big and cheap gear knob feels uncomfortable in hand. The only thing worth praising is the availability of automatic throttle blipping, so it will match rev in downshift without requiring the driver to master heel-and-toe technique. The manual gearbox engages its driver more, but not necessarily in a positive way.

Changes to the chassis make the AMR edgier on the limit. The mechanical differential induces a little understeer when approaching corners, which is welcomed, but when it starts locking, it is more violent than the active differential, resulting in a more dramatic oversteer. On a dry road, the car is certainly more playful, more fun to devoted drivers. Its lighter weight and retuned dampers contribute to more agility and composure without downgrading the ride too much. On wet or less perfect roads, it is more nervous and difficult to drive. This is a car for hardcore drivers.

However, hardcore drivers will find the Porsche GT3 and GT4 much more engaging, precise and confidence inspiring. The AMR is neither sharp nor forgiving enough to threaten Porsches. That’s why it has to be rare. Only 200 cars will be built. Afterwards, you may opt for the Graziano gearbox on the regular Vantage, although I doubt many buyers would.

Verdict:

Published on 13 Sep 2021

Vantage F1 Edition

Finally, the potential of Vantage is unlocked.

Aston Martin has undergone some big changes lately. Lawrence Stroll & Co. took over control of the British car maker. Tobias Moers was head-hunted from AMG to lead its turnaround. The inhouse-built V6 was cancelled, but Moers secured supply of the most sophisticated AMG powertrains. Meanwhile, Aston Martin re-entered Formula One racing by rebranding the former Racing Point team, which rebranded Force India, which rebranded Spyker, which rebranded Midland, which rebranded Jordan that was founded by Eddie Jordan 30 years ago – remember Michael Schumacher’s debut race in Spa 1991? While the F1 team is not real Aston Martin effort, the car built to celebrate its re-entry into F1 racing is: Vantage F1 Edition.

Strangely, the F1 Edition is not a limited edition. It is not a million-dollar special either. Instead, it is what the standard Vantage should have been, better than that car in every way yet costs only £20,000 more at £142,000. Undoubtedly, most buyers will turn to this car, until the next mid-life update happens in a couple of year’s time.

When Moers arrived Gaydon, he identified the weak point of the Vantage is lack of speed. However, a deal with AMG to supply the more powerful versions of its V8 is yet to be agreed, so Aston could only tweak the ECU and get another 25 horsepower while leaving torque unchanged. Likewise, the Graziano 8-speed dual-clutch gearbox of Valhalla was not in place yet, so they had to remap the ZF 8-speed automatic transaxle to find extra speed. This is partly achieved by removing the momentary power cut-off between gears, previously introduced deliberately to make the gearshift feel more dramatic. In this way, the gearshift becomes not only quicker but also smoother.

But the powertrain improvement accounts for little performance gain. Moers gave his chassis engineers a hard target: cut 15 seconds from the Vantage’s Nurburgring lap time of 7:45, which is about as slow as a Honda Civic Type R. And that should not be achieved by using track tires like Michelin Cup 2.

The first thing they modified was aero: 200kg more downforce is found at top speed by those extended front splitter, winglets and rear wing, hence the decision to name it “F1 Edition”. The front and rear now generate 60kg and 150kg downforce, respectively.

Faster, more precise and better looking, the F1 is better than the existing car in every way.

Then they beefed up the chassis with a thicker shear panel under the engine, stiffened the bushings at steering column and front control arms, increased negative camber of the front wheels by half a degree, increased rear spring rate by 10 percent, front rebound damping rate by 18 percent and rear compression damping rate by 20 percent. Besides, a lateral damper is added to tighten the motion of the transaxle, something Moers learned from the development of AMG SLS and GT. Finally, the car is fitted with larger, 21-inch wheels and lower profile Pirelli P Zero tires, whose slightly larger contact patch should add a little bit more traction and grip.

The best thing to me is the return of a proper front grille, replacing the vacuum cleaner-style nozzle of the existing Vantage.

On the Road

Yes, the revised engine feels a bit more energetic from 5000 rpm to the 7000 rpm cut-out, its exhaust note is angrier, the gearshift feels as responsive as a torque-converter automatic can get, but the powertrain is not the amazing point of the car, unlike a Ferrari or Porsche GT3. Instead, it is the chassis. The F1 has a tighter body control than the regular Vantage, especially at faster pace. The steering gets more weight as well as precision without hurting communication. The rear axle is more tied down, making the car more stable in corner. Whereas the old Vantage is prone to wayward, the new one is more planted, less likely to slide and spin. Power slide is still easily accessible on a track, but the transition to oversteer is more progressive and controllable. Switch ESC off will reveal an inherently balanced chassis, but now it is less likely to bite you.

While the suspension does feel stiffer, in the softest mode it still covers a poor British country road with ease, something cannot be said to the new Porsche GT3 or an AMG GT. At faster paces, the stiffer damping actually improves the ride a little bit as the car feels more composed. The F1 Edition finally unlocks the potential of the Vantage.

Verdict:

Published on 31 Oct 2022

V12 Vantage

V12 Vantage becomes a limited edition, but its talents are also limited.

It is a sorrow to hear the new V12 Vantage signals the end of the line that started in 2009. Back then, the V12 version of Vantage answered the question raised against the standard car: insufficient power. It packed a big V12 into a relatively compact and lightweight 2-seater body, lifted performance to 190 mph and 0-60 in 4.1 seconds. The revision in 2013 (Vantage S) improved further to 205 mph and 3.7 seconds, then bowed out on a high with the limited edition Vantage GT12, a striped out, track-oriented version that was good for 600 hp and 3.5 seconds 0-60, accompanied with a price tag of £250,000.

In many ways, the final V12 Vantage is very much like the Vantage GT12. It is also a limited edition, although the batch increases from 100 to 333 cars (and sold out before public debut). It is priced at £265,000, slightly cheaper than the old car with inflation considered, but still double the price of a regular V8 Vantage. However, the new car is not as extreme as the GT12, no matter in weight saving or aerodynamics, therefore Aston opts to retain the name V12 Vantage.

This is a good-looking car, unquestionably. Thanks to wider fenders, a larger grille, extra vents opened fore and aft of the front wheels, deeper skirts and front splitter as well as a larger fixed rear wing, it looks more aggressive, too.

Lots of carbon-fiber is used throughout but still it weighs 1795 kg.

Open the bonnet, under the stiffening bracket the engine bay is filled fully by a 5.2-liter V12 completed with twin-turbochargers. It comes from the DBS Superleggera, but because there is no space for the latter’s ZF 8HP95 transmission, it has to retain the standard car’s 8HP75. That’s why the V12 motor has to be detuned, dropping its peak torque from 664 lbft to 555 lbft, while power is reduced by 25 hp to 700 hp. Still, no one can call 700 horsepower tamed.

Nevertheless, the car gains considerable weight, too. The twin-turbo V12 accompanied with a torque-converter automatic transmission must be a lot heavier than the last atmospheric unit and manual / automated manual gearbox. It lifts the kerb weight from the old car’s 1665 kg to an alarming 1795 kg. And that’s already reduced by using a lot of lightweight materials, such as carbon-fiber bonnet, front fenders, front bumper and side sills, composite rear bumper and rear deck, standard ceramic brakes (which save 23kg), carbon-shell bucket seats (7kg saved), thin-wall stainless steel exhaust (another 7kg slashed) and lightweight battery. Curiously, the car is even heavier than the DBS Superleggera, which is difficult to understand.

Weight is one problem, how weight distributed is another. While the old car employed rear-mounted transaxle to help balancing the engine, the new car has its ZF automatic installed just behind the engine, worsening weight distribution from 51:49 to 53:47 (V8 Vantage is 50:50). This means less traction afforded by the rear tires.

Despite 700 horsepower, the use of old gearbox means torque has to be reduced to 555 lbft. No wonder mid-range doesn't feel explosive.

No wonder the performance claim is underwhelming. Its top speed is 200 mph, merely 5 mph higher than the V8 Vantage. Likewise, 0-60 mph time of 3.4 seconds is just a tenth quicker than the V8 model, and trails the DBS Superleggera by a tenth. Even the aggressive aerodynamic kits don't perform as good as they look. They produce 204 kg of downforce at top speed - yes, at 200 mph. For reference, Porsche 911 GT3 generates 385 kg at 124 mph.

As for chassis, extra shear panels front and rear, a rear suspension tower bar and fuel tank bracing improve its torsional rigidity by 8 percent. To cope with the extra weight, suspension springs have been stiffened by 50% up front and 40% at the rear. Suspension bushings and front anti-roll bar are slightly stiffer, but rear anti-roll bar is softened by 41 percent to promote rear-end grip, taming the tendency of oversteer due to high power and short wheelbase. The wheels are kept at 21-inch, but each tire gets 20 mm wider. The extended fenders house not only wider tires but also 40 mm wider tracks. On the downside, for unknown reasons, the active differential of V8 model has been replaced with a mechanical LSD. It has too many compromises.

On the road, you will find the V12 Vantage has it ride quality damaged by the chassis modifications. It is stiff in comfort mode, very stiff in Sport mode and Oh-my-God-stiff in Track mode. Somehow, it fails to repeat the outstanding handling and ride balance of its predecessor, seems like the departure of engineering chief Ian Minards and chassis tuning expert Matt Becker finally come into effect. In addition to the loud tire roar and the very uncomfortable carbon-fiber bucket seats, the new car has lost the V12 Vantage’s uncanny ability as a long-distance GT.

Absolutely beautiful, but driving excitement fails to match.

Is it a better sports car or track car then? While it is faster, unquestionably, not all developments point to the right direction. The turbocharged V12 is a bit disappointing. For a car targeting at super sports cars, its sound is neither loud nor angry enough to excite. Its mid-range punch is also not as strong as what you would expect for a 700-horsepower machine. In fact, no more special than the V8 Vantage F1 edition. Likewise, the ZF automatic is no match for a proper DCT for shift speed and precision. Sometimes reluctant to downshift, too.

On a track, the stiff suspension is no longer an issue, and it keeps the car stable in corner, with minimal pitch and roll. Though riding on road tires only – it uses Michelin Pilot Sport 4S rather than Cup 2 – roadholding is very good. The brakes have power and feel. The steering is not so good, heavy and lacks feel, but at least accurate and get the job done. Despite the front-biased weight distribution, the V12 Vantage offers remarkable front-end grip, as evident in its responsive turn-in. It can be pushed very hard and still stick to its line. In tighter corners, it could feel a bit nose-heavy, easier to run wide or spin its inside rear wheel if you feed in too much power too early – not unlike a Corvette Z06 before switching to mid-engined. However, in faster bends it feels absolutely pin-sharp. At the limit, it will oversteer progressively, but it is not as easy to hold the slide like the old V12 Vantage, as it has a strong tendency to return to neutral. For sure it is much faster on track, but the lack of steering connection and delicate balance on throttle make the new car duller and less engaging to drive hard.

So what is it? Not quite a rival to the mid-engined super sports cars like Ferrari F8 or McLaren. Not track-capable enough to threaten 911 GT3 and GT3 RS. Nor it is as streetable as great GTs like Ferrari Superfast or Aston’s own DBS. While the old V12 Vantage was praised for bridging the best of both worlds, the new car can satisfy neither’s requirements. No wonder it is destined to be shortlived.

Verdict: