Aston Martin chose Paris to launch its new "Automated Manual" Transmission for the V8 Vantage. It's called the "Sportshift".
The system adds electo-hydraulic control to the standard six speed 'box and it controlled by paddles behind the steering wheel.
Aston's top bod, Dr Ulrich Bez raved: “Sportshift offers a truly engaging and rewarding driving experience giving an even greater performance feel. It is the sporting choice which we have developed to perfectly suit the inherent characteristics of the Vantage.”
Aston engineers have been developing it for 18 months at Nardo in Italy and the N?rburgring.
The system also comes with a low speed ‘crawl’ feature, which acts as a manoeuvring aid, gently engaging the clutch to move the car up to 4mph – allowing the driver to focus on positioning rather than throttle control when parking. Additionally, Sportshift includes a user-selected ‘Auto Drive’ mode, which, when operated, takes full control of the timing of all changes.