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Aston Martin Vantage AMR is road-going follow-up to AMR Pro

Two months ago, Aston Martin launched its new AMR line of vehicles with a pair of limited-edition cars. One was a slightly warmed-up Rapide sedan called the Rapide AMR, and the other was a track-only Vantage with a race-car-derived V8 called the Vantage AMR Pro. Now the company has released a third, or third and fourth depending on how you're counting, model that splits the difference. The new Vantage AMR, sans the Pro part, is available with either a V8 or a V12, and can be had as either a coupe or convertible. What make the Vantage AMR special are limited production and aesthetic upgrades. Only 300 examples will be made, 200 of which will have the V8, while the other 100 have the V12. The V8 doesn't make any more power than the standard model, but the V12 produces an extra 30 horsepower over the standard model for a total of 595. Aston Martin also offers an optional titanium exhaust to improve the sound of these engines and reduce weight, but it doesn't change output. Observers of these Astons will be able to spot them by their special paint schemes with a center stripe down the middle. The cars can be had in white with an orange stripe, black with a blue stripe, blue with a red stripe, or silver with a gray stripe. There's also a "Halo Pack" that includes a green paint scheme similar to Aston Martin's GT racing cars, complete with a lime green stripe. There's also a no-cost option to add an Aston Martin badge painted in the colors of the Union Jack. Every color combination comes with a color-coordinated interior, too. Just because this is a very rare Aston Martin doesn't mean there aren't any options. On the contrary, there are quite a few, mostly concerning appearances. On the outside, carbon fiber side skirts, headlight housings, and grille are all available. An aerodynamics kit is also available that adds a big rear wing, front splitter, and front canards for additional downforce. Lightweight forged wheels are also available. Inside, the carbon fiber decoration continues with available seats, instrument surround, window sills, and grab handles. Depending on whether you're converting Euros or British pounds, an Aston Martin Vantage AMR will start between about $125,000 or $143,000. That doesn't really matter, though, since the Vantage AMR won't be offered in the US. It will only be available in the UK, Europe, China, and the Asia Pacific region. Middle Eastern buyers can also pick one up, but only the V12 variant.

Movie Review: Spectre

I had only been sitting for two minutes in the screening of the twenty-fourth installment of the James Bond franchise, Spectre, before I met a fanatic. Sporting a James Bond 40th Anniversary Omega Seamaster ("number 007 of only 1007 made", he told me, beaming with pride), he boasted of his travels to the Furka Pass in Switzerland, to visit the location of the Goldfinger car chase, and of his Silver Birch Aston Martin DB5, the same car Sean Connery piloted around those treacherous roads just over fifty years ago. He bought it a while back for $125,000, and foolishly sold it a few years later for $160,000 (a mint 1965 DB5 will easily fetch over $1 million at auction today). The discussion of his Aston Martins continued, including his current Vantage and DB9, until the theatre started to fill up and the lights went down. This kind of automobile and movie culture is unique to Bond. 007 may have his signature drink, "shaken, not stirred," but just as famous are his cars, which, for a great number of films, are Aston Martins. This started fifty years ago, in the aforementioned Connery flick, Goldfinger, and the tradition has continued in Spectre, with a bespoke two-door coupe fittingly tagged the DB10. This latest Bond car is more concept than production. Built around the current V8 Vantage VH platform, the DB10's handsome styling is a look into the future for the British manufacturer. Perhaps outshining Bond's chariot are the cars of the villainous organization after which the movie is named, a highlight being the beautiful the Jaguar C-X75, driven by the eye-gouging villain, Hinx (Dave Bautista). The Jag is introduced when Bond infiltrates a Spectre meeting. His attendance doesn't go unnoticed, leading to a C-X75 vs DB10 race around Rome's midnight streets. Those who are going to see Spectre for the great car cinematography, prepare to be disappointed. The scene ends early on when – spoiler alert – 007 dumps the DB10 in the bottom of a river. Spectre is the longest of the 24-film canon, and due to an overstuffed second act, it feels like it. The first hour is fantastic, revealing enough of Bond's backstory to get the audience hooked, but somewhere in the second act we lose our way, torn between two predictable story lines.

Aston Martin fleet week: Next vessel to sail is a luxury submarine

Aston Martin's latest project aims to go beneath the surface, literally. It announced Thursday a partnership with a Florida-based developer of submersibles to develop a strictly limited-edition, deep-diving submarine code-named Project Neptune. The luxury brand is apparently making quite a splash at the Monaco Boat Show this week, having just revealed the AM37, a 37-foot, six-passenger, two-crew-member speedboat replete with natural teak sliding decks and custom-outfitted interior that will cost $1.6 million. For Project Neptune, the British marque is joining forces with Triton Submarines, which makes luxury submarines for superyacht-owning hobbyists as well as more robust models for scientists and filmmakers that are capable of exploring the deepest parts of the ocean. Plans call for marrying Triton's Low Profile three-person platform with the automotive brand's design and engineering language, under the direction of its Chief Creative Officer, Marek Reichman. Aston Martin Consulting will oversee the project. No details yet, but Triton's existing 1650 Low Profile three-person sub, its lightest model, weighs 8,800 pounds and can dive to 1,650 feet. A 30 kWh battery powers four 5-horse thrusters, and it can stay submerged for up to 12 hours. The most dramatic part of Triton's design is its incredible bubble shape — a spherical, transparent pressure hull. Some of Triton's more rigorous designs can reach depths of 7,500 feet. A Triton sub reportedly starts at a cool $3.3 million, and it's certainly nice, with stitched leather seats. But that, of course is a crude version compared with Aston Martin's panache and uber-exclusive materials. Pass the caviar, won't you, old boy? Related Video: Weird Car News Aston Martin Luxury submersible