RE: AMV8

Monday 26th September 2005

Aston Martin V8 Vantage

Ian Kuah samples the best Aston ever


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Italians love cars, especially sportscars. We were left in no doubt of that as we burbled through the villages of Tuscany with locals of all ages often pausing to smile and wave in celebration of our passage. We could see the words 'Bella machina' being mouthed by more than one local.

Today we are driving the V8 Vantage, the baby Aston Martin that will plunge the British firm into a head-on conflict with Porsche, and first impressions are very favourable indeed.

While turbocharged and supercharged engines may deliver heroic levels of torque, if you are a purist who values crisp throttle response, there is no simply no substitute for a sharp, normally-aspirated motor like the all-new 4.3 litre Aston Martin V8. Delivering its 380bhp at 7,000rpm with 410Nm (302 lb ft) of torque at 5,000rpm, it rockets the 1,570kg V8 Vantage to 100km/h in just 5.0 sec (0-60mph in 4.8 sec) and on to a top speed of 280km/h (175mph).

Delivery

Although peak torque is developed quite high up in the rev range, the linear torque characteristics of the new motor endow it with good flexibility on the road. To prove the point, we dropped the car into sixth gear at low speed and let the revs fall to 1,200rpm. The variable inlet camshaft timing and fully mapped ignition and fuelling really makes a difference here, and as we fed throttle in progressively, the small block V8 began to build thrust smoothly. By 1,500rpm, it was becoming noticeably strong. Once past 2,000rpm, power and torque really began to soar and we were cooking with gas again.

Mid-range is lusty, so when you are overtaking, you do not have to tap into the upper reaches of the intermediate gears unless you really want to. If you do, the motor is quite happy to sing to peak power at 7,000rpm and beyond. Thanks to the relatively light single-mass flywheel, the motor also answers a blip on the throttle at idle with alacrity and revs eagerly.

Soundtrack is always an issue with enthusiasts' cars and for those who have got used to the magnificent V12 motor in recent Astons, the new small V8 will be a culture shock. Unlike the old Virage, the V8 Vantage does not shake the ground when it starts up. Its soundtrack is altogether more polite and less old school thunder, but is inspiring nonetheless.

On the Move

Accelerate away and the sound builds to a note more akin to a combination of distant rumble and ripping silk rather than deep NASCAR rumble. That said there is no mistaking the underlying harmonics of a bent-crank V8. We decided to call it 'V8 lite' but it gives the small Aston a distinct aural signature of its own that will never be mistaken for that of any other V8 powered car.

Balance is a strong suit of the V8 Vantage. The all-new alloy V8 motor is positioned very far back in the chassis resulting in a front-mid-engined car.

With its gearbox disposed in a transaxle layout akin to that of the Ferrari Daytona and Porsche 928, the small Aston achieves a static weight distribution of 49/51 percent empty. With a full tank of fuel, the weight bias shifts rearwards slightly, which helps traction, as does the standard limited slip differential.

One aspect of 'balance' in a chassis is the turn-in rate of the front-end in relation to the rear. If everything is in harmony, the car will feel all-of-a-piece when you move off centre. This inherent balance translates into fantastic poise on the open road. Under all circumstances, the V8 Vantage feels taut and nuggety and all of a piece, like a racing bulldog if you must, but totally different in character and effect from its two bigger brothers.

Soaking it up

The test route in the Tuscany hills included some very badly maintained roads that really tested the V8's suspension travel. This first ever hatchback Aston Martin turns into a bend eagerly whether it is a cursory turn of the steering at normal road speeds or a committed move towards the apex under trail braking when you are really pushing on. The limited slip differential helps to keep breakaway progressive when you eventually broach the limits of mechanical grip, something hard to achieve on a dry road unless you are really trying.

The 8.5J and 9.5J x 18-inch 10-spoke alloys are shod with 235/45ZR18 and 275/40ZR18 Bridgestone Potenzas. Our test cars had the optional seven-spoke 8.5J and 9.5J x 19-inch alloys with 235/40ZR19 and 275/35ZR19 rubber and the resulting ride is firm, well damped but never jiggly. Let's face it, no sportscar with low profile tyres is going to ride like a limousine and the Aston does a fair job of keeping your spine from being shortened on a bumpy road while maintaining iron-fisted control of the wheels and tyres.

The pedals are perfectly positioned for heel and toe operation and while the gearshift is not the slickest in town, it has a lovely mechanical feel to it with a shift rate that suits the action of the other controls.

Slowing

The brakes are an interesting lesson in the chassis engineers constant trade-off between pedal feel and stopping power. With 355mm grooved, vented discs in front and 330mm vented discs at the rear, each clamped by a four-pot calliper, brake pedal effort is higher than most people are used to. However, this also means that when an experienced driver uses the brakes in anger, the progression on tap is far greater than the vast majority of servo-assisted systems, and the perceived threshold at which the ABS eventually kicks in is that much higher.

The only downside is that actual pedal feel is not world class, but in practice that is more of a subjective rather than an objective problem. Too many of today's cars are over servoed, and that can be just as frightening for a driver as the pedal being like a block of wood. Aston has set up the V8's brakes to feel more like a non-assisted system with a twin master cylinder.

In a sense, the same can be said for the steering. Not the most informative in terms of describing the road surface, it is nonetheless nicely weighted and linear in its action. In the real world, we value that linearity and perfectly matched turn-in rate over the sharper steering with twitchy chassis responses of a car like the Ferrari 360 Modena.

A driver's car

We were very impressed with the Aston Martin V8 Vantage as a driver's car. Its performance is good, character is abundant, and it has balance, finesse and even handed strengths. It also has a class and breeding that sets it apart from its similarly priced German rivals.

That this is a really good car that needs no excuses is the over-riding consideration for us. The V8 Vantage is the real deal, a world-class sports car, and also undoubtedly the best car Aston Martin has ever made.

Author
Discussion

bunglist

Original Poster:

545 posts

229 months

Monday 26th September 2005
quotequote all
This looks fantastic, but then again apart from the Lagonda what Aston doesn't!!!!!:hehe:

Does not compare to a porsche the Aston is in a different league!!!

I really want one of these and they are going to be a reasonable price.

Nice one Aston Martin!!!!!!!!!

potatoboy666

108 posts

229 months

Monday 26th September 2005
quotequote all
yea its gorgeous - it's going to be a hit

>> Edited by potatoboy666 on Tuesday 27th September 20:55

Stamp

3,583 posts

235 months

Monday 26th September 2005
quotequote all
Looks good. Not sure on the sign writing.... At least it's PH!!

wedgie

444 posts

262 months

Monday 26th September 2005
quotequote all
Dear Santa

I have been a very good boy this year, so I was wondering if you could see your way to bringing something a bit special with you this Christmas.

If you do I promise I won't drive that noisy TVR and annoy the neighbours ever again (except at weekends).

Wedgie

PS - Don't scratch the paintwork brining it down the chimney, just leave it outside and drop the keys the keys through the letterbox, there's a good chap.

raftom

1,196 posts

260 months

Monday 26th September 2005
quotequote all
Absolutely filthy pornography:



RameshUK

591 posts

261 months

Monday 26th September 2005
quotequote all
Beautiful....excellent descriptive review.

The choice of font fo the logo is questionable...but it did grow on me after a while. Looks a bit 1980's.

I love eveything else....tight lines...well engineered...good attention to detail.

Looks a lot more road friendly ...especially for us Londoners.

Now how do I 'legally' get my hands on one ???
(...I know I'll start a website devoted to car fanatics....oh I forgot it's already been done !)

errek72

943 posts

245 months

Monday 26th September 2005
quotequote all
Yup, definitely car porn.
Now how about some pics with the Aston chasing an Alfa 8C?
Rrrrrrr.

Tiger

769 posts

233 months

Monday 26th September 2005
quotequote all
bunglist said:
This looks fantastic, but then again apart from the Lagonda what Aston doesn't!!!!!

Does not compare to a porsche the Aston is in a different league!!!

I really want one of these and they are going to be a reasonable price.

Nice one Aston Martin!!!!!!!!!


I've got a build spot, do you want it cause I can't afford it

Bill Carr

2,234 posts

233 months

Monday 26th September 2005
quotequote all
That is a great colour for it. Tasty.

twerlie

1,682 posts

266 months

Tuesday 27th September 2005
quotequote all
Right.....that's it, I'm selling my fiance cause i gotta get me one of these!

naumanf1

48 posts

231 months

Tuesday 27th September 2005
quotequote all
Love the looks of the car, it just makes it pointless to buy a DB9 or a Vanquish, cause all three look the same.
As for the engine being "all-new", I don't quite agree to that, since this is a warmed up Jaguar 4.2 liter V8.
As for the best Aston ever, that remains to be seen. As far as Aston Vantages go, nothing beats the mid-90's Vantage in my book, brute looks and brute power. Love it.

Twin Turbo

5,544 posts

265 months

Tuesday 27th September 2005
quotequote all
errec72 - great minds think alike. The Alfa 8c would be a superb rival to the AMV8, if only they would build it. At the moment, they both live in my dream garage

I know the 911 is the benchmark in this market, but for me, the real rival is currently the Maserati 4200 GranSport. Great looks, a similar engine layout/config, similar performance and both marques have a heritage to die for.

(BTW, the current Maranello demo car - a metallic black GranSport with a black n' burgandy interior, also sits alongside the other 2 in my dream garage!)

tvrman

359 posts

283 months

Tuesday 27th September 2005
quotequote all
Does anyone know how long the waiting list is ?

When can the public get to drive one ?

Ian

V8 Kieran

968 posts

252 months

Tuesday 27th September 2005
quotequote all
The local dealer is taking £2500 deposits for Jan '07, or alternatively speak to Tiger (see above post!)

dinkel

26,884 posts

257 months

Tuesday 27th September 2005
quotequote all
Twin Turbo said:

I know the 911 is the benchmark in this market, but for me, the real rival is currently the Maserati 4200 GranSport.



AM V8 for me then . . .

Nice V8 for TVR to use? To keep it a British affair? Sorry to hijack . . .

Interior looks spot on. Dimensions are better than the bigger V12s imo . . . Adult'll fit on the backseats . . . just like in the M6 backseats are ideal to drop a shoppingbag or two.

Edit to change M5 to M6 . . . stupid.

>> Edited by dinkel on Tuesday 27th September 11:01

dick dastardly

8,312 posts

262 months

Tuesday 27th September 2005
quotequote all
I'd happily pay half the asking price for those instrument dials alone. They're beautiful.

Muncher

12,219 posts

248 months

Tuesday 27th September 2005
quotequote all
One thing that strikes me is the amount of empty space in the engine bay, is this to occomodate the supercharger? The DB9 engine bay is absolutely packed in comparison.

Twin Turbo

5,544 posts

265 months

Tuesday 27th September 2005
quotequote all
An "S" version is tipped to be on its way. It would make sense to have a supercharger as both Jaguar and Range Rover use supercharged versions of this engine.

dinkel

26,884 posts

257 months

Tuesday 27th September 2005
quotequote all
Muncher said:
One thing that strikes me is the amount of empty space in the engine bay, is this to occomodate the supercharger? The DB9 engine bay is absolutely packed in comparison.


Surely there's no space for a V12 . . . supercharged and 500 horses makes an M6 beater . . .

cathalm

606 posts

243 months

Tuesday 27th September 2005
quotequote all
Twin Turbo said:
An "S" version is tipped to be on its way. It would make sense to have a supercharger as both Jaguar and Range Rover use supercharged versions of this engine.


Every time there's people insisting its a Jag engine! They started with the Jag 4.2 V8, then rebuilt it form the block up changing virtually everything, then actually changed the block itself. The internal dimensions themeselves are not even the same, which makes this, by any definition, a new engine. Of course they can supercharge this new engine, but i wouldn't bet against turbocharging with the current turbo technology eliminating lag and the greater efficiency of turbos.