2013 Aston Martin V8 Vantage Beautiful Morning Frost White/chocolate! on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Top Gear caught filming Best of British near Buckingham Palace

YouTuber and car-fan extraordinaire Shmee probably had very little trouble tracking down the Top Gear film crew recently, as the group was putting together an episode that could accurately be described as "excessive." With its flag-waving (literally) Best of British theme, the TG guys gathered a jaw-dropping array of British cars, and parked them all right in front of Buckingham Palace to make extra sure that the point was driven home.
Top Gear hosts Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May were outfitted with a trio of Jaguar F-Types festooned with gigantic Union Jacks, with which to survey the landscape of British motoring glory. In the video below, you'll see that this includes any number of Mini, Aston Martin, Lotus, McLaren, Land Rover, Bentley and Rolls-Royce models (just to name a few), as well as a healthy dose of weird stuff that most people would never guess at being built in the UK. The lawnmowers and military vehicles are especially cool.

2015 Aston Martin V8 Vantage GT First Drive

Only one thing is going through my mind as I blast down the Autobahn at 170 miles per hour: If someone were to give me $100,000 today, I'd go buy a new Aston Martin V8 Vantage GT tomorrow. I know there are a dozen other choices out there – cars that are more powerful, quicker around a road circuit and much less expensive, but you can keep your Corvette, your 911, your F-Type, your GT-R and your top-spec pony cars. My money would go towards this entry-level Brit with the metallic green paint and bright-yellow race-inspired accents. Aston Martin has always crafted alluring – and expensive – automobiles. Yet this is the first time one of its offerings has come close to making sense to both the enthusiast's heart and to his or her accountant. It may sound absurd, but considering the GT's engineering, design, pedigree and hand-crafted execution, its $99,900 sticker price (plus $2,825 destination) makes it an absolute bargain. To experience the new V8 Vantage GT, a model sold as the N430 in other markets, the British automaker invited me to attend this year's grueling Nurburgring 24-hour race. Before I watched its race-prepared siblings lap the famed circuit for a full day (all four Vantage models that entered finished), I was handed the keys to my very own example – in Alloro green exterior paint with yellow club sport graphics – configured with a welcomed six-speed manual gearbox. Vantage is the smallest, lightest and most agile of the Aston Martin lineup, and it's been around for a good while already. As you'll likely recall, the Vantage is the smallest, lightest and most agile of the Aston Martin lineup, and it's been around for a good while already. First launched at the 2005 Geneva Motor Show, today the model is offered in Coupe and Roadster bodystyles with the buyer's choice of either a V8 or V12 powerplant. The coupe, like all of the automaker's production models, rides on its modular VH platform, a lightweight bonded aluminum and magnesium monocoque structure fitted with aluminum body panels for Vantage duty. Aston Martin is proud of its aerospace-like chassis, and it's historically been eager to promote its ability to offer its affluent clientele customized vehicles, with personalized upholsteries, colors and options – think of it like ordering a custom-tailored suit. But that exclusivity has previously come at a considerable price, starting at $121,225 (including destination) for its least-expensive V8 Vantage.

Aston and Jag from James Bond Spectre have at it

Daniel Craig hasn't made a bad James Bond film yet. Spectre is his next step into the iconic role that's due to hit theaters on November 6, and it doesn't look likely to ruin his streak. Still, that's a long wait for such an exciting movie. If you're willing to possibly spoil just a little for yourself, a new featurette shows part of one of the big car chases right now. From what we've seen so far, the chase through Rome in Spectre has earned a good amount of screen time. While the reason for it in the plot is a mystery, that doesn't really matter anyway. What's important is that the scene stars Bond in the Aston Martin DB10 and a villain played by Dave Bautista in the now supercharged V8-powered version of the Jaguar C-X75 racing around the Italian capital's tight streets at night. This clip gives a glimpse at some of the work necessary to get the difficult filming completed. We've seen some of that effort before, though, when footage of the preparation for one shot leaked out. Craig reportedly sustained a pretty bad bump on the head during the shooting, and an earlier rumor also suggested that Bond might get behind the wheel of a Fiat 500 at some point in the scene.