Aston Martin Vantage Launch: Aston Martin has launched the new Vantage in India, with a starting price of Rs 3.99 crore, ex-showroom. Major changes have been made in the exterior of Aston’s sports coupe, which was introduced globally a few months ago. Besides, major changes have also been made in its interior. It has a new dashboard and new software platform. The Vantage is powered by a 4.0-litre, twin-turbo V8 engine sourced from Mercedes-AMG, but with significantly increased power.
Exterior design
The new Vantage is quite different from its previous model, as it features a larger grille at the front that extends across the entire width of the front bumper. There are new intakes on the sides, stronger character lines on the bonnet, and the headlamps are now larger and more round, and come with new three-piece LED DRL signatures, giving a familial look with the DB12. Some similarities can also be seen in it with the One-77 supercar.
In profile, the air ducts on the fenders have been slightly reshaped, and at the rear, there’s a more aggressive bumper and diffuser setup. The new Vantage is also 30 mm wider than before, has improved core design, and has new frameless mirrors and flush electronic door handles.
Interior and Features
The interior has a new cockpit arrangement. One of the biggest criticisms of the outgoing Vantage was its old, Mercedes-sourced software platform and very cluttered interior layout. Now this new software interface has been seen in the DB12, and recently it has also been included in the DBX SUV globally.
The new Vantage uses a new in-house developed infotainment platform. It has a new 10.25-inch touchscreen that runs on custom software that connects to a dedicated smartphone app, and also includes features like 3D live mapping, wireless smartphone mirroring, and last-mile on-foot navigation. Despite the focus on digitalisation, Aston Martin favors physical switchgear, so there’s a climate control stack, gear selector, drive control switches as well as override buttons for ESP, exhaust, lane keep assist and parking sensors. He has been hired for many other tasks. There’s also a new steering wheel and a new digital instrument cluster, as well as significant improvements to interior quality and fit and finish.
Powertrain and Specifications
The power of the Mercedes-AMG-sourced V8 has been increased with this significant update. Still with the same 4.0-litre capacity and a pair of turbos, its output has increased to 665hp and 800Nm, making the standard Vantage as quick as the outgoing V12. It accelerates from 0-100kph in just 3.4 seconds and its maximum speed is 325kph. Whereas the previous V8 car had outputs of 510hp and 685Nm and it took half a second longer for the 0-100kph sprint. This engine is paired with an 8-speed torque converter automatic gearbox.
Who will compete with?
Aston Martin has not revealed any plans to electrify the Vantage line. Its V8 has already featured in Mercedes-AMG’s first plug-in hybrid, including the recently revealed GT 63 SE Performance, which shares the same footprint and silhouette as the Vantage. Price-wise, the Vantage competes with cars like the Bentley Continental GT and the Porsche 911 in India.
