The new Vantage F1 Edition was created to celebrate the return of Aston Martin to Formula 1 after 60 years of absence. Moreover, the English sports car is also the official safety car of the top motorsport series: it will make its debut this month at the Bahrain Grand Prix. The F1 Edition boasts special chassis and aerodynamics: “the sportiest Vantage in the production line is, in essence, a replica of the official Formula 1 Vantage safety car”, they say bluntly from the parent company.
Under the hood is a 4-liter twin turbo V8 engine: power is increased by 25 HP, for a total of 535 HP, while maximum torque is 685 Nm. Numbers managed by the 8-speed automatic transmission, “with a limitation of torque optimized in high gears to reduce shift times and increase the sense of immediacy and precision ”. Also modified suspension and underbody to increase the front structural rigidity and ensure greater steering precision as well as an increase in traction.
The 21 ”wheels of the Vantage F1 Edition (available in the Coupé and Roadster models) are rubberized with particularly low profile Pirelli tires to offer the driver a greater feeling of control. The car’s aerokit – including front splitter, front canard fins, Vane swiveling underbody grilles and rear wing – is designed to provide front and rear downforce an additional 200kg over the ‘standard’ Vantage downforce at top speed. Price? The Italian one is to be defined but in Germany it starts from 162 thousand euros; the start of deliveries is scheduled for next May.
“The Vantage has always been the best performing sports car in our line, but in the development of our official Formula 1 safety car, we have transformed it into a true athlete: more powerful, more agile, more immediate and more exciting to to drive, ”says Tobias Moers, Aston Martin CEO in an official statement:“ And, of course, faster and more performing in a racing environment. I set a very ambitious goal for the design team, because I was convinced that the improvement in performance had to go through a real improvement in the dynamics of the car and not simply by resorting to sports tires. The results speak for themselves. A Vantage that will be appreciated by the most selective drivers and, at the same time, a new model that represents a particularly exciting moment in the history of Aston Martin ”.
