When we drove the 2009 Aston Martin V12 Vantage RS concept car a few months ago, it hadn't received the green light for production. Well, consider it confirmed.
Our latest spy video from the Nürburgring test track in Germany shows a prototype that looks suspiciously similar to the RS concept. And judging by the sound of it, there's a V12 under the hood of this prototype, too.
As good as it sounds, there's no way to tell how close this prototype's V12 is to the 600-horsepower engine shown in the original concept. That engine was a heavily modified, dry-sump version of Aston Martin's 5.9-liter V12. Given that the production engine in the top-of-the-line DBS only makes 510 hp, we expect the production Vantage RS to arrive with significantly less than 600 hp. Wouldn't want to upstage Aston's flagship.
The concept also weighed significantly less than the standard V8 Vantage thanks to a serious weight reduction program. For the production version, features like air-conditioning and soundproofing are a little more important, so the Vantage RS will most likely weigh closer to the 3,594-pound V8 Vantage.
Production of the 2009 Aston Martin V12 Vantage RS could start as early as this summer. Only a few hundred are likely to be built and they could carry a price tag well north of $200,000.
Our latest spy video from the Nürburgring test track in Germany shows a prototype that looks suspiciously similar to the RS concept. And judging by the sound of it, there's a V12 under the hood of this prototype, too.
As good as it sounds, there's no way to tell how close this prototype's V12 is to the 600-horsepower engine shown in the original concept. That engine was a heavily modified, dry-sump version of Aston Martin's 5.9-liter V12. Given that the production engine in the top-of-the-line DBS only makes 510 hp, we expect the production Vantage RS to arrive with significantly less than 600 hp. Wouldn't want to upstage Aston's flagship.
The concept also weighed significantly less than the standard V8 Vantage thanks to a serious weight reduction program. For the production version, features like air-conditioning and soundproofing are a little more important, so the Vantage RS will most likely weigh closer to the 3,594-pound V8 Vantage.
Production of the 2009 Aston Martin V12 Vantage RS could start as early as this summer. Only a few hundred are likely to be built and they could carry a price tag well north of $200,000.
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