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2018 Aston Martin Vantage Drivers' Notes Review | English style, German heart

Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore — The Vantage continues Aston Martin's evolution as a modern sports- and supercar maker. This machine feels special. It's gorgeous and translates Aston's design language effectively. It sounds intoxicating. I blasted around Detroit's sleepy suburbs one chilly night and felt a bit like James Bond. The AMG-sourced V8 is well-calibrated and works smoothly with the eight-speed automatic. Pulling the paddles is obviously fun. The steering returned proper feedback with adequate weight. The chassis is tight but not abusive. Considering the Vantage has so much power and technical prowess, it's still imminently drivable. I was comfortable almost immediately, and it's the kind of car that left me feeling satisfied and wanting more. That's the essence of Aston. Senior Editor, Green, John Beltz Synder — The V8 Vantage holds a special place in my heart, and my heart was beating faster just looking at it in our parking lot. It's a gorgeous car, and it stands up to close inspection. I love the detail, the colors, the look of the materials and how they accentuate the car's design. That attention to detail is even more pronounced inside the car, where there's something interesting going on everywhere you look, including the headliner. Driving the car is a lot calmer than you might expect. Yeah, it's fast and a bit stiff, but not jarringly so. The AMG V8 and eight-speed transmission work wonders together. The acceleration is smooth and linear, with shifts happening in an instant, and without drama. Plus, I love the giant paddle shifters mounted on the steering column. They're thin, but extremely long, and they're always right where you expect them to be when you reach out with your finger. There were just a couple things that stood out to me as imperfect. On the infotainment interface on the center tunnel, the control wheel is tucked away, which helps keep you from accidentally bumping it, but makes it a little awkward to use. The other thing was that the whole driver seat moved around underneath me. I'm sure Aston saved some weight with these seats, but this didn't feel very securely attached to the floor. I forgot about both of those things as I found my way out of traffic and onto some curvy roads. This thing builds and carries a ton of speed with ease. And as good as it looks in its natural state of motion, this car was turning heads — and cellphones — when prowling through the parking lot.

Aston Martin skids in stock market debut

LONDON — Shares in luxury automaker Aston Martin fell as much as 6.5 percent on their market debut in London on Wednesday as investors and analysts raised concerns over Aston's ability to deliver an ambitious rollout of new models. The company, which last year made its first profit since 2010 and has gone bankrupt seven times, had priced its shares at 19 pounds each, giving it a market capitalization of 4.33 billion pounds ($5.63 billion). The shares fell to as low as 17.75 pounds. Aston Martin has plans to launch a new model every year from 2016 to 2022. "(It) has very aggressive growth plans. The execution of that growth needs to be flawless — nothing eats cash more than a car company when the cycle turns. There is concern that it's more cyclical than the commentary has been," said James Congdon, managing director of cashflow returns specialist Quest. "The banks have done a good job for their client — but there's no bounce." Aston is going all-in Aston Martin — full name Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings Plc — expects to produce around 7,100 to 7,300 cars in 2019, and 9,600 to 9,800 cars in 2020. It aims to increase production to 14,000 cars in the medium term, helped by new models and improving its manufacturing process. The company is investing all of its cashflow to try to achieve this, leaving nothing for dividends or paying down debt. "In terms of execution risk — this is what I've done for all of my career. I'm an engineer: we mitigate risk," Chief Executive Andy Palmer, who has led a turnaround plan at the company since 2014, told Reuters. Palmer played down risks to the business from Britain leaving the European Union, even as other car manufacturers step up warnings over a disorderly Brexit. He said Aston Martin was "relatively well insulated" from the effects of Brexit because Europe is not its biggest market and it may actually benefit from exporting with a cheaper pound. However, 60 percent of its parts are imported from the EU and will be hit by tariffs if there is no trade deal. "Obviously we'd all prefer no tariffs to be frank, no doubt, but the industry has to learn to adapt, and it always has adapted to changes," Palmer said. Valuation In 2017, Aston Martin had adjusted earnings before tax interest, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of 206.5 million pounds, up from 100.9 million pounds in 2016.

Sir David Brown's 1964 Aston Martin DB5 C is for sale

In 1946, David Brown answered a classified ad in the London Times selling a "High Class Motor Business" for GBP30,000. That business turned out to be Aston Martin, which Brown bought a year later for GBP20,500. According to the Bank of England, he paid nearly GBP600,000 in today's dollars, about $736,000 U.S. He didn't do a bad job with it, attaching his name to the DB series of sports cars from DB1 to DB6 and DBS that won Le Mans and became the preferred choice of real royalty and a fictional secret agent, buying Lagonda to get the straight-six engine for Aston Martin that had been designed by W.O. Bentley, and setting up the coachworks at Newport Pagnell, still considered the historic home of hand-built Astons. All of this, along with wartime contributions on the tractor side, helped make him Sir David Brown, and one of his cars is for sale.  Brown's daily driver was allegedly a Jaguar XJ because of its friendlier running costs compared to his company's products, so there won't be too many ex-David Brown Aston Martins around. He ordered this DB5 Convertible in Caribbean Pearl with a Navy Blue interior and matching top a year after the model hit the market, when Aston Martin began selling it with the new five-speed ZF transmission. The droptop also got a Motorola radio, chrome wire wheels, and the 3.77:1 Power Lock rear differential. He held onto chassis DB5C/1273/R for three years before passing it on to an Aston Martin garage proprietor, who took excellent care of it. A full overhaul in 2014 rebuilt all of the mechanicals, retrimmed the interior, and applied a new paint job from the metal up.  Just over 99,000 miles have accrued on the chassis to now. UK specialist shop Nicholas Mee sold this car in 1994, and is doing so again with an asking price of GBP1,150,000 ($1.4 million U.S.). That sum includes a fresh service, registration, a 12-month warranty, and original accessories like the tool roll, mallet, jack, and owner's manual. Related video: