HARDWARE
MOTORING
ASTON MARTIN IS AT IT AGAIN. INSTEAD OF REINVENTING THE WHEEL, THEY’VE DECIDED TO TRACK TEST IT TO BREAKING POINT, REPLACE HEAVIER SYSTEMS WITH LIGHTER MATERIALS AND INJECT A DANGEROUSLY HIGH LEVEL OF TESTOSTERONE INTO THE NEW ASTON MARTIN VANTAGE S.
The latest commercial vehicle is the fastest sports car the company has ever sold, only rivaled by the limited edition One-77 supercar they produced which was only available to seventy-seven buyers. Essentially, a concept inspired track-car hybrid. An immensely expensive toy for the vastly wealthy car collector.
S isn’t immediate until closer inspection reveals a redesign of the front grille and the carbon fiber weaves and titanium mesh trims. The interior design packages are all vastly different too, with buyers given a range of options to further destroy their bank balance. Differences become brazenly apparent when starting the vehicle.
So the Vantage S arrives with a mix of aluminum doors, hood, roof and composite front quarter panels and rides on aluminum architecture; a lightweight framework that is rigid, strong and a major contributor to its massive power output.
They have upgraded the powerplant to the new ‘AM28’ that incorporates dual variable valve timing, larger throttle bodies, a revised intake manifold, fully machined combustion chambers and an improved fuel pump. In Layman’s terms, it simply means better. And faster. Onboard computers manage gear changes and are automatic (with paddle shift options in all
At first glance, the difference between the Vanquish (DEC issue) and the 2014 Vantage
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of its driving modes) and the suspension is electronically controlled making the Vantage S the most track focused Aston Martin release to date. WHY IS IT BETTER THAN THE VANQUISH YOU SCREAM?
Well for one its Sport tuned. The lab coat wearing mega-boffs at Aston Martin decided to get rid of the heavier, more cumbersome six-speed manual transmission that featured in the previous model and replace it with their shiny new version, mysteriously titled ‘Sportshift III’. There are distinct differences when driving, compared to its now obsolete and rather hideously obese ginger sibling of a gearbox. The newer, specially designed seven-speed,
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