2007 Aston Martin V8 Vantage Road Test
October 5, 2007 by Anthony Crawford
The gearbox offered a somewhat love-hate relationship when trying to drive under most conditions. During hard driving, it would shift with utter brutality and slam through gears with no relent. But, during slow speed manoeuvres – such as parallel parking and reversing – it proved to be quite a pain.
Initially it felt as though too much thought was required to drive the car, but by the end of it, we realised the importance of patience. It seemed the more we drove the Vantage, the more we understood the gearbox.
If Hypershifting isn’t your cup of tea, you can switch to the manual mode – controlled via the steering wheel mounted paddle shifters – and the V8 Vantage turns into a totally different machine.
Shifts are almost instantaneous and throttle response sharp. Grab the small, race oriented steering wheel and the experience moulds into one of a true sports car nature.
Our test bed was a private road nested within a spectacular rain forest. Come into a tight bend at speed and the feedback through the steering wheel mimics that of a go-kart – direct, tight and heavy.
A tight steering ratio means that only small steering inputs are required to twist the Aston’s front end, while rapid stabs of the paddle shifters command the gearbox.
Driving the Vantage evokes a whole list of emotions, fear is one of them. This car defies the laws of physics. No corner, no bend, nothing feels untameable in this. You can push all you want, but there is still more left.
Body roll is literally non-existent, no matter how hard you push the car into a corner, the body remains dead flat and composed. Traction from the 19” Bridgestone Potenza RE050A tyres is exceptional. Even under full throttle acceleration, traction is maintained.
The slotted front and rear rotors maintain braking pressure, even after torturous and constant applications. Spacing between the brake and accelerator pedals allows for left foot braking, along with enough room to rest feet during highway cruising.
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Don’t feel too embarrassed about not finding the fuel filler cap release, Clarkson had the same problem on the DB9 3-4 years ago on a race to Monte Carlo.
beautiful. Always been enamoured with light coloured (yellow, white etc) caint and darkenned/shadow/shaded wheels… love them.
Looks Great!
In awwww as usual,love the fact in this blog it has 6 pages,as it should. Hey you guys obviously have HUGE credibility now with your Forum to gain access of this fantastic car.Pat on the back! This is the Ultimate in cool,fast and unbelievable cars.Well done! I bet you guys have noooooooooo,problem getting ride’s with such credibility. I bet Ford wont have a problem giving you a BF COBRA to look at ,ha!
I couldn’t find the fuel flap release on an Audi A4. The manual was in German. Turns out it doesn’t have a release for it. You just push it open from the outside…
Good review. Awesome looking car and I bet driving one was an awesome experience.
This brings back so many memories, definitely one of the most enjoyable days of my life.
Without a doubt the best sounding car in the world – the best.
Photos turned out great as well!
Lust……………
Great car. Great review. You guys should definitely do more videos like that in future. Keep up the good work.
stunning car, but it is hard to believe that some of those options are not standard on a $250k+ car! not that a few extra $1000 would worry the target market, but for that price, all cars should have cruise control, bluetooth etc unless they are a stripped out racer. I see this as more of a cruiser with track potential, and those options should definitely be standard. great review. i love the longer ones!
Cruiser as track potential – yeah right LOL. I see it as a prestige car.
what do you think a prestige car is for klink?
And Colonel Klink, that proves wholeheartedly that you’ve never driven one, or any car of this caliber.
You should leave this stuff to the grown ups matey.
Boys… it is a top of the range spunky prestige sports car was my point (cool look to it). As for calls of all extras bar paint and wheels being included I disagree.
you’d be on your pat malone then Klink OR you must haver plenty of $ to want to hand over another $15K for extras you can get in a car costing 20% of the value of the Aston – styling and performance notwithstanding!
my point was that most $25k cars have cruise control, some have bluetooth, and in a car that costs 10 times the price these features should be standard.
and if the $25k cars dont have cruise, you can ususally bargain the dealer into including it for the same price.
Jbot,
Let’s not forget that Aston aren’t the only offenders.
You’ll find obscene options pricing in Porsches, Ferraris et al.
Cruise control for a out and out prestige sports car?????? LOL…could understand that barely! But as for heated seats or special lights or memory seats = would say that you guys talk of a sports car??? more or a show pony. Get it real and if you want that get an inferior car.
JBot… mate get a Hyundai or cheapy. Comparing pseudo average $25K car with $250K real sports car cause of cruise control. Mate that is REAL funny as of you!
haha i love how in the video, the driver is flooring it around one of the corners right past a 60km/h sign :P
yeah you’re right benjie. many other prestige brands leave off these features too. klink, i’m sure i saw you got banned, maybe i was dreaming. anyway, i will respond to your incoherent rambling. I never even went close to comparing a $25k car to a $250k car, i just said that if the cheapies can give us some of those features as standard, the prestige makers should be able to as well.
JBot… point is who gives a tinkers toss about cruise control, heated seats or whatever as it is a prestige sports car and you are drawing the small end of the straw to suggest it should have these options. Your silly comments are just that as you probably want a princess sportscar with all the bells and whistles then a very serious sportscar! I would rather have the look and feel of real sportscar persona with howling exhaust note rumble of this car then a wannabe pseudo sportscar with cruise control. If you would drive a car like this with cruise control or heated seats well that is funny as!
The fact that everyone but yourself who has mentioned the options thought the same way as I did suggests you’re in the minority with your beliefs. adding cruise, bluetooth, etc does not affect the look and feel a of sportscar. All these creature comforts do is make the car more comfortable and more usable as a daily driver. That’s why many people choose to option up when they buy any car.
There is no doubt I would love to own one but I much prefer the look of the other AM’s. The rear end of this Vantage just doesn’t ‘do it’ for me.
So how far does one go with options as the list can keep going on and on and on and on. The fact you all want more and more and low price means not much as would rather have a real quality setup like the Aston Martin. To me lots do it and from Lotus Exige to Porsches to Ferraris. The people who buy those are in the same group as me as they buy top notch. They buy CLASS and not pretend ASS sportscars. I do not care about cruise control as in a car like that afterthought. My point is if I was in market to buy this car and seen the options list probably would only get cruise control. Iam sure as the car has few options it would not stop me buying it as goes well and looks unreal; just because it has options that you all want included at no extra would not come into it really!
… whereas with you guys you might think nice but no bluetooth or cruise control and not buy!
Agree wit5h Grumps fair bit, it looks tad Monaroish with stretched wider lights. I like it still and man the paint job is expensive option – why so special. Is white an option or has it special finish? Curious to see what Alborz would think as he sighted it? (paint)
It wouldn’t put me off buying it at all. If you can afford this, a few extra grand for the options you want is nothing. If I bought this (a few years away probably LOL)would probably only get the cruise and bluetooth, and I am suprised that cruise in particular is not standard.
I like the way you now say that if you bought this car you would get cruise control, as previously you said “If you would drive a car like this with cruise control or heated seats well that is funny as!”. Make up your mind Klink!!! Your making yourself look silly!!
LOL… would not get cruise, just stirring you.
Car looks unreal and goes wicked and would get it over and above any option/s missing on this model!
Mate only gotta look at video and say to myself “BUY”. Option/s so what!
you are completely missing the point klink. my point was that some of these features which are standard on much cheaper vehicles should be standard for the prestige vehicles. somehow you dreamed up the idea that i thought someone might not buy the car because a few features are options and not standard. if you want them you can pay more for them, but i don’t think you should have to in a car like this. understand what im getting at klink?
Klink, the paint job is impossible to appreciate from the photos, Aston says with most of their paint work, if it even has a minor scratch it is near impossible to simply touch-up, they have to repaint the whole car, each car is so unique and so special that even the paint is not the same from car to car.
Personally I’d go for a black one, but the white looked stunning with the dark rims.
I can tell you, from every angle, in the flesh, this car is absolutely stunning, every single person looks at the car, no less than 20 drivers and pedestrians complemented the car as we drove around Sydney CBD.
This is different to a Ferrari where most people usually think “oh a Ferrari, bet the guy is a knob” with the Aston, its more of a class and prestigious thing. People appreciate it a lot more, must have something todo with its english heritage, and its timeless looks.
I guess that why Bond drives one,I would let an Aston out in traffic but not a Ferrari driver!!! This car is beyond words!
Hey Alborz ,what was the music behind this clip could you please tell me the name of this song and who wrote it maybe? my song would like to download it. Thanks :) Kieren son of Bavarian
:D :) :P XD
agree with the review. only thing more stunning is the DBS. and perhaps the f430
But let the hype die down a bit and get a fair comparison head to head with the quivalent 911. or even the audi r8.
Hello Bav Missile.
The name of the track is “Adagio For Strings”.
The original is actually a classical piece by Samuel Barber.
The version you want to download Dj Tiesto’s version though, as that is what is used in the video clip – and yes, that is a trance track!! :)
(Most people do not actually know what trance is…)
By the way, trance rocks!!! :D
Why would you even need cruise or electric seats etc anyway. As for the seats, why would you ever let any body else drive it? Set the seats for yourself and weld the things into place! As for cruise, you buy this sort of car to DRIVE, not to be nannied buy such conveniences.
Thanks Ross…….
You are most welcome :)
Always willing to help out a fellow Perth-ite ;)
really……….! Didn’t know there was so many on this site.
Yep! There are a few of us on here now
A beautiful car, not a fan of white though?
i like white car…
=)
I wouldn’t care if it was baby crap brown………
do you want to win a Aston! try this competition http://www.bestofthebest.co.uk/
Really sport Car’s