Aston Martin Vanquish S

Aston Martin Vanquish S

200MPH

Top speed

4.6 seconds

0-60 time

520BHP

Power

£100000

Value

The fastest Aston made at the time, the last car to be built at Newport Pagnell, and the car that marked the modern rebirth of the brand – the Vanquish is assured of its place in history.

An all-new successor to the ageing Virage range, the Vanquish, designed by Ian Callum, was introduced in 2001 at the Geneva Motor Show and was more of a super-fast Grand Tourer than an out-and-out sports car. It was also stunningly beautiful.

The car’s 5.9-litre, V12 initially produced 450bhp and featured as a Bond Car in Die Another Day in 2002, but with competitors Ferrari and Porsche upping the horsepower ante, the upgraded Vanquish S made its debut in 2004.

Output was upped to 520bhp, while styling revisions included new wheels, a revised nose, raised bootlid with larger spoiler and a small front splitter.

It also included as standard the Sports Dynamic Pack, an option on the earlier model, which gave it firmer suspension, bigger brakes and sharper steering.

Auto Express described the S as “the quintessential Aston…purposeful yet beautiful, brutally fast yet sumptuously comfortable, and designed to be the ultimate grand tourer”.

“It was the stunning flagship the maker needed, and with its looks, pace and power, it became one of the world’s most desirable cars.

“The crescendo of noise as the revs top 3,000rpm oozes character. With slightly wayward body control, it’s not as agile as modern Astons, but then it was never meant to be a focused sports car.”

It had supercar performance, with a top speed of 200mph and 0-60mph time of 4.6 seconds, allied to the sumptuous comfort associated with the brand.

Car and Driver revelled in the “deep thrumming exhaust note, which returns beyond 4000 rpm, is wonderfully exciting”.

In all, 1,086 Vanquish S models were built before it was replaced by the DBS in 2007, with the final 50 coming in a black Ultimate Edition with upgraded exterior and personalised sill plaques.

Here’s what Top Gear said when the S was launched in 2004: