Filed under: Coupe, Performance, Aston Martin, First Drives, Luxury
http://hss-prod.hss.aol.com/hss/storage/adam/3a472bf7b9050a6249e7b72042caaf23/2014-aston-martin-v12-vantage-s-fd.jpg
A little more than two years ago, I called the 2011 Aston Martin V12 Vantage “an intoxicating machine masterfully engineered to gratify every emotion in a car enthusiast’s soul.”
It wasn’t difficult to understand why, as the aluminum two-seater was like an old-school muscle car in its mechanical execution. While most of its competitors were boasting small-displacement engines with forced induction, the Aston Martin was fitted with a naturally aspirated 6.0-liter V12. While the others used sophisticated electronic dampers to maximize grip, the British automaker stuck with a fixed-rate setup. And, while nearly everyone in the industry was boasting automatic gearboxes, the V12 Vantage was still fitted with a slick-shifting six-speed manual. The coupe was not perfect, but it had tons of personality and it was a real kick to drive.
But now we have the V12 coupe’s successor, updated with an ‘S’ for the 2014 model year, and Aston Martin has altered some of the ingredients: the engine is more powerful, the suspension is electronically controlled and the gear changes are now automatic.
What effect does that have on a car that I once considered one of my favorites? I recently spent a long day with the sleek coupe to find out.Continue reading 2014 Aston Martin V12 Vantage S
2014 Aston Martin V12 Vantage S originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 17 Oct 2013 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Commentshttp://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/weblogsinc/autoblog?i=582M2mOWDyc:HdQIntaidUg:wF9xT3WuBAs http://feeds.feedburner.com/~ff/weblogsinc/autoblog?i=582M2mOWDyc:HdQIntaidUg:V_sGLiPBpWU
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/weblogsinc/autoblog/~4/582M2mOWDyc