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Aston Martin Vanquish

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Aston Martin Vanquish

The Aston Martin Vanquish is a grand tourer introduced by British luxury automobile manufacturer Aston Martin in 2001 as a successor to the Aston Martin Virage (1993).

The Aston Martin V12 Vanquish was designed by Ian Callum and unveiled at the 2001 Geneva Motor Show. It was produced from 2001 to 2007 as the flagship of the marque. A concept car, known as "Project Vantage", and the first Aston Martin design wholly designed by Callum, was built to display the company's vision for a future sports car that could represent Aston Martin's aspirations after the discontinuation of the Virage-based Vantage. The concept car evolved directly into the V12 Vanquish, and featured a carbon fibre and alloy structure, Aston Martin's most powerful V12 engine, and a host of new technologies. A specially modified V12 Vanquish was driven by James Bond in the 2002 film Die Another Day. In 2004, a mildly updated version of the first-generation model, named "V12 Vanquish S", was introduced, featuring a more highly tuned engine and more track-oriented ride and handling. The V12 Vanquish was indirectly replaced by the DBS after 2007.

The second-generation "Vanquish" was introduced in 2012, this time based on Aston Martin's existing VH platform – similar to the one that underpinned the DB9. Designed by Marek Reichman and made in the Gaydon facility, the VH platform Vanquish was designed to fill the shoes of the discontinued DBS. In 2017, a "Vanquish S" with a more powerful engine and improved aerodynamics was launched. The second-generation Gaydon Vanquish was succeeded by the DBS Superleggera in 2018. In September 2024, Aston Martin announced the third-generation Vanquish as the successor of the DBS Superleggera.

The Aston Martin V12 Vanquish was styled by Ian Callum and drew inspiration from the DB4 GT Zagato, projecting a more aggressive presence than Callum's DB7 Vantage. The production car closely resembled the Project Vantage Concept which debuted with a V12 engine at the North American International Auto Show in January 1998. Underneath, the V12 Vanquish car featured a unique and bespoke bonded aluminium composite chassis with a carbon fibre backbone developed in partnership with Lotus, an advanced independent suspension, and a more highly tuned version of the naturally aspirated 5,935 cc (5.9 L; 362.2 cu in) Aston Martin V12 engine that had debuted in the DB7 two years earlier. It was available in 2+0 and 2+2 seating configurations and came only in a coupé body style.

The naturally aspirated 60° DOHC 4 valves per cylinder V12 engine with a bore and stroke of 89 mm × 79.5 mm (3.50 in × 3.13 in) produced 343 kW; 460 hp (466 PS) at 6,500 rpm and 400 lb⋅ft (542 N⋅m) of torque at 5,000 rpm. It is controlled by a drive-by-wire throttle and driven by a 6-speed automated manual transmission. The Vanquish model debuted with 355 mm (14.0 inches) drilled and ventilated disc brakes with four-piston calipers, ABS, with electronic brake distribution. The interior featured full instrumentation, advanced electronics, and a choice of leather upholstery with metallic details – the latter was an intentional move away from the wood trim seen in the DB7.

As Aston Martin's flagship car for the era, the V12 Vanquish was designed to deliver new performance benchmarks for the company. It featured an acceleration time from 0–60 mph (0–97 km/h) of 4.5 seconds and a top speed of 190 mph (306 km/h). The first-generation V12 Vanquish was generally well received by the motoring press. Road tests included praise for its powertrain, chassis, engineering, and design. The V12 Vanquish was described as "The ultimate Grand Tourer" by Road & Track magazine. Car and Driver described the V12 Vanquish as "worthy of the marque's heritage and a serious alternative to the top Ferrari."

The V12 Vanquish series would become the last all-new model to be made in Aston Martin's Newport Pagnell facility. While the traditional craft techniques had evolved somewhat from those used to make the previous generation of cars, primarily in the panel shaping, there was still a great deal of work done by hand in assembly and finishing as each car was very time-consuming to manufacture.

Its appearance in the 2002 James Bond film Die Another Day earned the V12 Vanquish the number three spot on the list of Best Film Cars Ever, behind the Minis from The Italian Job, and the DB5 from Goldfinger and Thunderball. In the movie, James Bond receives this car from Q for his mission to Iceland to see Gustav Graves' presentation of Icarus after being reinstated by M and would eventually use the car once more to chase Zao and rescue Jinx. The vehicle is equipped with a variety of gadgets which include machine guns and missiles on the grille, tire spikes for snow use, an ejector seat that enables the car to go back up, target seeking shotguns, as well as a cloaking device rendering the car invisible.

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