The Most Powerful Front-Engine Car In The World Goes Topless

The fastest series production car Aston Martin has ever built now comes with an open roof. The Aston Martin Vanquish Volante is a celebration of sensory experiences, with a convertible top, an 824-horsepower V12 engine, and a top speed that matches its coupe sibling’s well on the other side of 200 mph.

Aston’s new super-convertible is a beast. The company bills it as the fastest and most powerful front-engine production car on sale today, just like the coupe. It’s one heck of a way to celebrate 60 years since the first time Aston used the Volante name on a car without a roof.

Aston’s V12 Is More Powerful Than Ferrari’s

We called the Vanquish coupe “a giant middle finger to the government types trying to kill off combustion.” The Volante waves that finger wildly in the air every time the new K-fold roof is down. A roof that can open in 14 seconds and close in 16, by the way, at speeds of up to 31 mph. Somehow, Aston has managed to give the fabric top as much insulation against heat and cold as the coupe’s carbon and headliner.

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The powerplant is the same incredible iteration of Aston’s iconic V12 as in the coupe. It makes 824 horsepower and 738 lb-ft of torque with a nearly flat torque curve from idle to redline. This is the most powerful front-engine production car on sale now, even beating the Ferrari 12Cilindri. It crushes the Ferrari in the looks department, too. Sorry, Tifosi.

Thanks to the same eight-speed automatic and rear-drive with an electronic limited-slip differential, 0-60 mph happens in 3.3 seconds, a tenth slower than the coupe. The top speed, though, matches its sibling at 214 mph.

Longer Chassis Is 75 Percent Stiffer than Last Volante

Aston has taken the new Vanquish chassis, which is 75 percent stiffer than the DBS 770 Ultimate from which it evolved. The wheelbase is three inches longer than that DBS, making these twins front-mid engined. While the bonded aluminum chassis was developed with both convertible and coupe in mind, Aston has made some changes for the topless car.

Despite the Sawzall treatment, it is nearly as stiff as the coupe. Aston’s director of vehicle attributes, Simon Newton, said, “Optimizations made to the body structure combined with specific chassis tuning ensures that Vanquish Volante makes the same headlines as Coupe for its outrageous performance and capability.”

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It does have new suspension tuning because changing the roof shifts the car’s weight balance. It still has the same Bilstein DTX active dampers that deliver an immense range of performance with ultra-quick responses. The trick dampers help the car handle and make for bigger differences between drive modes.

F1-Inspired Design Without The Coupe’s Carbon And Glass Roof

The Volante has the same F1-influenced styling as the coupe. A large vaned grille, Kamm-tail rear end, and what Aston calls thermos louvers on the hood to help cooling. The body panels are a mix of carbon for the hood, door skins, and body sides, and other composite panels for the rest.

Though Aston touts that the two cars were developed side-by-side and the Volante’s clever convertible top, the drop-top has gained some pounds – 243 of them, to be more precise -bringing the car to 4,145 pounds (dry weight). It’s not exactly light, but it’s tough to make that much engine a flyweight no matter what you do.

Still, Aston tried. The efforts include the same carbon ceramic brakes as the coupe, which help stop this car fast and repeatedly. The rotors measure 410mm up front and 360mm at the rear and reduce unsprung mass by 60 lbs versus iron brakes. The 21-inch wheels that surround them use the new Pirelli P Zero tire designed for the Vanquish twins, and Pirelli has designed a winter tire for them should you be extra adventurous.

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It will also have Aston’s new infotainment system. Developed in-house, it operates on a 10.25-inch center screen with a matching one for the digital dash. It offers e-sim, smartphone integration, and 15-speaker Bowers & Wilkins audio. It also has plenty of physical buttons for climate control and other key features.

The Vanquish Volante is available to order now, with deliveries starting in the third quarter. Like the coupe, the car will be very limited. Both models combined have a production total of 1,000. Of course, that will no doubt be extended by forthcoming special edition models as the numbers reach that limit.