Fernando Alonso had a hand in developing this Vantage, says the Aston Marton representative. “Not Lance Stroll?” I joke back?
Lame jokes dispensed with, thankfully no, there are no large bumpers on the latest and very greatest 2024 Aston Martin Vantage that’s just arrived in NZ. While the F1 team of Alonso and Stroll (and Stroll) continue to fight for mid-pack supremacy, currently placed behind the big four, the road cars arrive with that little more aggression and performance and racing pedigree. Actually, a lot more.
We’re at Mt Smart stadium’s carpark-cum-go-kart track, where the rain is doing its best keep the ground wet. It’s actually a blessing, as the new rear-wheel drive Aston Martin Vantage has just arrived, and the company is keen on keeping some of its expensive 325mm-wide, 21-inch Michelin Pilot S 5 tyres intact for a day of driving. It is, after all, for a customer experience day, with a couple of lowly motoring journos invited to crash the party... sans the crash part.
Traditionally the entry level Aston, this Vantage is a lot meaner. Power has leapt 30% to 489kW, and torque 15% to 800Nm from its 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8. While it makes 90kW more than the previous most-powerful Vantage F1 Edition, it does it with more than just larger turbos (which it has), with revised, hand-built engine internals: block, crank, cams and head are all new. And after the 8-speed ZF auto gearbox, the final drive ratio is shorter to make it punchier.
It's also a more visceral, vocal beast.
The Vantage name was first used 74 years ago to denote an uprated engine package for the race-proven DB2, so it’s still quite logical. Vantage became a high-performance model on the DB5 in 1964, and a standalone model in the early 1970s.
Balanced 50:50, the 2024 model manages 0-100km/h in just 3.4 seconds, but does it with modern, 2024-style technology, such as launch control and an Electronic Rear Diff (E-diff) similar to that on the Vantage GT3 racecar, that’s super fast to react. No one-wheel spinning here, the diff can lock up in just 0.13 of a second, and can adjust itself while driving in half that time.
It’ll top out at 325km/h for those wanting pub trivia, and uses Bilstein adaptive dampers. Inside there’s all new architecture, with “new standards of quality, style and sophistication”… to quote the sales brochure.
Unveiled alongside the GT3 racecar, it’s the closest the road car has ever looked, in iconic Podium Green, same as the 2024 F1 cars, plus the outlines of yellow. Owners can also enhance the sporting character of Vantage even further, by selecting one of three core livery designs.
Available in 21 colors, a client can choose to add a Pinstripe, Pinstripe and Lipstick or Pinstripe, Lipstick and Rear infill.
There's carbon fibre, spoilers, splitters, vents, strakes and rakes and aero aids everywhere, plus the bobtail rear end that’s devoid of any overt, garish wing. Aston leaves that for the racer.
Standard brakes are huge 400mm cast-iron front discs, though carbon-ceramics are an option, handling up to 800°C and saving 27kg. An upgraded 15-speaker Bowers & Wilkins sound system is an option, if the standard 11-speaker system isn’t enough, along with a variant of leather, keeping the Vantage fully loaded, an appreciated part given its $375,000 base price.
Onto the makeshift wet track for a few minutes, it’s all very controlled with driving instructors always either along for the ride, or swapping sides for demonstrations.
The driving component was little more than a bit of fun at low speeds in the wet, and after maybe 1.5km of driving around the wet braking and slalom course, we’re done. More exciting is the demo, by ex-V8 SuperTourer drive Richard Moore, demonstrating a remarkable piece of technology, the Adjustable Traction Control (ATC). With 10 positions ranging from full-nanny to you’re-on-your-own, the system defaults to level 5 as we venture out.
Richard plants the throttle, evoking wheelspin, but balanced and under control; releasing the ATC up to setting 7 and then setting 8, as he and it showcase some moderate drift angles, while any race driver’s preferred choice of level 10 allows Richard to go full dorifto in the wet. It’s a remarkable system, and allows the driver to tailor the ATC to their driving style and road conditions, or in the case of the race car on which it's based, tyres starting to go off. Or, there’s simply the Wet, On and Track preset modes.
Raw action of the Vantage at Mt Smart's wet road course
After a few minutes of fun and filming, we need to keep it all together for the other customers starting to roll through the gate. Like any rollercoaster, it’s over way too soon, but with the new Vantage now on sale, there’s one way to keep the dream alive. Rather, 375,000 ways.
