Rent a car: Aston Martin Vantage Mansory

Hire an elegant car: Aston Martin Vantage Mansory

The Mansory Aston Martin V12 Vantage comes equipped with a number of body modifications including a four line grill element, similar with the radiator, that provides for better ventilation, a new spoiler, a rear apronand side skirts, an integrated diffuser and a boot lid spoiler.

The Aston Martin Vantage has broken cover with a 12 cylinder model featuring some new exterior design and performance technology that should bring the aging Vantage back into relevance. The 2010 Aston Martin V12 Vantage, as the new British sports car is aptly called, gets a big bump in power and a new stability control system to help put it to the road.

Shaking the "grand tourer" moniker often applied to larger, more unweildy Aston Martin models, the V12 Vantage is pure sports car through and through. A 6 speed conventional manual is mounted behind the driver for better weight distribution and drives the rear wheels. The V12 powerplant is the same excellent unit found in the current DBS, producing 510 horses and 420 lb-ft. of torque, good for 4.1 seconds through 60 mph and a top speed of 190 mph, Aston says. On the outside, the 2010 V12 Vantage gets a host of minor styling changes to differentiate itself from "lesser" V8 Vantage models, most noticable of which is the louvered hood. Carbon fiber front and rear air dams, as well as low and lean skirts from Aston Martin Racing round out the package. 2010 V12 Vantage pricing is not yet announced, we'll have to wait for Geneva for that. Initial reports have put the V12 Vantage at around $250,000. For those who want a piece of serious Aston Martin performance but don't want to drop a cool million for the exclusive One-77, Aston Martin may have just the remedy. Expect a V12 Vantage release date of Q3 2009.

Designed for the focused driver, every component of the V12 Vantage has been honed with pure driving enjoyment in mind. Benefitting from race-developed materials and components, and featuring lightweight carbon fibre; performance and agility have been tuned to perfection.

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Visually enticing, the V12 Vantage expresses its performance potential through its purposeful stance created by enhanced aerodynamic and cooling aids optically widening the car, while retaining traditional understated Aston Martin design. Equally inviting, the cosseting interior permits the driver to extract maximum performance ability from the car while also enjoying customary levels of Aston Martin comfort on longer journeys. High levels of power and torque are available at all engine speeds making the V12 Vantage responsive and tractable in any driving situation.

The V12 Vantage will be built at Aston Martin’s global headquarters in Gaydon, Warwickshire joining the DBS, DB9 and V8 Vantage model lines which are built in the state-of-the-art production facility combining hi-tech manufacturing processes with traditional hand-craftsmanship. Production will be limited up to 1,000 examples over the life span of the car, making the V12 Vantage a truly exclusive driver’s car.

The car's handling is terrific too. Our test car shipped with dry-bias tyres, which means they grip like a breast-feeding baby orang-utan in the dry, although they're pretty useless in wet conditions. Throw the car at a corner and the grip is exceptional, with little hint of understeer. Those lucky enough to find themselves on a track will find it difficult to resist unleashing every last ounce of horsepower, because the reward is exhilaration beyond measure.

The Aston Martin V12 Vantage is a stunning car. Other manufacturers have, and will continue, to make faster, more advanced vehicles, but we get the feeling the V12 will always remain in a class of its own. It's mesmerisingly beautiful, hugely rewarding to drive and will deservingly be considered one of the most desirable supercars ever created.

Technical characteristics - Mansory Aston Martin Vantage V12