Advantage, Aston

Mighty twin-turbo V8 up front, two seats in the middle … and the back? You can make that do whatever you want

- Matt Prior

“Is it better than the Porsche 911?” That’s the question Aston Martin boss Andy Palmer asks his engineers and it’s not an unreasonable one for you to ask, too.

And the answer is? Well, as they’ll tell him and I’ll tell you over the next three pages, it’s not that simple. In some ways, yes, it is better; in many ways, no, it isn’t; but, for the most part, it’s just different. And that’s fine. 

Where are we, then? Two models into the Second Century Plan which will see a new Aston launched every year until 2022, when the cycle begins again. It’ll be a range of sportscars under constant reinvention, with profits from the first providing the investment to develop the next. Like a normal car company. “It’s not rocket science,” says Palmer.

First, then, was the DB11, the big, comfy grand tourer, at one end of the sportscar scale, and now there’s the Vantage, which sits at the other end, but using a fair degree of DB11 parts.

It’s a strict two-seater, with a Mercedes-AMG 4,0-litre twin-turbocharged V8 engine sourced from Aston’s partner (and part-owner) in the front, and power going from there to the back via an eight-speed transaxle torque-converter gearbox and an electronically controlled limited-slip differential.

To see beneath the new Vantage’s skin is to see the advances Aston has made since the old VH architecture died and the new, still all-aluminium structure arrived. Only 33% of the structure is shared with a DB11; at 4 465 mm, the Vantage is 274 mm shorter but, at 1 942 mm across (2 153 mm to the mirror ends), it is 2 mm wider. A 911 is slightly longer but, at 1 808 mm, a lot narrower.