Yet at the wheel things are relatively calm. It’s that sort of car, giving you time and thinking space to plan your trajectory. You might point out that, given the 211mph maximum speed, that’s just as well.
And while few owners will take their cars to a racing circuit, if they were so tempted the brakes are simply fantastic. Powerful and progressive, with a well-honed rapport between the pads and the discs.
The Telegraph verdict
You have to feel some sympathy for Adrian Hallmark, Aston’s new chief executive, whose first task in his new job has been to announce a profit warning, witness the share price fall by 28 per cent to a low not seen since November 2022 and cut annual production plans by 1,000 cars. Blaming collapsing Chinese markets and supply shortages, Hallmark says all will be well, but then he would say that, wouldn’t he?
Perhaps he can console himself with the thought that the firm he now leads has just produced not just the best Vanquish but one of its best-ever cars. You could tartly observe that the DB12 is cheaper and almost as good and that the Vantage is a lot cheaper and brilliant, but the new Vanquish is proof positive that there is nothing like a V12. There’s such a sense of occasion each time the engine fires, it’s addictive.
And while the world has slowed a little in its approach to EVs, no one thinks that petrol V12 engines have much of a long-term future. Add in the ephemeral nature of the Vanquish name, which tends to come and go from the Aston Martin brochure, plus a production limit of 1,000 a year, and there’s sneaking suspicion that this car should carry a “buy now while stocks last” sticker.
One third of a million is a lot of money in anyone’s books, but in the rarefied world of the supercar the home-grown Vanquish can more than hold its own against the opposition in dynamics and performance, but also in appearance and charm.
Yes, it’s a huge amount of money, but you only live once…
Telegraph rating: Four out of five stars
The facts
On test: Aston Martin Vanquish
Body style: Two-door front-engined coupé
On sale: Now
How much? £330,000
How fast? Top speed 211mph, 0-62mph in 2.9sec
How economical? 19mpg (estimated)
Engine and gearbox: 5.2-litre twin-turbo V12, eight-speed automatic gearbox in a transaxle, rear-wheel drive via an electronically controlled limited-slip differential
Maximum power/torque: 824bhp @ 6,500rpm/ 738lb ft @ 2,500rpm
CO2 emissions: Estimated 312g/km
VED: £2,745 first year, £600 next five years, then £190
Warranty: Three years/unlimited mileage
The rivals
From £50,000