When Aston Martin announced their intention of replacing DB9 with a more powerful DB11, we welcomed the news albeit being a bit surprised, but that doesn’t mean the DB9-based Vanquish is dead and forgotten. Instead, it’s been re-booted and re-designed in form of Vanquish S. This new re-boot promises more power, sharper handling and all with the same comfort, and a small jump in price from £192,995 to £199,950.
The other welcomed news was when we heard that the new Vanquish will be based on the new DB11 rather on soon to be retired DB9. The car is currently going through its testing phase and should hit the show rooms at some point in 2018.
So here is the big question, why would anyone buy the new Vanquish S? Since– the DB11 will sit on an all-new platform, will get the new inspired Aston look, provides slightly more power and more torque, gets a new interior with Mercedes-based infotainment and to top it off, costs a staggering £45k less.
These are all valid reasons but It’s important to remember that the Vanquish was always gave you a little bit more than an average DB9, if DB9 could ever be considered average, and because it always occupied the above average niche, it provided that extra performance and power. In fact, its entire body was made out of carbon-fiber which made it light.
What changes between Vanquish and Vanquish S? The chassis is the big one, there’s also a new rear anti-roll bar with stiffer bushings providing a trivial but noteworthy 3% increase in roll stiffness.
The new front splitter helps cut lift at the front axle to 18kg from 66kg, in while the rear spoiler remains unchanged. The caps on either end of the splitter help clean up the airflow, reducing drag. This means Vanquish S is able to break the all-important 200mph barrier.
The engine is a 6.0-litre V12. The intake system helps push power from 568bhp to 592bhp, and while 465lb ft at 5500rpm is unchanged. That means that the Vanquish S produces almost exactly the same power as the DB11 (which squeezes 600bhp from a 5.2-litre twin-turbo V12), but has 51lb ft less torque.
The eight-speed Touchtronic III gearbox has been re-calibrated for sharper shifts. The shift times aren’t actually any faster, just feel crisper.
So all considered the release timing of the Vanquish S is slightly odd, and DB11 is £45k cheaper and features next-generation gizmos, but you have to appreciate that the Vanquish is a more focused and old school and if I could buy one, it would be on top of my list.
