2009 Aston Martin V8 Vantage Roadster First Steer
October 14, 2008 by Matt Brogan
Now I may sound a little biased here, but just think about it for a moment. Where else do you get the same level of performance and luxury at this price level. The Italian rivals may match or better the Vantage in terms of performance, but are a little crude and hard to live with day to day – both inside and out. Our German friends too come close, but feel sterile and phlegmatic by comparison to the sumptuous and lavish nature of the British marque.
The Roadster is also both thoroughly impressive and immensely enjoyable, no compromise here. Aside from the flowing and purposeful appearance on offer, the ride and handling of the Vantage seem to defy what is possible from an open air vehicle with stiff dynamics and a comfortable ride coming together in a way you’d almost swear is impossible.
Handling is nimble, swift and agile with terrific balance front to rear. The neutrality of the chassis makes small corrections at speed feel contained and precise whilst oversteer moments in the wet (one of the previous Vantage’s weak points) are now easy and entertaining, instead of teeth clenchingly scary.
Under the long vented bonnet the new 4.7-litre V8 is certainly more responsive and linear in delivery than was the 4.3-litre, and makes for more rapid acceleration from just about any point on the tacho, without the need to downshift. The all-alloy, 32-valve engine making an impressive 313kW at 7300rpm and authoritative 470Nm of torque at 5000rpm with performance figures now equally as striking.
Whilst it’s all well and good to boast a car’s credentials on figures alone, it is seldom that they reflect the nature of a car’s power delivery traits – entirely a different proposition – but the Vantage is absolved of this reasoning. Power is put to the ground with such ease that the accelerating is not only brisk and purposeful from standstill, but remains completely usable and obstinate all the way through to the top speed of 290km/h.
A 0-to-100km/h time of 4.9 seconds is only a small part of the performance equation with the Vantage being one of so very few cars that truly seems to gather pace faster beyond the speed limit than it does from stand still, simply breath taking when compared to the previous model.
When it comes to shifting gears however, I feel the Vantage’s rear-mounted Sportshift gearbox lacks the fluidity of some rivals and is quite harsh in uptake and through certain shift points, especially at lower speeds. It is an automated manual, and one must make allowance for that before passing comment, and although the revised gearbox is certainly an improvement over the previous generation vehicle, it is not as characteristically smooth as the remainder of the Vantage’s personality.
Yes very nice but the options are a silly price.. They should really be standard.. 300k plus on roads! Far too much for a British Roadster IMO. Cant think of another car for that price that has so little torque..
DanMan, i’m with you. The F430 managed 360kW; RS4 + M3 all get 309kW with 4.2 and 4.0 V8’s respectively and both are getting a bit long in the tooth (moreso RS4). But you are right, it is the torque that annoys me most; it barely makes its’ capacity in torque, and for that money you would want a little bit more of twist for a supposed RWD luxury tourer (as opposed to a harder, more track focused car, F430). Because this thing seriously doesn’t have the speed to hang with Ferrari or Lambo, Porsche, M and AMG. Kind of depressing to spend so much on a car that is gonna struggle to satisfactorily nail Turbo Falcons from the lights. Funny then FPV is my anti-spam word.
My neighbor has the old V8 Vantage with the Sportshift gearbox.
It is one of the worst gearboxes on the market! It’s so shuddery and it’s overly easy to roast the clutch just doing a u-turn!
Manual all the way.
An F430 with auto/man will set you back another $180K and it still doesn’t have the class or looks to match the Vantage. This is probably the stiffest Roadster in the class with a top speed of 290km/h – not fast enough for you?
Weight: 1710kg (Tare)
Torque: 470Nm @ 5000rpm
No way does the above get you to 290KPH.
250 maybe…
For the price i would have an Audi r8 anyday..
DanMan, more torque doesn’t got you a higher top speed, horsepower gives you the top speed, torque gives you acceleration.
Astons are not about being the fastest, it is more about how they go about being so fast that makes them special. Unfortunately, but true, if you don’t understand that comment, then you will never understand Aston.
It’s all about torque, gearing and the frontal area (CO drag efficency)..
hmmm have to go to wikipedia me thinks..
the weight is also a big issue. even with 313kw, it wont get there..
Well they been Bankrupt about 4 times so alot of people dont get it..
I love this car. I think the options are fine and people who complain are only complaining because they cant afford it. DanMan, in your first comment, you talk like british roadsters aren’t any good? I like those wheels, but not as much as the old seven spoke ones and I dont like the five spoke ones on the sports pack, I dont think they go with the car. In the next gen. model, I would like to see both the transmissions improved. The manuals good, much better than the Sportshift, but it is a bit jerky. And it goes without saying the Sportshift needs improving. Aston Martin should strike up a deal with Porsche to get the PDK Transmission. I know it’ll never happen, but Aston Martin would have a great transmission and they could add the much needed paddle shifters. Finally, Frontman, I definitely understand your comment but I think maybe Aston Martin wants to change that to get more 911 sales.
Its a convertible…they’re not built for speed even though they have the goods to do it..
Real performance freaks would take the roofed version and save some money in the process.
The extra pork comes from the chassis being re-enforced because it’s missing a roof though I’m hoping y’all knew that :D
And what years were they bankrupt DanMan you knucklehead? Try 30 years ago or 50 years ago or even 90 years ago.
It\’s the same story with Lamborghini, Bentley, Rolls Royce, Maserati and the list goes on. These car companies are all profitable now with demand greater than ever.
You clearly don\’t know your automotive history mate.
don’t worry about measurements so much, no amount of torque or kW will make up for lost inches, enjoy the face, the sensuality, the texture, the sounds, the experience
That is a ridiculous list of options for a car which costs this much. It also means that if you start ticking the option boxes, you could be waiting a long time for delivery.
Chucky, if you’re spending this much on a car, wouldn’t you want to sod delivery and get the one you want rather than compromising? The next generation should use Jaguars technology so they dont need to add all the extra weight to reinforce the car for lack of roof.