We drove the Aston Martin Vantage on the track after the SL and XK, and it was the first in this group to feel like it belonged there. Unlike the first two, you can imagine a Vantage owner booking himself a trackday, and you can feel the underlying promise for the racing versions Aston Martin has produced. It makes this year’s test because it has been substantially revised, its naturally aspirated V8 growing by 400cc to 4.7 liters and by 40bhp to 420 bhp. Ours was equipped with the Sportshift automated manual transmission and the Sports Pack suspension; stiffer spring, revised Bilstein dampers, revised rear anti-roll bar and light weight, forged 20 inch rims. With that lot, it ought to do well on a track. It looks the same as the old car, and has same disappointing view down the bonnet. The SL and XK leave you no doubt that you are about to drive the brawny, front-engined car, but in Aston Martin all you can see is a pair of artlessly arranged windscreen wipers. Yet there’s no doubting the Vantage’s credentials once you are underway. The noise is still intoxicating over 4000rpm but there is now proper supercar pace. It lapped Anglesey in 1 min 3.9 sec, just seven tenth slower than the lighter 911.
The Vantage feels faster then its claimed 4.9 sec 0-60mph time, perhaps a combination of the noise and the brutally hard upshifts. And the engine isn’t as mannered as the SL’s or XK’s; when it isn’t being drowned out by the bellowing exhaust, a surprising amount of mechanical thrash makes its way back to the cabin.Your first few minutes on the road makes you wonder what price you have to pay for the chassis’ composure on the track. At low speeds and on poor surfaces the Vantage- in Sports Pack trim at least- develops an insufferable jiggle and the steering wheel writhes over every imperfection.
Last 5 posts by fahad majidi
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