Currently reading: Aston Martin Vanquish Volante unveiled

New £200k V12-engined Vanquish Volante will become Aston's range-topping convertible GT

Aston Martin has revealed its new £200k Vanquish Volante, a model claimed to be the stiffest open-top model in the firm’s 100-year history.

Replacing the DBS Volante as Aston’s range-topping open GT car, the 6.0-litre V12-powered Vanquish Volante is capable of the same 0-62mph sprint of 4.1sec and 183mph top speed as its coupé sibling. Its full carbonfibre bodywork is also a first for an Aston Volante model.

Other improvements over the DBS Volante include a 50 per cent larger boot at 279 litres with the roof up or down. Aston says the roof is of triple-skin lightweight fabric construction and of an aerodynamic design, and it can be opened and closed in 14 seconds.

The outputs of the 6.0 V12 engine match that of the Vanquish coupé, meaning a maximum 565bhp is available at 6750rpm and peak torque of 457lb ft arrives at 5500rpm. Drive is sent to the rear wheels through a six-speed automatic transmission. 

Aston says the Volante is able to match the performance of the Vanquish coupé as weight increases have been kept to a minimum. The Volante weighs 1844kg, a 9kg increase over the coupe.

Underpinning the car is the latest fourth-generation development of Aston’s venerable VH platform. Carbonfibre is used in semi-structural components and bonding techniques are derived from the aerospace industry.

As such, Aston claims this Vanquish Volante is 14 per cent torsionally stiffer than the DBS Volante and much more resistant to flex and predictable to handle as a result.

Aston also says the spring and damper rates have been calibrated to give the Volante the same ride and handling characteristics as the coupé. The weight distribution is 51:49.

The Volante shares the same look as the Vanquish coupe, but with a few notable changes in addition to the roof. The windscreen is now full height, the glass running up to meet the fabric for a cleaner, more coherent look. This full-height windscreen on a Volante is another first for Aston Martin.

The design of the 2+2 interior of the Vanquish coupe carries over to the Volante unchanged, save for the switches necessary to operate the retractable roof. 

Chassis features include adaptive dampers with three distinct modes - Normal, Sport and Track - a quick-ratio steering set-up, Brembo-supplied carbon ceramic brakes, and Dynamic Stability Control and Positive Torque Control electronic systems.

Order books are now open for the Aston Martin Vanquish Volante ahead of the first deliveries later this year. Prices start from £199,995.

Mark Tisshaw

mark-tisshaw-autocar
Title: Editor

Mark is a journalist with more than a decade of top-level experience in the automotive industry. He first joined Autocar in 2009, having previously worked in local newspapers. He has held several roles at Autocar, including news editor, deputy editor, digital editor and his current position of editor, one he has held since 2017.

From this position he oversees all of Autocar’s content across the print magazine, autocar.co.uk website, social media, video, and podcast channels, as well as our recent launch, Autocar Business. Mark regularly interviews the very top global executives in the automotive industry, telling their stories and holding them to account, meeting them at shows and events around the world.

Mark is a Car of the Year juror, a prestigious annual award that Autocar is one of the main sponsors of. He has made media appearances on the likes of the BBC, and contributed to titles including What Car?Move Electric and Pistonheads, and has written a column for The Sun.

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martin_66 20 June 2013

Yes, but just look at it!

philcUK,

You may be right about its over all performance relative to a big, old man's Bentley and the smaller V12 Vantage Volante, but you are falling into the trap that a lot of people on these forums seem to fall into - an obsession with performance figures.  What you keep missing is the most important point about cars like this, and probably the most important point to people who can actually afford to buy them - just look at it!  It is just beautiful, in a way that the Vantage and the lardy old Bentley aren't.

If you are a millionaire, driving around in a car that looks this good is far more important and relevant than being a couple of tenths quicker to 60, or 10 mph quicker at the top end.

philcUK 20 June 2013

perhaps, but...

i'm not obsessing about performance - im just missing it's USP - no, the vantage isnt as pretty but the new DB9 Volante is - and does all the same things. For a lot less money.

when your snorkelling in the financial mire like Aston are - you really need some sort of clarity in your offering and this isnt it. Really cant see it sitting on the order books any longer than the Virage did.

d79m 19 June 2013

Dont you just love it when

Dont you just love it when people moan that this car only does 183 mph! You can tell the difference between people who actually buy cars like these and who are just armchair stat moaners. This still goes two and a half times faster than the maximum speed limit. I think this car is stunning 

Lanehogger 19 June 2013

d79m wrote: Dont you just

d79m wrote:

Dont you just love it when people moan that this car only does 183 mph! You can tell the difference between people who actually buy cars like these and who are just armchair stat moaners. This still goes two and a half times faster than the maximum speed limit. I think this car is stunning 

It's churlish to call a car like the Vanquish slow and underpowered, but everything should be more or less relative to the class they're competing in, while the gap between it and the DB9 is, crucially, minimal bar the price. Of course, it's unlikely buyers will overlook the Aston in favour of a F12 due to it's inferior performance, while the Vanquish is still mightily fast, looks superb, has the x-factor and is, at the end of the day, an Aston, which is reason enough to but one. As I've said, performance isn't the be all and end all, but the Vanquish, for all its desirability and merits, does seem to be a lacking, especially when the DB9 offers as much for much less.

Matty_Hall 19 June 2013

I know it will have the usual

I know it will have the usual Aston flaws and will look outdated in 5 years, but that is achingly pretty. Almost pretty enough to tempt me away from a 458 Spider, were I in the market for such a transportation device!