Aston Martin revealed the new Vantage nearly a year ago. It’s now expanding the lineup with the Vantage Roadster. Designed and engineered in parallel with the coupe, it allowed Aston to keep the car’s weight under control without losing too much structural rigidity. The convertible weighs just 132 pounds more than its fixed-roof sibling.
The roadster uses Aston’s 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V-8 to make 656 horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque. It can hit 202 miles per hour and race to 60 mph from a standstill in 3.5 seconds. Drivers control the rear-mounted eight-speed automatic gearbox with paddle shifters, which routes the power to the electronically controlled limited-slip differential and rear wheels.
Photo by: Aston Martin
Stopping power comes from a 15.8-inch front and 14.2-inch rear steel brake system with six-piston front and four-piston rear calipers. Aston Martin also offers carbon ceramic brakes measuring 16.1 inches and 14.2 inches front and rear.
The company wanted to keep the roadster as light as possible relative to the coupe, so it opted for a Z-fold fabric roof design, which is lighter than a traditional K-fold top. The roof also removes the need for Aston to add a tonneau cover, saving even more weight while keeping the car’s center of gravity low. Aston claims the Vantage Roadster has the fastest folding automatic convertible roof on the market—6.8 seconds open-to-close and vice-versa—at speeds of up to 31 mph.
Photo by: Aston Martin
Photo by: Aston Martin
Aston was also concerned about the car’s structural rigidity, adding weight-optimized sheer panels to stiffen the structure laterally. The company also modified how it attaches the body to the car’s rear. Aston had to recalibrate its rear dampers software and retune the gearbox mountings to accommodate the mass and weight distribution change. Despite the lack of a roof and the extra hardware, the Vantage Roadster achieves a 49:51 weight distribution.
The folding roof does eat into the truck space, offering 7.1 cubic feet of cargo space compared to the coupe’s 12.2. The car comes with an 11-speaker, 390-watt sound system, but customers can upgrade to an optional Bowers & Wilkins system.
Photo by: Aston Martin
The Vantage will go on sale later this year with three new color choices: Iridescent Sapphire, Satin Iridescent Sapphire, and Bronze Flare. Aston will offer the roof in black, red, blue, or black and silver while having four 21-inch wheel designs and seven brake caliper colors available. Customers will also have access to the company’s Q by Aston Martin customization services.
Aston says deliveries will begin in the second quarter this year, but did not release any pricing information.