2013 Aston Martin V8 Vantage Roadster-carbon Pack Inside And Out! on 2040-cars

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Aston Martin revives two iconic names for its new DBS Superleggera

Progress has finally swept away the Vanquish S, with its non-turbo V12 and old-style Aston Martin chassis, and its replacement signals the new way of doing things. The new DBS Superleggera is twin-turbocharged and adopts a variant of the chassis and a whiff of the styling of the newer DB11. That styling is rendered in carbon fiber, incorporating such new-style features as the "curlicue" and the Aeroblade to improve downforce to 397 pounds at its top speed of 211 MPH. And some familiar elements show up in the overall styling, too, like the semi-floating roof and the fender vent that blends into the front wheel opening. The massive, gaping grille is more reminiscent of the Vantage than the DB11, although on the DBS Superleggera it has a more classic Aston Martin shape and treatment – but perhaps the grille takes up too much of the frontal area to be considered pretty rather than simply bold. Overall, the look is DB11 plus luxury and opulence, which is exactly the point. Speaking of opulence, the interior is an almost scandalous blend of premium materials and bold shapes. There's a lot of leather and alcantara – the car shown in these photos has accent panels of chopped carbon fiber and charcoal-colored leather with bold red accent stitching. There's more exposed carbon fiber, albeit woven, accenting the exterior in various places. It's not subtle or particularly classic, but write a big enough check to Aston and they'll surely trim your DBS Superleggera in any fashion you want. There is also a range of Designer Specifications, which are specific color and trim combinations picked out by the company's designers, in case you want to leverage in-house talent to deck out your DBS. Performance is suitably commanding. The DBS Superleggera now makes 715 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of torque. Thanks to turbocharging, that torque figure is available from 1,800 to 5,500 RPM, although the corollary is that peak power is at 6,500 RPM. It's rear-drive only, assisted by an eight-speed auto and a mechanical limited slip differential with torque vectoring. 0-62 mph takes 3.4 seconds according to the factory, but the more important number is the 0-100 MPH time of 6.4 seconds, and fourth-gear acceleration of 50-100 MPH in just 4.2 seconds. This is the power of turbocharging a large-displacement engine – it's a 5.2-liter unit. The DBS Superleggera starts at $304,995, and deliveries begin later this year.

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.

New Aston Martin V12 Vantage rumored with 670 hp

In August, spy photographers at the Nurburgring took pics of an Aston Martin Vantage mule doing hard laps. The primer black test car sported an extra wide body, a big ol' V-shaped mesh net on its hood likely hiding heat extractors, an enormous grille with extra intakes along the sides, and dual pipes jutting out the center of the rear diffuser. It looked like Aston Martin had put its 5.2-liter V12 into a Vantage engine bay, and reports from ears on the ground said it sounded that way, too. Remember, last year's Aston Martin Speedster was based on the Vantage chassis and was powered by that 5.2-liter V12, an engine not available in the series production Vantage. In the Speedster, that engine produced 690 horsepower and 555 pound-feet of torque. The Supercar Blog reports that its sources say a reborn V12 Vantage might have its engine restricted to 670 hp. That seems a logical number, possibly putting the V12 Vantage a notable step down from the 715-hp DBS and the 690-hp special edition Speedster. If it does get 670 hp, that figure would put it 40 ponies ahead of the DB11 with the same V12, but TSB reports the V12 Vantage will be a limited edition. Expected to arrive for the 2023 model year as part of the standard Vantage's model update, sources say there will only be 299 made.  The last time Aston Martin put its biggest engine in its smallest car, the result was arguably the best and most enjoyable car in the automaker's range. We have the same expectation this time around. Unlike the last time, though, there won't be a manual transmission on the menu; it's said the updated Vantage will go with the eight-speed automatic only. Now that the Vantage F1 Edition starts at over $160,000, a V12 Vantage could start beyond $190,000 and even creep over $200,000. Company CEO Tobias Moers has said he plans 10 derivatives of existing models by 2023, so it seems likely that this won't be the only special edition Vantage on the way.