Aston Martin: “All-new V8 Vantage here next year, manual gearbox is safe”

Aston Martin has announced that the replacement for the current V8 Vantage will land next year and it will be the first sports car in its range to be powered by a Mercedes-AMG twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8.

It had been originally rumoured that the small German V8 would star under the bonnet of the DB11 launched at the Geneva motor show but it’s now been confirmed, by Aston Martin boss Andy Palmer, that it will power the all-new replacement for the small coupe.

Speaking in an interview with US car mag, Car and Driver, Palmer said his preference, in the future, would be to offer one engine in each model, but says the 4.0-litre V8 could go on to power the bigger DB11 if there was demand in “economy conscious” markets.

It’s not known how much power the AMG V8 will produce. As a guide, the engine codenamed ‘M178 V8’ produces 383kW/660Nm, but it’s thought a more powerful development is on the way.

Palmer also revealed to Car and Driver that the new engine would use mostly Daimler electronic architecture.

Instead of lifting the seven-speed dual-clutch automatic that’s used in the AMG GT, the Aston boss cast doubt the ‘box would reappear in the Vantage after declaring he’s not a fan of the added weight and complexity DCTs bring, before saying: “They can’t do anything that a well-tuned automatic can’t.”

And in music to the ears of purists lamenting the demise of the traditional manual gearbox, the British car-maker’s CEO added: “I’ve already gone on the record saying I want to be the last manufacturer in the world to offer a manual sports car.”

As well as confirming the arrival of the next-gen V8 Vantage, Palmer said the big Vanquish will arrive in 2018 with an even more powerful version of the current 447kW/660Nm twin-turbo 5.2-litre V12.

In the future Palmer’s vision for the sports carmaker is to create a seven-car range.

The first four are the recently revealed DB11, V8 Vantage, Vanquish and DBX crossover.

Beyond that it’s not clear what will follow, but it’s believed a replacement for the Lagonda limousine is in the works, as well as the V12 mid-engined hypercar it is developing with Red Bull Racing F1.