2025 Aston Martin Vanquish Returns to the Top
The 2025 Aston Martin Vanquish is a ghostly missile piercing the drizzling morning fog, its optional titanium active exhaust permeating the Sardinian highlands with an angry high-pitched wail. Only later when the sun breaks and dries the pavement can we unleash the full spectacle of its 823-hp V-12. Long, low, and menacing, yet forever elegant, this car is beautifully grandiose—a quintessential Aston Martin. And at $434,000 to start, a fitting flagship for a brand striving for the upper reaches of the ultraluxury market.
As halo models go, this being the new pinnacle of Aston's front-engine GT lineup, the third-generation Vanquish is substantial. Its carbon-fiber body traces an unmistakable Aston Martin shape, stretching 6.5 inches longer than the already-grand DB12, with an extra 3.2 inches of wheelbase. This is a big car, a two-seater at that. Its long, vented hood and front-bumper-spanning maw hint at the dozen cylinders lurking within. Generous side vents emblazoned with "Aston Martin V12" erase any doubt. Its broad rear haunches signal power. Lots of it. Yet, a lack of extraneous aero addenda indicates a knack for traversing continents at high speed, rather than topping the time sheets at track days. It's a Gulfstream IV to the F-22 Raptor that many supercars aspire to be.
We speak in general terms because the Vanquish will be highly customizable, with many of the no more than 1000 built annually (roughly a third of which will reach North America) expected to spend considerable time with the brand's Q bespoke outfit. Very few, if any, will be alike. Don't like our sample car's bronze-painted wheels or exposed carbon-fiber "shield" panel on its rear end? Talk to Q. The same applies to the lavishly detailed interior, though we do love the soft forest-green upholstery that fills the cabin with the rich aroma of leather and money.
Muscular Finesse
You won't be able to fiddle much with the car's hard bits, including its V-12 engine. Redesigned with a new block, heads, internals, and twin turbochargers, Aston's latest 5.2-liter unit culminates in a weapons-grade 823 horses and 738 lb-ft of torque, the latter from a mere 2500 rpm. That's a healthy step up from the brand's last big V-12 model, the 759-hp DBS 770 Ultimate, not to mention the previous 580-hp Vanquish S circa 2018. Impressively, this new mill does its work without hybrid assistance or even direct fuel injection. With its exhaust particulate filters, it also should placate emissions regulators until at least the end of the decade. (A welcome side effect of no direct injectors, which can clatter loudly underhood, is an even more velvety purr from this V-12 when idling up to curbs.)
That's not to say this engine is a sweetheart, at least if you're one of the Vanquish's rear Pirelli P Zero PZ4 summer tires (sized 325/30ZR-21; 275/35ZR-21s reside up front). Poor things. We commend them for how much traction they provide. But they can only hold on so tightly as the V-12 races for its 7000-rpm redline. Lean on it too hard exiting a greasy corner, even in third gear, and axle-chattering wheelspin rears its head, the car's stability control and electronically controlled limited-slip differential working overtime to keep things pointed straight. Catch it right, though, and the Vanquish is breathtakingly fast on the move, warping ahead with glorious noise and relentless top-end pull. Absent the launch traction of all-wheel drive, its quoted 214-mph top speed better reflects its straight-line potential than our estimated 3.0-second 60-mph time.
It's not all hell's bells, though. The heavy-duty ZF eight-speed automatic rear transaxle is smartly tuned for whichever drive mode (Wet, GT, Sport, Sport+, and Individual) you select, and a separate nine-stage traction-control function is accessible if you dare to deactivate ESC first. An automatic overboost system helps improve the engine's responsiveness, yet Aston also lightly manipulates the torque output in the tamer drive modes to provide a gentler power delivery.
The Vanquish's model-specific bonded-aluminum chassis feels properly stiff, and its adaptive Bilstein DTX dampers offer a cushion ranging from comfortably compliant to slightly brittle, albeit never harsh. Body roll around corners is minimal. As we arc through the tight, undulating bends of our drive route (and dodge oncoming Italians veering across the center line), its steering communicates front-end loads with satisfying clarity, feeling precise and progressively weighted, though not overly quick. Turn-in is crisp but measured, thanks in part to that long wheelbase tempering the car's willingness to rotate abruptly. Just remember that there's still more than two tons of coupe to contend with, which made us thankful for its firm brake pedal and standard carbon-ceramic stoppers (massive six-piston, 16.1-inch units in front; four-pot, 14.2-inchers in back).
An Aristocrat at Heart
Settle in behind the wheel, and it's clear the Vanquish is a product of well-mannered schooling. It cruises calmly and relatively quietly when directed, with decent visibility all around. You sit low in the saddle, but your five-foot-eleven author had no issue raising the seat to better see the corners of the hood. Carbon-shelled performance seats that we didn't get a chance to try are optional, but the exquisitely tailored standard seats suit the Vanquish well. Its aft quarters can hold an available set of fitted luggage, and a panoramic glass roof brings some airiness to the cabin. Being a modern Aston Martin, its doors swing open at a slight upward angle to clear curbs, a flourish that never gets old.
For all its individual gravity, the Vanquish is similar in composition to its lesser Vantage and DB12 siblings, particularly inside. Twin 10.3-inch monitors for instrumentation and infotainment run Aston’s in-house-developed software and are bolstered by wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay connectivity. Plenty of active-safety aids help you keep a safe distance from careless gawkers. Yet, physical secondary controls haven't been lost in the forest of technology. Selecting drive modes is as easy as twirling the big dial surrounding the engine's start button—two of the many tactile knobs and buttons on the center console. Aston understands that many pilots, including us, still want that in their driving experience.
Comparisons rightly will be made with the also-new Ferrari 12Cilindri, which costs more (an estimated $467K), yet makes slightly less power (819 hp) and far less torque (500 lb-ft). Good company, if a bit racier in theme. The Vanquish, on the other hand, is strikingly honest in its mission as a GT car for the street, even if its mighty V-12 would feel at home on a racetrack. We dig it. If only we could afford one.
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