Aston Martin Vantage V8

Aston’s Porsche 911 competitor is rapidly falling in price. The V8 Vantage is similar in structure, styling and performance to the larger V12-powered DB9, but is much more affordable and now available for little more than $100,000 on the secondhand market.

Launched in 2005, the two seater “Baby Aston” V8 Vantage must not be be confused with the uprated “Vantage” specification that has been available on V8 Astons since the 1970s. The new car is a model in its own right and is available as either a coupé or roadster. The Vantage has a bonded aluminium structure for strength and lightness. This technique was developed by Lotus for its Elise and then developed by Aston Martin for larger and more luxurious cars.

Since 2008, the Vantage V8 has packed a 4.7 litre 420 hp (313 kW) V8. However, the first cars were powered by a 4.3 litre quad-cam 32-valve V8 which produced 380 hp (280 kW) at 7,300 rpm and 302 lb·ft (409 N·m) at 5,000 rpm. More recently, the Vantage has been made available with the V12 fitted to the DB9. The original V8 Vantage could accelerate to 60 mph (97 km/h) in 4.7 and run out to 175 mph (282 km/h). It is this, increasing affordable, model that we will focus on here.

Before the global financial crisis, both Aston and Jaguar were part of Ford’s Premier Automotive Group. This common ownership is reflected in the Aston’s engine being based (fairly loosely) on Jaguar’s AJ-V8 engine architecture, albeit with dry-sump lubrication to allow the engine to sit low in the engine bay and unique features to the block, the heads, engine management and much else besides. The post-2008 engine is essentially the same motor but with thinner liners allowing a bigger bore.

In accordance with Aston practice, the engine was front-mounted. However, their engine was well set back in the body and there was a rear-mounted transaxle (six speed manual as standard, ‘sportshift’ an option that was introduced a little later) giving a 49/51 front/rear weight distribution. Slotted Brembo brakes were also standard to keep the show under control.

The car inevitably draws comparisons with the Porsche 911. The two vehicles are similar in size and performance and Ulrich Bez, Aston Martin’s CEO during the development of the Vantage was also architect of the 993 version of the Porsche 911. However, the heritage, packaging, styling and production numbers of the cars are entirely different. Porsche produced ten 911s for every V8 Vantage manufactured. The Porsche is a more engaging drive and easier to live with. However, it is not as stunning or distinctive to look at.

To see the Vantage (albeit a V12) on video, have a look at the finale of Series 13 of Top Gear. The landscape, the car, the noise and the camera work are superb.