It’s been fifteen years since the world first learned that Aston Martin are indeed crazy enough to shoehorn a V12 into a Vantage and today the world will see the second iteration of this, the new V12 Vantage.
A slew of teasers and a myriad spyshots of a beefier looking Vantage with some V12 noises coming from the back told us that the V12 Vantage was coming, but what’ll likely make this newcomer exponentially more frightening than its already frightening predecessor is the addition of two turbochargers to the V12-in-a-small-car mix.
The DBS Superleggera offers brutal performance, it’s 5,2-litre twin-turbocharged V12 having its torque limited in first and second gears just to make it more drivable. Third gear comes as a surprise as all 900 N.m cradles you in the napes and surges you forward with an aggression that’s rather un-Aston.
The question is, then, just how much power will the V12 Vantage have? Well the Vantage F1 Edition already packs a not too shabby 387 kW from its 4,0-litre AMG-sourced V8, and it’s likely that we can expect significantly more punch in the V12 powered Coupé.
A more aggressive, aero-focused body is a given and spy shots have shown centrally mounted exhaust tips, which is cool. As with DBX707, Aston Martin’s signature grille has been enlarged in order to accommodate more efficient cooling etc, a hood bulge to accommodate the larger engine is present, and a wider track front and rear is to be expected too. Mechanically, the gearbox will likely be a strengthened ZF 8-speed torque-converter automatic and carbon-ceramic brakes covered buy lightweight wheels are likely, too.
Tobias Moers, Aston Martin’s CEO, has already confirmed that the next-generation Vantage, due in 2025, will be purely electric. This could be considered to be the swansong, then, of Aston’s ridiculously large engine in a ridiculously small sportscar recipe.
