2007 - Aston Martin Vantage on 2040-cars

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A hybrid and electric Corvette, plus we drive the Ioniq 5 | Autoblog Podcast #728

In this episode of the Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Road Test Editor Zac Palmer. Zac drove the electric 2022 Hyundai Ioniq 5, and Greg drove the fire-breathing 2022 Maserati Levante Trofeo. The two dive deep into the relatively heavy news week by starting off with a discussion about the upcoming hybrid Corvette before chatting about what the electric Corvette might be like. They have a chat about the possibility of Porsche and Audi officially joining the Formula 1 field. Then, Greg and Zac get into some quick-hitting news to round out the segment by dissecting the updated Kia Soul (now without a turbo), the 30th Anniversary Edition Land Rover Defender and the new CEO at Aston Martin. Following the news and drive reviews, they rope in Senior Editor, Green John Beltz Snyder to give them a quick download of what went down at the first drive for the 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning. Finally, they reach into the mailbag and answer some questions from someone who is less than pleased about infotainment systems in some new cars. And lastly, the gang hears back from someone they helped out in a prior Spend My Money segment on the podcast. Send us your questions for the Mailbag and Spend My Money at: Podcast@Autoblog.com. Autoblog Podcast #728 Get The Podcast Apple Podcasts – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes Spotify – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast on Spotify RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown News The hybrid AWD Corvette and the electric Corvette Audi and Porsche to enter Formula 1 Land Rover Defender 30th Anniversary model 2023 Kia Soul refresh A new CEO at Aston Martin Cars we're driving 2022 Maserati Levante Trofeo 2022 Hyundai Ioniq 5 Dispatch from the 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning first drive in Texas Mailbag: A discussion about complicated infotainment systems Also, trading a Model 3 for an Escape PHEV? Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on Apple Podcasts Autoblog is now live on your smart speakers and voice assistants with the audio Autoblog Daily Digest. Say “Hey Google, play the news from Autoblog” or "Alexa, open Autoblog" to get your favorite car website in audio form every day. A narrator will take you through the biggest stories or break down one of our comprehensive test drives.

Aston Martin Vantage with a manual transmission due next year

In 2016, Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer told Car and Driver that that Aston Martin would continue to offer manual transmissions and will always have at least one hand-shaker in the lineup. For the keepers of the dying manual light, it's been a long wait since the V12 Vantage S went out of production last year, but dawn will break over Gaydon in summer 2019. Aston Martin chief engineer Matt Becker told Road & Track at the Goodwood Festival of Speed that there'd be a stick shift in the V8 Vantage by "this time next year." That might seem like a long wait when there are already prototypes on the road, but the small company has a large engineering job. The Mercedes-AMG 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 sitting in the Vantage's engine bay has never been paired with a manual gearbox, so Aston Martin has to create the software and the driveline hardware from scratch to make it work. On top of that, the company wants to make sure the package delivers the thrills the row-your-own crowd seeks. Becker said the car won't be a pushover, tuned so that "It reminds you that you have to know how to drive." Depending on uptake, one could hope that the DB11 using the same Mercedes-AMG engine would also undergo a manual transformation. Road & Track didn't get the details on what kind of transmission we could expect. We figure the options are a traditional six-speed, a Corvette-style seven-speed, a Porsche-style seven-speed, or the dogleg seven-speed used last in this year's V12 Vantage V600, of which there were only 14 units. Speculation on product plans puts the manual transmission first in the V8 Vantage pipeline, followed by a Vantage roadster and a V12 Vantage. Other models will certainly fill out the portfolio, Becker saying this first Vantage "is the starting point." Having applied the hardcore AMR moniker to the Valkyrie AMR Pro, DB11 AMR, and Rapide AMR, the Vantage seems a lock for the same extreme makeover. Related Video:

Watch Prodrive build an Aston Martin race car in 60 seconds

It's always fascinating to watch a racecar's production whether the construction is out of Lego blocks or a cutting-edge mix of aluminum and carbon fiber. This time-lapse clip offers a glimpse of the latter as Prodrive creates an Aston Martin V8 Vantage GTE in just 60 seconds. The process took nearly three weeks in real time. Starting from just a bare shell, you first notice bits of wiring, suspension, and brakes appear on the chassis. Then the engine eventually arrives, but there's still a lot of work to do. The builders keep adding body panels and do lots of other wrenching. The process reminds us of building a plastic model kit but with much more expensive consequences if parts go missing. The #98 Vantage GTE will compete in the GTE Am class this season in the FIA World Endurance Championship. Drivers Paul Dalla Lana, Pedro Lamy, and Mathias Lauda are the lucky folks who get to pilot this beauty.