DOUBLE EXPOSURE

Aston Martin's brand new Vantage Roadster takes on Ferrari's acclaimed Roma Spider: British muscle versus Italian flair, but which will prevail?

- JOHN BARKER

THE FORECAST IS FOR HEAVY RAIN. Of course it is. After weeks of wall-to-wall sunshine that has bleached the lawn and almost tempted us into booking a summer holiday in Skeg Vegas, it’s going to chuck it down this afternoon. And the reason for the storm clouds rolling in from the west? We've had a cracking pair of convertibles delivered and today is the photoshoot.

I’m heading to the location in the brand new Aston Martin Vantage Roadster, launched a year after the coupe. Sometimes when you chop the roof off a car you've got used to seeing as a coupe it can look a bit awkward, but the Vantage Roadster (not Volante) looks great, roof up or down. After the trend for folding hardtops, it’s refreshing to see a simple and neat, electrically powered fabric roof. Not only does this keep the weight gain down, it also means it’s quick to raise or lower. Push the button and it stows flush with the bootlid in just 6.8sec, making it the fastest powered roof on the market, says Aston. Roof up, its eight-layer construction makes it almost as refined as a hardtop, with notably superb wind noise refinement.

The Vantage Roadster was developed in parallel with the coupe and its aluminium structure features strategically placed strengthening panels to maintain integrity. Added to the powered roof, the total weight gain over the coupe is a reasonable 60kg, the mass slightly more rearward but still close to ideal at 49/51 front/rear. From the off, it feels just like the coupe, with hefty steering and an easygoing auto 'box, while its barrel-chested, twin-turbo V8 is every bit as vocal and it’s claimed that its 670bhp propels it to the same 3.6sec 0-62mph time and 202mph top speed. I'm guessing that’s with the roof up.