Aston Martin Vanquish

By: Sam Carson

The Aston Martin V12 Vanquish or just Vanquish lived a short, illustrious, and limelight filled era, and spanning just 7 years, from 2001-2007. This level of elegance and distinction could never be misconstrued for anything or anyone else, because it screamed outstanding performance, and timeless looks from the new car on the block.

It was the forerunner of the Virage/ V8 Vantage, and was based on the theories of two concept cars, the Bertone Jet 2, and the Zagato Roadster; both were presented at the Geneva Motor Show in 2004. The Vanquish's stint in the limelight came from being the official car in the twentieth James Bond movie "Die Another Day", after that the Aston Martin Vanquish became one of the most popular, and easily noticeable vehicle, it was the car on everyone's lips. It was Aston Martin's prime, emblematic, production car for the 7 years of its life. It was created by Ian Callum and it is in the "grand tourer" class, and is manufactured by "Aston Martin Lagonda Limited". Unfortunately, it was dropped in 2007 and would be temporarily replaced by the "Aston Martin DBS V12" as Aston Martin's pendant vehicle until 2010, when a permanent replacement will be made.

The Vanquish's core force consisted of "5.9 litre (5935cc), 48-valve, 60º V12 engine" outputting a max power of 460bhp (343kW) at 6,500 rpm along with a torque of 542 N·m (400 ft·lbf), running at 0-62mph in 4.9 seconds, succeeding a top speed of 186mph. A "fly-by-wire" throttle with a six speed "clutchless, sequential, manual transmission" directs the control system for the engine. The braking system on the otherhand includes 355mm (14in) ventilated and drilled disc brakes that have ABS, containing electronic brake distribution.

The Vanquish's engine mechanics is almost exact to the blueprint and components of the "3.0 litre Duratec 30 V6", even down to the last stroke and bore specifications. The car possesses a FR layout along with the basic Coupe body style, the Vanquish dimensions were carefully crafted; a length of 4666mm (184in); a wheelbase of 2690mm (106in); a height of 1318mm (52in); a width of 1923mm (76in); and a curb weight of 1835kg (4045 lbs).

The Aston Martin Vanquish car was altogether unmodified until 2005 rolled around, when the second model came out by the name of the Aston Martin Vanquish S, which was introduced at Paris Auto Show in 2004. The changes that came with this model was the increase in strength and more power all round, elegant styling changes, and all new 19 inch wheels. They also gave a choice to opt for a sportier appearance and performance with the "Sports Dynamic Pack" with potent braking features, powerful, sportier suspension, and refined steering capabilities. The engine, 6.0 litre V12 was masterminded by Ford and outputted a max power of 520bhp (388kW) at 7000 rpm, along with a torque of 577N m (426ft lbf), increasing 0-62mph at 4.8 seconds achieving a top speed of 200mph. The Vanquish S braking system was stronger than that of the Vanquish with 378mm (15in) situated at the front and 330mm (13in) positioned in the rear rotors.

The production of the Aston Martin Vanquish's ended officially on the 19th, July 2007, and that signaled the end of a master. Aston Martin also issued that the production of the last 40 cars would be under the stage name of the "Vanquish Ultimate Edition", having an enigmatic "Ultimate Black" exterior, elegantly done interiors, with tailor-made sill plaques inserted into the dash. The Vanquish is an instant classic, and will always have its critics, but will always have its fans.

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