Aston marks 25 years of V12-powered Vanquish
Across three generations, the Vanquish has been Aston's pinnacle - and now you can buy one from £40k
There’s a level of expectation associated with calling a new car ‘Vanquish’. Even by Aston Martin’s standards, it was a bold new moniker for its new 21st-century flagship back in 2001. Previewed by the Project Vantage concept of the ‘90s and laudably close to the show stunner in real life, the Vanquish heralded the beginning of a significant new Aston Martin era. While it would be built at Newport Pagnell, every car after it would be a Gaydon product; this was the bridge between supercharged V8s and acres of walnut to aluminium architecture, new engines and a more modern Aston Martin.
The Vanquish lived up to the name, too. While not without flaw - the paddleshift was pants, the dash a bit dull - it looked sensational, made a glorious sound and drove in a fashion completely alien to the Virages and Vantages that had come before. As is often the Aston way, too, the Vanquish improved throughout its life, the 520hp S putting clear air between the top dog and the DB9 in terms of power and sharpening up the handling. The final Ultimate Editions can still command more than six figures…
At less than half that are the very cheapest Vanquishes, though you’d surely have to be pretty brave to take on a V12 Aston Martin Bond car at £39,990. Up the budget to £50k and there’s a healthier selection available, including cars that are now 25 years old and cars with the Sports Dynamic Pack. Spend £60k or more and the best examples of the 520hp Vanquish are on offer; specialists will now do a manual conversion, too, for around £20k. What a car that would be.
It says a lot about how revered the original V12 Vanquish was that plenty of examples are for sale at more than its successor, which followed after the DBS in 2012. If not as radically different this time around, the 573hp Vanquish introduced a bold new look (with carbon bodywork) and a much improved interior over what had preceded it. There was also a Vanquish Volante for the first time, a car PH described as ‘more exotic than the SLS and sportier than the Bentley’.
Almost 15 years later, the earliest examples of the second Vanquish can be bought for £60k, which seems like an awful lot of Gaydon glamour and V12 theatre for relatively little. There are Volantes from £80,000 as well. As with the first Vanquish, the second one was definitely a more desirable prospect as an S, which came along in 2016. Power was bumped to more than 600hp thanks to new inlet manifolds, with springs, dampers and bushes all tweaked to bring the handling up to snuff. It was a glorious thing if memory serves, combining the drama of a nat-asp V12 with what Aston was learning in its Second Century.
A decade later those exceptional Vanquishes, which also benefitted from the eight-speed ZF auto, are from £100k. As always with a V12 Aston Martin, though, a model like an S was really just the start as far as the special stuff was concerned. Remember the Zagatos? This generation spawned a quadrumvirate of Zagato-bodied editions: Coupe, Volante, Speedster and Shooting Brake. The Speedster is the rarest and most valuable, with just 28 ever made; the Shooting Brake is obviously the coolest, and still available with delivery mileage…
After another break for a new DBS (the good names really stick around at Aston Martin), the Vanquish returned in 2024. And as a machine to bring a much-loved nameplate to 25, the latest car is just about perfect; it’s no exaggeration to say that the third Vanquish is one of the best Aston Martins ever made. Its ability to deploy so much power and torque so effectively, while looking so suave in the process, really must be experienced to be believed. A Vanquish is a whole lot more money than it used to be, yes - but it’s a whole lot better as well.
A few are for sale already from £300,000, so it’ll be a while until they’re £100,000 or less, but that figure is a saving over the £335,000 before options list price - and there’s no wait, of course. You just have to hope the first owner hasn’t gone too crazy with the extras: Malachite Green over Ivory and Eifel Green might be a tougher sell than Aluminite Silver over Onyx. Whatever the case, an epic, emphatic Aston Martin flagship is guaranteed. Let’s hope the same remains true in another 25 years (after another couple of DBSes, of course).
The first generation has a shockingly unresolved interior, and some of the transitions between convex and concave on the outside are a bit odd from certain angles but it is the link between what Aston Martin were and what they would become.
I'd adore a manual.
The best thing for me about the Gen.1 Vanquish is that when you give it a better interior and resolve the outside surfacing you get a DB9, which then looks very tame compared to the aggression of the Vanquish, so I guess it's imperfection is the charm of the design.
Modern Aston's do nothing for me, but then most modern cars don't so that's not really Aston's fault.
There's some weird proportions going on and even in the "resolved" Ian Callum spec, I'm just not sure. But hey, I don't think the E-Type is as fantastic looking as some preach so don't take my word for it(!)
Of the three, I prefer the latest generation though I will say the V12 howl of them all is brilliant.
For me, the DB9 and subsequent DBS were the best resolutions of that AM shape that originated on the DB7. Genuinely elegant and in DBS form, nice and aggressive.
The trick, as Clarkson failed to appreciate, is to lift slightly on the change up - it is a manual after all.
I've disconnected the bypass valves (no fuse 22) and it sounds like a Vulcan bomber.
It can be niggly, but most of the parts can be sourced from Jag or Ford and there is a growing expertise in keeping these Gen 1 Vanqs running and vaguely affordable.
Here's mine. Sadly, that's the dealer, not my garage.
The trick, as Clarkson failed to appreciate, is to lift slightly on the change up - it is a manual after all.
I've disconnected the bypass valves (no fuse 22) and it sounds like a Vulcan bomber.
It can be niggly, but most of the parts can be sourced from Jag or Ford and there is a growing expertise in keeping these Gen 1 Vanqs running and vaguely affordable.
Here's mine. Sadly, that's the dealer, not my garage.
There's some weird proportions going on and even in the "resolved" Ian Callum spec, I'm just not sure. But hey, I don't think the E-Type is as fantastic looking as some preach so don't take my word for it(!)
Of the three, I prefer the latest generation though I will say the V12 howl of them all is brilliant.
For me, the DB9 and subsequent DBS were the best resolutions of that AM shape that originated on the DB7. Genuinely elegant and in DBS form, nice and aggressive.
Gen 2 for me all day long. A far better resolved car in all respects.
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