Aston Martin Vanquish

IN AN AUTOMOTIVE world dominated by downsized turbocharged engines and high-tech four-wheel drive systems, the new Aston Martin Vanquish roars in as something of a dinosaur.

- DAN JONES

Flagship from the storied British sports car brand has a mighty twin-turbo 5.2-litre V12 On sale Now Price from £332,800

But then, who didn't enjoy Jurassic Park? While the latest Vanquish does indeed have a brace of turbochargers strapped to its engine, the latter is very much T-Rex in both size and anger. There's no downsizing here; it's a mighty 5.2-litre V12 with 824bhp, all of which is sent to the rear wheels.

That's more power than the Bentley Continental GT (771bhp) and the naturally aspirated Ferrari 12Cilindri (819bhp) can muster. Stamp on the Vanquish's accelerator and it surges forward with a force that pins you into your seat like a hungry velociraptor. 'Relentless' doesn't even begin to describe it.

Aston Martin's engineers have managed to marry twin-turbo grunt with an impeccably smooth power delivery; there's no perceptible pause between putting your foot down and the engine building up power, just an unbroken torrent of acceleration. The quoted 0-62mph time of 3.3sec? We've no reason to doubt it.

And the soundtrack? Sublime and unapologetically raw. While many turbocharged rivals seem to have lost their voices, the Vanquish roars defiantly, retaining the spine-tingling howl that rings through Aston's V12 heritage. It's an aria that not only commands attention but also makes every moment behind the wheel utterly addictive.