Aston Martin Vantage review

Let’s start on track where, even rolling out of the pit lane, the Vantage feels mighty, mighty fast. The 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8 is supplied by AMG but Aston is freed to mix-and-match components from the various versions of this engine to create their own specification and then programme the engine management as they so choose.

So, while the turbochargers are bigger than previously, they’re smaller and more responsive than the DBX707's and the engine’s character is different, too. It’s got monstrous torque (590lb ft) but it feels revvier and more crazed at the top end than you’d want in an SUV. Even though Ferrari might beg to differ with its screaming V12-powered Purosangue…

Anyway, 656bhp is very definitely enough. The Vantage is a rocketship and the eight-speed automatic gearbox snaps from one ratio to the next. We’re not sure the shifts are quite as fast, nor the ratios as tightly stacked as in the BMW M4 (perhaps the benchmark pure automatic gearbox application), but you’d need to drive them back-to-back to notice the difference.

All that power sounds scary. Could I handle it?

Probably, because perhaps just as impressive as the powertrain is how the chassis keeps up. At least on smooth roads. Traction is strong and on track the Vantage has fine body control, so you can really throw the car into corners and know it’s going to respond. Track mode is really aggressive so the car actually feels a little more predictable and composed in the softer suspension setting. On tighter turns you will find some understeer, of course, but for the most part the Vantage feels precise and errs towards slip at the rear. For some that might be a bit intimidating but the electronic aids are a great support in getting the best from the car.

The greatest of them all is the new Adjustable Traction Control. Disable the DSC and the system activates at level 5. From here you can click up to 8 on a steering-wheel mounted thumb wheel as you get more confident or click down to the lower modes to keep the car more fully in check. It’s an intuitive system and helps to reveal the entertaining and highly adjustable handling balance without completely leaving you to your own devices. It showcases the excellent new e-diff, too. Incidentally, the Vantage has Wet, Comfort, Sport, Track and Individual driving modes.

What about when my hair isn’t on fire?

On the road you notice the subtler charms. The excellent throttle response, the lovely sense of the front and rear of the car responding as one and the sweet, clean steering. The brake pedal has a bit of dead play to work around (and even the optional ceramics fade a little on track), but otherwise the Vantage seems hardwired to your inputs. Oh, and the engine feels even nuttier away from the wide expanses of a race track.

Tell me more about that engine. Does this really have the pace of a 911 Turbo?

Broadly speaking, yes. Of course, being rear drive-only, with a relatively crude launch control system it simply doesn’t have traction off the line to trouble the Porsche. In our testing the Aston was over a second slower to 60mph, 2.53s playing 3.58.

But above that there’s less to split them and because the Vantage’s rear wheels can barely contain the 590lb ft of torque being inflicted on them and the body control isn’t as rigid, it feels just as outrageously fast as the Porsche. And its larger capacity engine has better throttle response above 3,500rpm; there’s no lag, just this addictive V8 roar and barely contained thrust. Top speed is 202mph.

Sum up the drive for me, please.

Overall, the Vantage feels like exactly what it is: a radical update of a classic sportscar experience. It’s a wide car now (wider than a GT3 RS, for example!), but it manages its weight really well and you feel so well located in the car; low down and right near the rear axle so you can feel the effect of throttle inputs in real time. Aston has done a really meticulous job and given the Vantage a greater level of sophistication and connection. And where the Porsche has a tendency towards ruthless speed and can come across as a bit po-faced, the Aston is a pure entertainer.