Aston Martin V12 Vantage Roadster: Spotted
How better to bid farewell to the old Aston V12 than a manual gearbox and no roof?
V12 and a manual
But which one? The Virage is quite rare, the latest Vanquish and Vantage S the most powerful and the DB7 Vantage the first. But eventually a V12 Vantage Roadster was settled on. This V12 Vantage Roadster to be precise, in Amethyst Red Pearl.
The Roadster is a curious car. It was launched three years after the original V12 Vantage coupe, and only 100 were produced. Compare that to the V12 S that succeeded it, where the hard top and roadster were announced just over 12 months apart with no restrictions on availability. Furthermore, it combines the more relaxed and less focused Roadster form with the hairy chested and quite unruly V12 Vantage powertrain. Manual only, remember. It's rather an odd mix.
It's impossible to comment on just how oddly this mix drives without having been in one, but that seems almost immaterial looking at it. Yes, it's a familiar shape and, yes, there's new Aston design language coming, but it would be doing well to look this good. The proportions, the details, the overall shape; everything about the Vantage just works.
A rare sight indeed
Such is the scarcity of V12 Roadsters and this car's measly mileage, it's actually for sale at more than what a new V12 Vantage S would cost. That's where the case for the older car becomes tougher. The S is more powerful and more dynamically resolved, plus you would have the advantage of speccing it exactly to your taste if this doesn't suit.
But with the 5.9-litre V12 finally meeting its demise, don't be surprised to see certain versions become more desirable. This car has looks, the limited edition status and the manual gearbox in its favour, which bodes well for future values. And there have to be people wealthy enough to afford it who like the colour, right?
ASTON MARTIN V12 VATAGE ROADSTER
Engine: 5,935cc, V12
Transmission: 6-speed manual, rear-wheel drive
Power (hp): 517@6,500rpm
Torque (lb ft): 420@5,750rpm
MPG: N/A
CO2: 388g/km
First registered: 2013
Recorded mileage: 144
Price new: N/A
Yours for: £154,850
See the original advert here.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
[Specs: Carfolio]
100% agreement.http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...
When I was looking to buy a coupe, I was offered a very low mileage Morning Frost car with bright red dash. I'm no fan of white, although Morning Frost is as good as white gets, but the dash was not something I could have lived with. I therefore bought a new one with safe black interior and grey exterior (Meteorite SIlver, according to AM - grey according to me).
http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2015...
Colours on this one are weird. Not truly horrible, but not a timeless combination either. Bit like the taste of chocolate and chilli.
They made 101 of these cars not 100. In fact they tried selling a few more (the demonstrators) in addition to the planned 101 run, but after owners complained to the factory, the demonstrators ended up being included in the run of 101, which are all individually numbered as 'x of 101'. There are very approx 35 cars that were RHD UK registered IIRC, the rest mostly being in mainland Europe, although the odd car went elsewhere (one in South Africa and I think one in Chile for instance)
It's surprisingly well balanced on track and has scared a few more track focussed cars. The lightweight seats are on perhaps about 1/3rd of the cars
Perhaps not surprisingly given my post, I am an owner - I've had mine since new, it's done 22,000 miles and I hope never to have to sell it !
Many of the cars, particularly the UK cars, are still owned by the original buyers and in turn, that meant many had unique options - I chose to have my wheels painted all silver for instance rather than the only 'official' wheel which is two tone.
I am only aware of 2 V12 roadsters with diamond quilted stitching (in fact I'm only aware of 2 vantages full stop which have factory diamond quilt stitch) - it was done by Q - this car in the feature which has diamond quilted stitch regular seats and my car which has diamond quilted stitch lightweight carbon seats.
Amongst a variety of Q options, I chose to have a different gearstick, going for a customised version of the leather stubby stick in the V8 manual instead of the large metal stick in the V12 which tends to get both very hot and very cold depending upon the conditions
And yes, I'm slightly obsessed with my car.....must be love !
Oh and I'm not sure I agree with the comment about the roadster being more relaxed and less focussed - other than a touch more weight, the only difference to the coupe is very marginal changes to the suspension settings. Traction is a touch better than the coupe's IMO. Scuttle shake and rigidity compromises are almost non existent and I've done full days on track at Spa, Imola & Silverstone in mine
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff