Aston Martin Virage/V8/Vantage Manufacturer Aston Martin Parent company Ford Motor Company Production 1989–2000 1050 produced Predecessor Aston Martin V8 Vantage Successor Aston Martin V12 Vanquish Class FR GT car

Virage Production 1989–1995 365 produced Body style 2-door 2+2 coupé Engine 5.3 L V8

Virage Volante Production 1992–1996 233 produced Body style 2-door 2+2 convertible Engine 5.3 L V8

Vantage/Le Mans Production 1993–2000 280 produced Body style 2-door 2+2 coupé Engine 5.3 L supercharged V8

V8 Coupe Production 1996–1999 101 produced Body style 2-door 2+2 coupé Engine 5.3 L V8

V8 Volante Production 1997–2000 63 produced Body style 2-door 2+2 convertible Engine 5.3 L V8

The Virage was Aston Martin's replacement for the decades-old V8 models. Introduced at the Birmingham Motor Show in 1988, it was joined by the high-performance Vantage in 1993, and the name of the standard car was changed to V8 in 1996. Image File history File links 1993 Aston Martin Virage Volante. ... Automakers or automobile manufacturers are companies that design and manufacture automobiles. ... Aston Martin Lagonda Limited is a manufacturer of luxury performance cars, whose headquarters are at Gaydon, Warwickshire, England. ... It has been suggested that this article be split into articles entitled Ford Motor Company and Ford (vehicles). ... 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... 1978 Aston Martin V8 Vantage Coupe The original Aston Martin V8 Vantage was hailed at the time of its 1977 introduction as Britains First Supercar for its 170 mph (274 km/h) top speed. ... The Aston Martin V12 Vanquish, designed in 1995 by Ian Callum, is a grand tourer manufactured by Aston Martin since 2001. ... It has been suggested that Vehicle size class be merged into this article or section. ... In automobile design, an FR, or front-engine, rear wheel drive means a layout where the engine is in the front of the vehicle and drive wheels at the rear. ... Gran Turismo is Italian for grand touring or grand tourisme. These terms are used to describe long distance or endurance races like 24 hours of Le Mans, Mille Miglia, Targa Florio, Carrera Panamericana and the high-powered sportscars which compete there. ... 1989 (MCMLXXXIX) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1995 Buick Riviera coupé 1990 Mercedes-Benz 560SEC coupé, noted for its large, angular design A coupé (from the French for cut) or coupe is a car body style with a close-coupled interior offering either two seats or 2+2 seating (space for two passengers up front and for... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Internal combustion engine. ... The Liberty V8 aircraft engine clearly shows the configuration A V8 engine is a V engine with eight cylinders. ... Media:rofl. ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... Saab 900 Convertible 1962 Rambler American Convertible can also refer to a convertible (security) A convertible (sometimes called cabriolet in British English) is a car body style with a folding or retracting roof (aka soft top or top in USA, hood in UK). ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Internal combustion engine. ... The Liberty V8 aircraft engine clearly shows the configuration A V8 engine is a V engine with eight cylinders. ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... This article is about the year 2000. ... 1995 Buick Riviera coupé 1990 Mercedes-Benz 560SEC coupé, noted for its large, angular design A coupé (from the French for cut) or coupe is a car body style with a close-coupled interior offering either two seats or 2+2 seating (space for two passengers up front and for... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Internal combustion engine. ... The Liberty V8 aircraft engine clearly shows the configuration A V8 engine is a V engine with eight cylinders. ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... 1995 Buick Riviera coupé 1990 Mercedes-Benz 560SEC coupé, noted for its large, angular design A coupé (from the French for cut) or coupe is a car body style with a close-coupled interior offering either two seats or 2+2 seating (space for two passengers up front and for... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Internal combustion engine. ... The Liberty V8 aircraft engine clearly shows the configuration A V8 engine is a V engine with eight cylinders. ... 1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... Saab 900 Convertible 1962 Rambler American Convertible can also refer to a convertible (security) A convertible (sometimes called cabriolet in British English) is a car body style with a folding or retracting roof (aka soft top or top in USA, hood in UK). ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Internal combustion engine. ... The Liberty V8 aircraft engine clearly shows the configuration A V8 engine is a V engine with eight cylinders. ... Aston Martin Lagonda Limited is a manufacturer of luxury performance cars, whose headquarters are at Gaydon, Warwickshire, England. ... See also: Aston Martin V8 (disambiguation) The Aston Martin V8 is a two-door saloon-type automobile manufactured in the United Kingdom from 1969 to 1990. ... The British International Motor Show is an automobile show held biennially in the United Kingdom. ... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ...

This V8-powered car was intended as the company's top model, with the 6-cylinder 1994 DB7 slotted below it. Although the DB7 switched to a V12 engine and claimed the performance crown, this V8 model remained the exclusive, expensive, and hand-built king of Astons. It was replaced after 2000 by the DB7 based V12 Vanquish supercar. The V8 Vantage name reappeared on a new entry-level model in 2005. By the end of the 2000 model year, 1,050 of all Virage related models had been produced. 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated as the International Year of the Family and the International Year of the Sport and the Olympic Ideal by United Nations. ... The Aston Martin DB7 was a grand tourer made by Aston Martin from September 1994 to December 2003. ... A V12 is an internal combustion engine with 12 cylinders in V configuration. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... The Aston Martin V12 Vanquish, designed in 1995 by Ian Callum, is a grand tourer manufactured by Aston Martin since 2001. ... The modern Aston Martin V8 Vantage is the closest to a pure sports car of any in the current Aston Martin range. ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

The design was fresh and modern, looking more like a Lagonda than the V8 Vantage it replaced. Indeed, the chassis was an evolution of the Lagonda's, with its de Dion tube rear suspension and double wishbones in front. To cut costs, many of the less-important pieces came from other companies, as had been the case for many an Aston past. The sleek headlights and taillights were Audi 200 and Volkswagen Scirocco units, respectively, while General Motors, Jaguar, and Ford provided the steering column, climate control panel, and dash switches. In fact, Ford purchased Aston Martin and Jaguar shortly after the Virage debuted. The Aston Martin Lagonda was a luxury four-door saloon built by Aston Martin of Newport Pagnell, England, between 1976 and 1989. ... 1978 Aston Martin V8 Vantage Coupe The original Aston Martin V8 Vantage was hailed at the time of its 1977 introduction as Britains First Supercar for its 170 mph (274 km/h) top speed. ... A de Dion tube is an automobile suspension technology. ... A double wishbone suspension is an automobile independent suspension design using two parallel wishbone-shaped arms to locate the wheel. ... Audi 100 in California The Audi 100 was a mid-sized automobile from Audi that was made between 1968 and 1994. ... The Volkswagen Scirocco was a sporty hatchback sold by Volkswagen from 1974 through 1992. ... General Motors Corporation (NYSE: GM), also known as GM, is an American automobile maker with worldwide operations and brands including Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, Holden, Hummer, Opel, Pontiac, Saturn, Saab and Vauxhall. ... Jaguar Cars is a British automobile manufacturer. ... It has been suggested that this article be split into articles entitled Ford Motor Company and Ford (vehicles). ...

The Virage was a large, heavy car, but the 4-valve 5.3 L (5340 cc) V8 engine's 350 ft·lbf (475 N·m) torque elevated its performance to near supercar levels. "Acceleration just never seems to run out", claimed Sports Car International on a first test. They also praised the "eager and quicker revving" nature of the 330 hp (246 kW) engine with its Callaway-designed heads and Weber-Marelli fuel injection. "Nothing sounds quite like an Aston V8," they concluded. The 1790 kg (3946 lb) car could reach 158 mph (254 km/h). In automotive engineering, an engine is referred to as multi-valve (or multivalve) when each cylinder has more than two valves. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Moment (physics). ... A supercar is type of high-performance celebrity automobile. ... Sports Car International is an automobile magazine in the United States focused on sports cars. ... Weber is a surname of German origin, derived from the noun meaning weaver. The German pronunciation is IPA: , while in English it is more likely to be pronounced IPA: or IPA: . In some cases, following migration to English-speaking countries, it has been anglicised to the English surname Webber or... // Fuel injection is a means of metering fuel into an internal combustion engine. ...

Volante

The Virage Volante convertible debuted for 1992 as a 2-seat car, but all production examples featured 2+2 seating. Sources claim 224 to 233 examples produced when the series ended in 1996. Saab 900 Convertible 1962 Rambler American Convertible can also refer to a convertible (security) A convertible (sometimes called cabriolet in British English) is a car body style with a folding or retracting roof (aka soft top or top in USA, hood in UK). ... Media:rofl. ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ...

Works Service

In January, 1992, Aston Martin introduced a conversion service, transforming the car into a Virage 6.3. As the name implies, the centerpiece of the conversion was a 6.3 L (6347 cc) V8 derived from the AMR1 racing car. This engine produced 500 hp (373 kW) at 6000 rpm and 480 ft·lbf (651 N·m) at 5800 rpm, allowing the car to reach 175 mph (282 km/h). Media:rofl. ... The Aston Martin AMR1 was a Group C formula racing car developed in 1989 for auto manufacturer Aston Martin. ...

Other changes included 362 mm (14 in) ventilated disc brakes, the largest used in a passenger car until the Bentley Continental GT, and 18 in (457 mm) wheels. Visually, the 6.3 had wide flared bumpers, low sills and air dams, and side air vents. Close-up of a disc brake on a car On automobiles, disc brakes are often located within the wheel The disc brake is a device for slowing or stopping the rotation of a wheel. ... Bentley Continental GT is a grand tourer coupé with two doors and a 2+2 seating arrangement released in 2003, replacing the previous Rolls-Royce-based Continental R and T. Unlike previous British built Bentleys, this cars Final Assembly point is in Brazil at a VW factory. ...

In true British tradition, a shooting brake (estate) version was offered in extremely limited numbers beginning in 1992. Unlike prior Aston Shooting Brakes, however, the Virage was produced in-house by the company's Works Service. Estimates place the number of Virage Shooting Brakes at four. Media:rofl. ...

Another rare Works Service car was the Lagonda Saloon. Four of these long-wheelbase 4-door Virages were built as a special customer order, reviving Aston Martin's long-dormant second marque. 1937 Lagonda LG45R Rapide Lagonda, the British car maker, was founded in 1906 in Staines, Middlesex by the American Wilbur Gunn. ... A Toyota Camry, a recognizable sedan The Ford Five Hundred, a medium-sized sedan A sedan car, American English terminology (saloon in British English), is one of the most common body styles of the modern automobile. ... A marque (French for brand and pronounced as mark) is a brand name, most commonly used for automobile brands. ...

The final Virage variant was the ultra-limited V8 Vantage Volante of 2000. Nine of these high-performance convertibles were produced. This article is about the year 2000. ...

Vantage

As with many other Astons, a high-performance Vantage model of the Virage would later appear. First shown in 1992, the Vantage was produced from 1993 through 1999 and, like so many other Aston Vantages, soon became the only variant available. Indeed, the Virage name lasted just a few years, with its final descendants inheriting the simple and familiar V8 name. Media:rofl. ... 1993 (MCMXCIII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar and marked the Beginning of the International Decade to Combat Racism and Racial Discrimination (1993-2003). ... 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ...

The design was freshened, leaving only the roof and doors of the car intact. The Vantage was wider, appeared lower, and used four round "grapefruit" tail lights. Like the 6.3, the Vantage used record-sized 362 mm (14 in) brake discs.

The most radical change to the Vantage, however, was inside the engine compartment. The 5.3 L engine now sported twin superchargers. Power output topped the industry at 550 hp (410 kW), and torque was equally impressive at 550 ft·lbf (746 N·m). Top speed was 186 mph (300 km/h), with a dash to 60 mph (97 km/h) taking just 4.6 seconds. Considering that the kerb weight of the car was almost two tons, this was no mean feat. The engine was later updated to 600 hp (447 kW) for the 1998 V600. A supercharger (also known as a blower) is an air compressor used to force more air (and hence more oxygen) into the combustion chamber(s) of an internal combustion engine than can be achieved at ambient atmospheric pressure. ... 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Ocean. ...

Vantage 1998

The final 40 Vantages were sold with the Le Mans name to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Aston Martin's victory at that race. Like the V8 Vantage of the 1970s, these cars featured a blanked-out grille. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (3504x2336, 919 KB) I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (3504x2336, 919 KB) I, the creator of this work, hereby release it into the public domain. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The 1970s decade refers to the years from 1970 to 1979, inclusive. ...

A less extreme V8 Coupe was also built. Lacking the superchargers, and the more aggressive body style of it's big brother Vantage, the coupe produced 349 hp (260 kW) and 369 ft·lbf (500 N·m). 101 were built from 1996 through 2000. 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... This article is about the year 2000. ...

References

1. Kevin Blick (September 1990). "Anglophyle Style". Sports Car International 6.9: 22–27. 

2. Virage and Derivatives. AstonMartins.com. Retrieved on June 23, 2005.

Sports Car International is an automobile magazine in the United States focused on sports cars. ...