Heritage, you can’t fake that, you either have it or you don’t. At Aston Martin, their heritage stretches back to 1913 and for the Vantage nameplate it’s as early as 1950. Over the decades since then, the Aston Martin Vantage has embodied all of the divine qualities for which this evocative name has become renowned.
Style, performance and character are three qualities that this Cosmos Orange Aston Martin Vantage possesses in vast amounts. Overall, this Vantage stands 30mm wider than its predecessor and has a redesigned front-end featuring a larger recontoured veined grille aperture, offering an increase in mass airflow for additional cooling. From a practicality perspective the front carbon fibre lip has good clearance, so there’s less need to worry about those bumps in the road. The highly evolved Aluminium structure underpinning the Vantage offers perfect 50:50 weight distribution and state-of-the-art suspension provide the foundation for a definitive driving experience.
The new Vantage also sees a return of the iconic Aston Martin side strake, which now forms the sharp focal point of revised vents in each flank. In addition to its Q Special paint, this Vantage also has the upper and lower gloss 2×2 twill carbon fibre body package, black vanes on the front spoiler, a gloss 2×2 twill carbon fibre roof panel, and smoked taillights on the wider rear bumper that incorporates side vents and larger diameter quad exhaust tailpipes.
One optional feature that really should be fitted as standard equipment on the Vantage are the presenting door handles. Because without them you have to guess where to push to open the door handle and this may lead to scratches on the paintwork over time. But a cool feature on the Aston Martin doors though is they move up when you open them to avoid catching on a kerb and they can remain open at any point along their arc of travel.
The Aston Martin Vantage is powered by a heavily reworked, hand-built 4.0 litre, Twin-Turbo V8 engine that has had the biggest-ever jump in power and torque compared to the model it succeeds, with 30% more power and 15% more torque. These higher outputs have been achieved through extensive tuning by Aston Martin engineers, the adoption of modified cam profiles, optimised compression ratios, larger turbos with water-to-air-charge cooling, and increased cooling. The engine is a masterpiece with amazing performance and no perceivable turbo lag.
The front mid mounted engine now produces 489kW at 6,000rpm and 800Nm between 2,750 – 6,000rpm. The new Vantage is the fastest in the nameplate’s history and this rear-wheel drive quintessential Aston Martin sports car will do 0-100km/h in just 3.5 seconds and goes on to a top speed of 325km/h, but nothing about the Vantage feels overwhelming. The lack of any electrification means the Vantage not only retains all the visceral and vocal character of the magnificent V8 engine, it also is light in modern super car terms at just 1,605kg in lightweight dry spec. The official combined fuel economy for the Vantage is 12.1 L/100km and for time with it I used 14.8L/100km.
The engine is mated to a rear mounted eight-speed a ZF automatic transmission via carbon fibre prop shaft. State-of-the-art dampers with a 500% increase in bandwidth of force distribution over previous generation offer an immense range of control and speed of response, which has allowed Aston Martin’s vehicle attributes engineers to sharpen the Vantage’s dynamics to their keenest possible edge with lovely direct steering. There’s very little loss of traction when you really put your foot down hard, just a little wiggle from the rear Michelin Pilot Sport S 5 AML 325/30 21-inch tyres that have been specially designed in a joint project with Michelin and the Aston Martin engineering teams.
Combined with the electronic rear limited slip differential (E-Diff) and Electronic Stability Program (ESP) Vantage has the capability to adapt from the demands of the tarmac under its tyres at the twist of a switch and flatters the driver while doing it. The drive modes available include Wet, Sport, Sport+, Track, and Individual and when you switch the drive mode the hue of the stunning looking digital driver’s dash also changes. Under the Individual mode you can configure the drive, exhaust and steering to your preferred liking and there are switches on the centre console to override Chassis, ESP and Exhaust settings. The Vantage rides nicely and is not harsh at all in Sport mode, but obviously as you twist up to Sport+ and Race mode it does get firmer.
To pull this Vantage up quickly it has the optional Carbon Ceramic Brakes (CCB), with 410mm x 38mm Carbon Ceramic Discs on the front and 360mm x 38mm Carbon Ceramic Discs on the rear. They provide increased braking performance and reduced brake fade at temperatures of up to 800 °C and fitting CCB also saves 27kg in unsprung mass compared to the cast-iron braking system, which in turn improves ride quality and steering response.
Despite all the power and performance of the Vantage, I would not call it a hard-core sports car it’s a gentleman’s, or in my case, a lady’s sports car. Every surface that you can see or touch has a feeling of quality about it. The Accelerate interior trim features Haircell Leather in Dark Knight and an Alcantara headliner, so the cabin has that familiar Aston Martin aroma of expensive leather. In addition to the Carbon Fibre Performance Seats, which hold you in very firmly, there were a few more cabin features I particularly liked. These were the lovely slender metal steering wheel paddle shifters for manually changing gears in the eight-speed transmission, the satin 2×2 twill carbon fibre bits throughout the cabin, and the metal speaker covers.
Both seats are heated and have power adjustment for recline and seat height with three memory positions with the controls located within easy reach on the side of the console. You manually move the seats forward and back using the strap between your legs and this adds to the race car feel as you can sit down very low in the Vantage, if you wish to?
Vantage is the second model to feature Aston Martin’s next-generation infotainment system that has been created in-house and was first introduced in DB12. The touchscreen commands are balanced with the positive tactility of physical switches, with buttons retained for the key mechanical operations of gear selection, drive selection, heating and ventilation.
You get wireless Apple CarPlay and wired Android Auto, the latter working well for me, as did the voice control. There’s a wireless charge pad under the centre console bridge and two USB-C ports are located under the arm rest along with one 12V socket also and room for your phone or the lovely Aston Martin key fob. In front of the arm rest there are two cup holders and the door cubbies can fit a drink bottle lying flat or your sunglasses.
This Vantage also has the optional sound system developed by Aston Martin’s audio partner, Bowers & Wilkins and it’s stunning. It features Aluminium Double Dome tweeters and Continuum midrange speakers give this 15-speaker, double amplified 1,170W surround sound system a balanced and accurate sound. The dedicated 3D headline speakers and a powerful subwoofer deliver a sound experience as dynamic and potent as the Vantage itself.
From a practicality standpoint, the Vantage boot lid has power assist open and manual close with a button in the cabin and key fob, but no release from the boot itself. The boot is a good size for boring stuff like the groceries or for something nicer like luggage for a weekend away and there’s he obligatory tyre repair kit also located here. You can also access the parcel shelf from the cabin so you can place your handbag or some other small type luggage on there as well.
The Advanced Driver Assistance Systems fitted to the Aston Martin Vantage Coupe include Forward Collision Warning, Autonomous Emergency Braking, Adaptive Cruise control with Stop & Go function, Lane Departure Warning, Lane Keep Assist, Blind Spot Monitoring, and Rear Cross Traffic Assist. There are also override switches for the Lane Assist and Park Distance Control, if you would prefer to switch these off and there is the option to deactivate all driver assist features. For convenience the Vantage has auto Matrix Headlamps with auto high beam and auto wipers and a standard rear-view camera combined with a 360-degree 3D view camera and front and rear parking sensors.
All new Aston Martin vehicles come with a three-year unlimited kilometre with roadside assistance and an extended warranty can also be purchased. The service interval for Astons is every 12 months or 16,000km whichever occurs first and a major service is completed every four years.
Aston Martin possess the ability to blend old and new together in perfect balance and have once again demonstrated this with the new Vantage Coupe. The starting price for the Aston Marton Vantage Coupe is $410,000 before on-road costs and owners have the option to make their Vantage Coupe truly unique like this Cosmos Orange example by using Q by Aston Martin bespoke service. You can configure your Aston Martin Vantage Coupe online or visit your nearest Aston Martin dealer for more information.
| Pros | Cons |
| The power and performance on offer | The presenting door handles should be fitted as standard |
| The look | There’s no external boot release button |
| The many beautiful details in the cabin | There isn’t one permanently in my garage |
Photographs by Driven Women Magazine.