Aston Martin Vantage joins the fleet

It's always exciting to add a new supercar to the fleet. But at the same time, it meant saying goodbye to an old friend, our loyal Aston Martin Vantage S. Arguably only a small change in style and build, once you get behind the steering wheel of the new Vantage, you immediately feel the big difference the 'little' tweaks have made.

"This mint Vantage with its gorgeous new lines, exquisite interiors, and radically updated cockpit, truly out-performs the older model in every way possible. We are beyond certain our club members and clients are going to love test-driving this British motoring masterpiece."

Kevin Burns, Managing Director

The arrival of the new supercar

Taking delivery of the new Aston Martin with '19 plates was quite the experience. While you might picture a flatbed truck rolling up to our Donington Park HQ in a Hollywood style slow-motion sequence, with Aston Martin's CCO handing over the keys personally, that's not quite what happened, as we'll now reveal.

Managing director Kevin Burns actually made the trip to the Aston Martin dealership himself and he had a trusted passenger with him, our old Aston Martin Vantage S. One last farewell trip in the black sports coupé. One last press of the buttons. The last phone disconnect from the infotainment system. And one last roar of the V8 engine.

"Our Aston Martin Vantage S was ready to be retired. It was a very sombre drive from Donington to the Nottingham Aston Martin Dealership."

Kevin Burns, Managing Director

While it was sad to see the first car of our fleet leave, the sadness didn't linger as the excitement of a new addition took pole position.

Aston Martin Vantage Specs

While we thoroughly enjoyed a drive in our original Vantage S with its luxurious layout and empowering attitude, the new addition simply blew our minds. Not only are we looking at 90 additional bhp, but also at a considerable increase in the car's acceleration. We're talking about shaving an entire second of the 0-60 time, bringing it down to 3.6 seconds.

We'd never advocate pushing the needle all the way on our Derbyshire roads, but geeks like us will revel in the fact the max speed has nosed up to 195mph. The naturally aspirated V8 engine under the hood could never disappoint, producing a breathtaking 505 lb-ft of torque. The stats look quite impressive and paint a compelling picture of the new Aston Martin Vantage, however, it's not actually telling you that much about the vehicle though is it? All the cars in our supercar fleet have impressive specs, otherwise, they wouldn't get through the garage doors.

So what exactly do we look for when identifying a potential addition to our fleet? Dimensions of the exhaust? Weight of the aluminium platform?

No, what we care about is the drivability and character of the sports car. We care about how it runs, if it feels smooth or even if it's too powerful to handle on everyday roads.

Drivability

The drivability of the Vantage is second to none, with a very comfortable driving position, making the driver the centre point of the experience. You may not be as close to the tarmac and the tyres as you are in a Lamborghini Huracán Spyder, for example, but the Vantage is a lot more comfortable and offers better visibility. And most importantly, it comes with heated seats! Now switch it from Sports mode and to Sports Plus mode and you'll feel the suspension and engine enhance your fun even more. And we haven't even mentioned Track mode yet.

Aston Martin Vantage Interior

We've already established that the new Aston Martin puts the driver at the centre of the experience, but other than the driving position what else does it offer? Besides the obvious luxury that Aston Martin drivers are used to, it's full of fun little surprises. Let's start with the storage space. Most supercars are notoriously known for not having a lot of storage space, including our beloved Porsche 911 GT3 or just about every Ferrari. Whisper it, but we suspect it might have something to do with the fact that the British manufacturer has its own line of matching luxury luggage.

Also good news, is the Vantage is jam-packed with tech gadgets that'll help you customise the drive to your liking - hence all the buttons on the centre console. Besides the already mentioned suspension and engine settings, your comfort is aided by the dual climate control settings. All in all, you couldn't really be much more comfortable in a supercar.

We end our introduction on the steering wheel. There has been a lot of talk about the Vantage's steering wheel design. Top Gear proclaimed it an 'oddball square steering wheel'. While it undeniably looks a little strange at first glance, it feels incredibly comfortable to drive.

After the first few weeks of breaking in the powerful car, we can safely say that we're delighted the Aston Martin Vantage has joined the fleet. Now we're looking forward to seeing the delighted faces of our members as they rev the V8 engine. See you soon.