Even now, the image is vivid: the tail pointed skyward, the nose buried deep in the muddy undergrowth. Retrieving the Aston Martin V12 Vantage after a testing mishap required a tow rope and another test vehicle. The initial inspection brought relief – superficial damage, a twisted carbon fibre front splitter, but nothing immediately critical. A call to Aston Martin with apologies and assurances that immediate retrieval wasn’t necessary followed. Then, the next evening, history repeated itself. Another tester, another incident, this time involving a humpback bridge, a loss of control on landing, and a fifty-foot excursion into thick undergrowth. This time, a local farmer and his tractor were needed. The second incident? Perhaps best left unreported to Aston Martin’s press team…
Aston Martin V12 Vantage: A Stunning Example of British Performance Engineering
Potentially a handful to manage, yes, but the allure of the V12 Vantage remains undeniable. The subsequent S variant, launched a couple of years later, never quite captured the same magic. This might be attributed to its initial pairing with Aston Martin’s somewhat cumbersome robotised paddleshift gearbox. While a seven-speed manual option did emerge in 2016, it lacked the satisfying engagement of the original six-speed manual.
Today, the early V12 Vantage presents an intriguing proposition. Priced below £60,000 for entry-level examples, with top-tier models fetching around £75,000, they represent strong value, especially when considering that a comparable V8 Vantage can be acquired for under £30,000. Crucially, their value is expected to hold firm. Current figures indicate only around 200 V12 Vantages are taxed and road-ready in the UK, making them a rare breed.
The dream of V12 Vantage ownership persists. And, should that dream materialize, lessons learned will be remembered – particularly regarding photographers and humpback bridges.
