Vantage - Something Interesting Is Coming...
Discussion
It used to be possible to find the engine size from a DVLA check, but in recent years they must have reached a deal with the industry, to withhold some car details of manufacturers development cars.
Therefore all that we can find, is this development car was first registered 17th October 2017, it passed its first MoT on 8th October 2020 at 32,794 miles.
All of which is of no help at all.
Might be a V12 TT, because we were told that engine would fit.
Presumably more powerful, note wider rear tyres.
The points though are, it would have more front weight and there are versions of the M-B V8 TT which can produce V12 type power outputs, so why do it?
Ooooo - very interesting indeed...
The points though are, it would have more front weight and there are versions of the M-B V8 TT which can produce V12 type power outputs, so why do it?Because there I am sure quite a few buyers who would buy the V12TT version, but wouldnt buy a MB V8 version even if it had more power and less weight.
Still cynical they will - such a car would not seem to follow the new management teams current trajectory.
Jon39 said:
The points though are, it would have more front weight and there are versions of the M-B V8 TT which can produce V12 type power outputs, so why do it?
Still cynical they will - such a car would not seem to follow the new management teams current trajectory.
That looks great!
Personally I would be very surprised if it’s a TT V12, although it would be fantastic news if it is. Could it be a hotter version of the AMG V8? Have MB relaxed the engine choices now available to AM? An “S” version or a perhaps a new GT8?
Kevin why do you say it’s not a V8? The noise it made?
Sorry for all the questions, but it looks exciting whatever it is!
Best Regards
Minglar
Personally I would be very surprised if it’s a TT V12, although it would be fantastic news if it is. Could it be a hotter version of the AMG V8? Have MB relaxed the engine choices now available to AM? An “S” version or a perhaps a new GT8?
Kevin why do you say it’s not a V8? The noise it made?
Sorry for all the questions, but it looks exciting whatever it is!
Best Regards
Minglar
Minglar said:
That looks great!
Personally I would be very surprised if it’s a TT V12, although it would be fantastic news if it is. Could it be a hotter version of the AMG V8? Have MB relaxed the engine choices now available to AM? An “S” version or a perhaps a new GT8?
Kevin why do you say it’s not a V8? The noise it made?
Sorry for all the questions, but it looks exciting whatever it is!
Best Regards
Minglar
There was a standard car out at the same time which made a very AMG V8 sound, this car sounded very different with higher pitched sound. I really hope it is the V12TT not a AMG 4 Hybrid...Personally I would be very surprised if it’s a TT V12, although it would be fantastic news if it is. Could it be a hotter version of the AMG V8? Have MB relaxed the engine choices now available to AM? An “S” version or a perhaps a new GT8?
Kevin why do you say it’s not a V8? The noise it made?
Sorry for all the questions, but it looks exciting whatever it is!
Best Regards
Minglar
Surely you cant mistake the f@rt of a 4pot with the V12TT ?
Well done taking the pics Kevin! Or are they stills from a video recording?
Could be a limited-run GT12 version. Bonnet gives it away + central exhaust.....What did it sound like? The new flat plane AMG V8 actually sounds like a 4cyl....
At first the front reminded me of a mini-DBS....looks like someone took at AM took that advice. Looks great.
Could be a limited-run GT12 version. Bonnet gives it away + central exhaust.....What did it sound like? The new flat plane AMG V8 actually sounds like a 4cyl....
At first the front reminded me of a mini-DBS....looks like someone took at AM took that advice. Looks great.
Edited by AlexT on Tuesday 10th August 03:31
Edited by AlexT on Tuesday 10th August 03:34
I wonder how they made the ZF 8HP transmission fit, since it meant giving the V12 Speedster a longer wheelbase to accommodate it, assuming the torque is more than 516lb/ft. The idea of an extra 115kg in the Vantage and little more grunt than the V8 will develop, I'm not sure what the value is (and it would be priced beyond what would-be buyers deem acceptable).
When we consider the luke warm reception the AE31 V12 had because of it being turbocharged, and with the OPF now in place, it's not like it's going to make a noise that will be approved of (though I thought the engine sounded ace in both my DB11 and the DBS).
I didn't think the interior was getting an overhaul this side of the car being replaced in its entirety in a few years - so the iPad / fish mouth / beady headlights would remain. Perhaps it's just that an extra 4 cylinders makes buyers forget styling details. More likely IMO, it's a development mule for the heated up V8 Vantage (somewhere in the region of 650bhp). If that's a case, like the F1 Edition it'll probably be another variant of the Vantage that doesn't attract the traditional enthusiast, because of the origins of the engine.
When we consider the luke warm reception the AE31 V12 had because of it being turbocharged, and with the OPF now in place, it's not like it's going to make a noise that will be approved of (though I thought the engine sounded ace in both my DB11 and the DBS).
I didn't think the interior was getting an overhaul this side of the car being replaced in its entirety in a few years - so the iPad / fish mouth / beady headlights would remain. Perhaps it's just that an extra 4 cylinders makes buyers forget styling details. More likely IMO, it's a development mule for the heated up V8 Vantage (somewhere in the region of 650bhp). If that's a case, like the F1 Edition it'll probably be another variant of the Vantage that doesn't attract the traditional enthusiast, because of the origins of the engine.
AlexT said:
I think you could be right NFC Vette....but why the central exhausts? I find the traditional placement looks far superior.
The development prototypes get used for all manner of things - the centre exit exhaust of course made its way onto the V12 Speedster, but I wouldn't place any bets on this particular mule being the forerunner to a series production Vantage with an AE31 engine. It could just as easily be testing different geometry for larger rear rubber (which looks to be the case, 305 section if those are still DBS wheels). If you don't have billions of pounds to spend on R&D, you re-purpose existing development mules where you can.If it does end up being a series production V12 Vantage, it's likely to offer similar performance to the V12 Speedster, which had the torque pegged back partly for tractability, but also I suspect because the ZF box that can fit in the Vantage, wont tolerate the 900Nm the AE31 could produce if it was allowed to. That being the case, IMO it wouldn't offer enough of a performance enhancement over the F1 Edition to make it worth doing. It would likely not have the handling prowess of the V8 - but I suppose to address the elephant in the room, the last gen V12 Vantage didn't handle as well as the V8, and yet nobody batted an eyelid...
Truthfully, in its current guise I don't think there's going to be a variant of the Vantage that makes existing VH Vantage owners trade their current cars in. I'd love to be proved wrong, and I'm hopeful the all-new Vantage in 2025 (or whever it is) is the car that last gen car owners might actually find desirable.
NFC 85 Vette said:
The development prototypes get used for all manner of things - the centre exit exhaust of course made its way onto the V12 Speedster ......
I think it was you Jon who mentioned this, but I cannot find the post now.
I did not know anything about particulate filters being fitted to the exhaust systems of petrol engine cars. It seems to apply to >10,000 production manufacturers. However, the VW Group have instructed all their subsidiaries to fit them (memories of their diesel indiscretion perhaps) even though Lamborghini builds fewer than 10,000 cars pa.
It seems that new Lamborghinis, will never sound the same again.
NFC 85 Vette said:
Truthfully, in its current guise I don't think there's going to be a variant of the Vantage that makes existing VH Vantage owners trade their current cars in.
Every time I see new vantage on the road the wow factor goes up. Spotted one today, dark colour although no idea which one, looked stunning. Makes previous model look very dated.
Incidentally the car pictured in this thread is indeed a V12.
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