Channeling that classic Tom Cruise line from the original Top Gun movie: “I feel the need. The need for speed”.
To feel the need, simply dial-in sport+ drive mode to add a triple shot of Lavazza espresso to the 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8. Now foot to the floor. And brace, brace.
It’s not the off-the-line thrust that will release a tsunami of adrenaline and send your pulse-rate into hyperdrive. Though zero-to-60 in 3.4 seconds isn’t exactly hanging around.
No, it’s the ferocity of the mid-range, slingshot-out-of-the-on-ramp, surge that will clench your jaw, tingle your fingers and have you uttering expletives like Gordon Ramsey on Kitchen Nightmares.
The source of all this mind-warping forward motion is Aston Martin’s divine new Vantage coupe that’s just had a major makeover to transform it into a true Porsche 911, Mercedes-AMG GT combatant.
While the bones of the Aston are pretty much unchanged from the 2017 original, continuous evolution has kept it as a major player in the supercar-lite game.
But this 2025 version takes the Vantage to a whole new towering level in terms of power, performance, handling, and swooning looks.
Take that mighty V8. It’s still essentially the same motor supplied by Mercedes-AMG and used in the AMG GT. But it’s been extensively tweaked by Aston engineers who endowed it with bigger turbos, modified camshaft profiles, a higher compression ratio and improved cooling.
The result? It now makes an impressive 656 hp at 6,000 rpm – up 128 hp from its predecessor. Max torque? That soars by 85 lb-ft to a stump-pulling 590 lb-ft. Peterbilt 18-wheelers have less muscle.
The company’s handling wizards also worked their magic to help the Vantage sweep around curves like a Hot Wheels slot-car.
It gets a new set of Bilstein adaptive dampers similar to those in Aston’s latest DB12 and Vanquish rocketships, and even more precise electric steering that wouldn’t seem out of place on Fernando Alonso’s Aston Martin F1 racecar.
Add to this, additional stiffening for the bonded-aluminum monocoque structure, a wider track, weight management that now gives a perfect 50:50 front/rear balance, and super-sticky Michelin Pilot S5 tires developed specially for the new Vantage.
Talking of wide track, gaze for one sweet moment at the car’s jaw-dropping new shape.
Yes, it’s evolved from that 2017 original, but it feels totally new. The signature Aston grille is now a whopping 40 per cent bigger, and capable of channeling around 30 per cent more cooling air into the engine bay. Gorgeous new slender LED headlights too, and the kind of bulging fenders surely modeled after Chris Hemsworth’s biceps.
Yet arguably the most compelling feature of this new British beefcake is its interior. Gone is the unruly ergonomic mess that was the previous Vantage.
Taking its cues from the recently refettled DB12, it gets a 10.25-inch touchscreen display integrated in the center console, with Apple and Android connectivity. Gone too is the eccentric push-button gear selector, replaced with a more conventional, more intuitive, single-lever shifter.
What hasn’t changed is the quality and craftsmanship seen in the cut and stitching of the glove-soft Bridge of Weir leather, the lovely satin metal trim, and carbon fiber weave. And those front seats are perfect thrones for some spirited driving, supporting and cosseting in all the right places.
Thankfully Aston resisted the temptation to squeeze-in vestigial rear seats incapable of accommodating any human form. Instead, there’s a decent amount of luggage space under that lifting glass tailgate.
Out on the road our Cosmopolitan Yellow Vantage tester drives like a bolt of white lightning. The overall feel is firmer, tauter, more responsive, more aggressive.
Without a race track to test the cornering limits, every backroad curve feels as if those 21-inch rims are simply running on rails. Instant acceleration accompanied by that sonorous, throaty exhaust? Just addictive.
$200,500 is the price of entry for this new Vantage coupe – the newly-launched Vantage Roadster costs around $15,000 more. Start checking a few options boxes however and it’s easy to hit the $270,400 sticker of our test car. That paintwork alone adds $14,100.
But while this new Vantage is essentially the “starter” Aston, to me it’s the most appealing in the range, with its sublime looks, breathtaking performance, truly dynamic character, all in this more compact package.
That need for speed? Definitely satisfied.
