Shropshire Star

Getting to grips with the new Aston Martin Vantage prototype deep in the Arctic Circle

Aston Martin’s new Vantage sports car represents the overhaul of one of the brand’s most important models. Darren cassey heads to Lapland to test a prototype ahead of the production car’s arrival later this year

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As I sit in the kitchen of a nondescript hut somewhere in Lapland, my hands hugging the warm cup of coffee, I look at my phone. Minus 16 degrees Celsius.

If you could cherry pick the ideal location to test an all-new, 503bhp, rear-wheel-drive supercar from Aston Martin, this probably wouldn’t be it. As I stare out at the deep snow, piled high by the tireless efforts of Finland’s plough teams, a deep V8 rumble reverberates through the room – and the reality of my situation starts to sink in.

(Aston Martin)
(Aston Martin)

Aston Martin has invited a small group of journalists to one of its cold weather testing facilities to get behind the wheel of a validation prototype of its new supercar ahead of the production model’s release later this year.

We’re beckoned through to a large workshop, empty save for the Vantage, resplendent in its black and lime green camouflage wrap, with thick snow embedded in the wheel arches and icicles dangling from the rear diffuser.

(Aston Martin)
(Aston Martin)

We’ve already seen the car in photos so the camouflage is unnecessary, a leftover from this vehicle’s use as an early development vehicle.

But it’s immediately clear that the divisive styling seen in the press photography works so much better in the metal. That single strip of rear light, curving with the bootlid spoiler, is a particular highlight, and gives the car an incredibly distinctive signature look, particularly at night.

(Aston Martin)
(Aston Martin)

The headlights still look a bit lost in the bodywork round the front, but the new look definitely marries the elegance of Vantages gone by with the more aggressive future path for the model brilliantly.

Inside, where the British car maker has traditionally lagged well behind rivals, it’s a massive improvement. The look and feel of the materials is much closer to a Mercedes than Astons of old.

(Aston Martin)
(Aston Martin)

Which is apt, given that the British firm uses a big V8 sourced from the Germans. The gruff, beating heart of Aston Martin’s new sports car is a Mercedes-AMG-sourced 4.0-litre unit, producing 503bhp and 685Nm of torque through an eight-speed automatic transmission.

I’m the last to take the Vantage out for a spin, delayed somewhat by the previous driver embedding the prototype so deeply in a snow bank that a local tractor driver was required to pull it free. Luckily there’s no damage, but it gets the nerves jangling as I jump in the driver’s seat.

Sat beside me is Matt Becker, chief dynamics engineer at Aston Martin and the man responsible for overhauling the way the British firm’s cars drive. He spent 26 years at Lotus before moving to Aston in 2015, so if anyone can make the brand’s cars handle better, it’s him.

As we cruise to the snowy ice track, he explains that the car has three drive modes: Sport, Sport Plus and Track. Notice there’s no ‘normal’ or ‘comfort’ modes, because “this is a sports car, through and through”.

(Aston Martin)
(Aston Martin)

“One of the things [Aston Martin chief executive] Andy Palmer said when I arrived was that he wanted the cars to drive how they looked. The DB11 is a GT car, so we had to make it comfortable to cruise long distances, whereas this is a sports car, so it has to be capable of being fun in corners and on track.

“It’s still an Aston Martin though, so it has to be comfortable, too. Luckily, I don’t believe that having a stiff suspension makes the car handle better, so I think we’ve got it right here.”

(Aston Martin)
(Aston Martin)

Will I be able to judge that out here on the white stuff? It’s time to find out. As we turn on to the snowy circuit I can start to put my foot down for the first time. The compacted snow is rough and bears ruts from the journalists who’ve gone before me, but the Vantage soaks it up without fuss.

After a few sighting laps we switch the dial to ‘track’, which loosens the grip of the traction control system and quickens the responses of the steering and suspension. It’s impossible to truly gauge ride quality out here, but there’s no denying this is a sharp and agile sports car.

(Aston Martin)
(Aston Martin)

It takes no time at all to tune in to how the car behaves. The electronic rear differential, a first for Aston Martin, helps to direct power to the wheel with the most grip, and in conjunction with the traction system gets the power down admirably even in these low grip conditions.

With the traction control systems on, it’s possible to flick the car into a slide under braking or through a boot-full of throttle, before the electronics take over and reign you back in. It’s hard to say if it would be different on tarmac, but it perhaps could be more progressive in curtailing your fun.

(Aston Martin)
(Aston Martin)

What’s clear, though, is that with everything off, the Vantage will be capable of long, arcing slides.

With the car in manual mode and controlling the gear via the paddle shifters, revving the engine out is an utter delight. At lower revs it’s deep and bassy, but takes on a sonorous howl as you push on, resisting the urge to pull the right shifter and engage another gear. When you do, the shift is almost seamless, accompanied by a bark from the exhaust.

I never get above third gear – the course is short with six-foot snow banks to ensure track limits are strictly adhered to, after all – but became utterly addicted to the noise of that V8.

(Aston Martin)
(Aston Martin)

“It’s pure engine noise,” Becker assures me. “I know a lot of other companies do things where they pump engine noise in through the speakers, but we wanted it to be real. There’s no trickery going on here.”

It’s early evening and the sun is beginning to dip below the tree line casting a beautiful orange glow across the snowy scene surrounding us. With headlights now visible on the road ahead I make my way back to base, V8 burbling away, unphased by the thrashing it’s just taken in sub-zero conditions.

(Aston Martin)
(Aston Martin)

It’s difficult to give a definitive review of a car based on an hour’s-worth of sliding about in the snow, but with a stunning engine at its heart and hints of an agile chassis in the corners, there are a few signs that this could be the most exciting sports car Aston Martin has built in a long, long time.

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