Can Aston’s ageing Vantage still cut
it against F-type and co?
We’re looking directly down at the infamous
Karussell corner from a helicopter as five racecars charge into it. The 24-hour
clock at the Nürburgring has about ten minutes to count down, but such is the
length of the track there’s only this and the next lap to go. One of the cars,
a bright blue Aston Martin, goes low, then high on the rough concrete section,
but there’s a sinister black BMW Z4 GT3 breathing down its neck, glued to its
bumper. But as the Aston goes high and slips clear of the slower cars, the Z4
gets baulked and the Vantage is home clear with a lead the BMW won’t be able to
overcome before the chequered flag.
The
N430 handles terrifically, with accurate, well-weighted steering
The bright blue car finishes fifth, out of
a field of nearly 200, and is there to remind the world that Aston builds
sports cars. Not grand tourers, but proper, involving coupes that have a proven
race heritage. And to make that link a little stronger there’s now this, the
Vantage N430. The ‘N’ is for Nürburgring, the ‘430’ for its power output in
bhp; it’s five grand more than a regular V8 Vantage, and it’s the third of a
series of special edition Nordschleife-inspired Astons. This one, however,
won’t be limited to 800 units like its N420 and N400 predecessors.
What starts as a V8 Vantage has had a
valved airbox and fuel strategy tweaks for the extra 10bhp, a nominal figure
that brings no change to the 4.8sec 0-62mph time, nor the impressive 190mph top
speed. There’s also a choice of the six-speed manual we’re driving here, or the
automated sportshift II gearbox, neither class leaders in smoothness or pace.
The
cabin is less impressive, and is beginning to feel aged
That doesn’t make this car a sticker job:
sure, there’s contrasting lipstick around the front grille, on the mirrors and,
strikingly, around the coupe’s side windows (you can also buy a Roadster version,
and other more subtle ‘race liveries’ are available) but inside the steering
wheel is wrapped in alcantara and the leather-trimmed seats are made from
carbonfibre and kevlar. There’s a delicious irony in that they help shed 20kg
from the weight – in combination with the forged 19in alloys – but still have
electric adjustment. Sports car or GT, Aston?
The sports message is clear at the wheel.
That V8 idle is warm and strong, not as guttural and imposing as the V12, but
above 3,000rpm its lungs open and it delivers a metallic, addictive rant that
loves revs and tunnels. The ride, too, is firm, compliant yet supple on the
German roads around the Nürburgring, even when we found a rare pock-marked
section, but it’s the controls that show this car is made for speed, not
crawling.
The
seats themselves are excellent though, and the low, rakish driving layout
itself has hints of the ‘lie down’ sensations you normally only get in a racing
car
What makes it formidable is not the off
-the-mark pace, but its in-gear response: while the throttle is a little slower
in the Normal setting, select Sport on the dash and it sharpens up, and the
Aston layers on speed as a brutally fast point-to-point weapon. And the heavy
slow-speed steering catches up with the pace, and begins to match the tenacious
grip as the N430 arrives in its sweet spot. After a dose of throttle, you can
enter corners with massive confidence as there are super-strong six-piston
brakes up front, and even when you jump on these clumsily at the sight of a
tightening apex, the N430’s composure remains.
That’s not to say roll, dive and squat
aren’t there – sharper cars can be had for less cash – but the Aston never
trembles, wobbles or struggles to stand firm. That’s why you can push it to the
7,500rpm limiter, brake late into a corner, and use the stunning traction to
push on. There is a technique: the front-end doesn’t bite as hard as it could,
so you need to get your braking done in a straight line, but that corner exit
sees the rear lay down the power to get the hell out of there. It’s thoroughly
enjoyable and satisfying, only let down by the gearlever being set too far
back. Sadly, this is not what we’d present to a ‘Save the manual gearbox’
campaign.
Exhaust
almost as loud as the paint
The N430 is also based on an old car. The
Vantage, which arrived in 2005, shows its age on the inside, with clumsy
ergonomics, lack of tech and frozen-in-time dash design. And while the price of
the car has been amortised over the years – which helps the N430 stay closer in
price to a regular Vantage than its predecessors – it’s still up against more
powerful, younger rivals, such as the Jaguar F-Type R Coupe. The N430 may be a
marketing tool for Aston’s on-track pursuits, but the way it drives shows the
company isn’t blind to what drivers, as opposed to poseurs, really want.
