The Next Generation Aston Vantage Will Be A Game Changer, But The V12 S Is Still Amazing

Jul. 07, 2016 5:45 PM ET by Jared Rosenholtz / 4 Comments

We don't know which Vantage will be better.

We already knew how good the Aston Martin Vantage is. Since its unveiling back in 2005, it has remained one of the prettiest cars money can buy. However, it was never the fastest car in its price segment, and the interior always felt a little bit half-assed. In fact, this was a common complaint about most Astons. Now, Mercedes-Benz owns 5% of the British sports car brand, and we have already seen the advantages of that with the all-new DB11. The next-generation Vantage will be a lot more German.

Depending on your opinion of current Aston Martins, the new Vantage may not be your cup of tea. It will be powered by the same 4.0-liter twin turbo V8 that you get in the AMG GT and will come with a manual or automatic transmission as well as coupe and convertible variants. But will the new car be as good as the outgoing one?

MotorTrend's Jason Cammisa would say that you shouldn't care about how good the infotainment system is in a sports car, and that the glorious naturally aspirated V12 in the current car will always be better than a boosted engine. While we would typically agree with Cammisa, the new Aston Martin Vantage will keep its manual transmission option, and we already know that Mercedes can make a turbocharged engine sound great. While the current Vanatage is an amazing car, we think that the next generation will be far more well rounded and accessible to more people.