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The Virage was Aston Martin's replacement for the decades-old V8 models. Introduced at the Birmingham Motor Show in 1988 (22 years ago), it was joined by the high-performance Vantage in 1993 (17 years ago), and the name of the standard car was changed to V8 in 1996 (14 years ago).

This V8-powered car was intended as the company's top model, with the 6-cylinder 1994 (16 years ago) DB7 slotted below it. Although the DB7 switched to a V12 engine and claimed the performance crown, this V8 model (by then in Vantage form) remained the exclusive, expensive, and hand-built king of Astons. It was replaced in 2000 (10 years ago) with the Vanquish. The V8 Vantage name reappeared on a new entry-level model in 2005 (5 years ago). By the end of the 2000 (10 years ago) model year, 1,050 of all Virage related models had been produced.

The design was fresh and modern, looking more like a Lagonda than the V8 it replaced. Indeed, the chassis was an evolution of the Lagonda's, though without its de Dion tube rear suspension, instead a cumbersome aluminium A-frame design cited as one of the Virage's handling downfalls, and the same 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 Virage was a large, heavy car, but the 32-valve 5.3 L (5340 cc) V8 engine's 350 ft·lbf (475 N·m) torque elevated its performance to near sports car 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 (220 years ago) kg (3946 lb) car could reach 158 mph (254 km/h).

Vantage

As with many other Astons, a high-performance Vantage model of the Virage would later appear. First shown in 1992 (18 years ago), the Vantage was produced from 1993 (17 years ago) through 1999 (11 years ago) 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.

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 (rumoured to have been those used on a Bova coach for the prototype). 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 555 ft·lbf (746 N·m). Top speed was 200 mph (320 km/h), with a dash to 60 mph (97 km/h) taking just 4.2 seconds. Considering that the kerb weight of the car was almost two tons, this was no mean feat. The engine was later uprated to 600 hp (447 kW) for the 1998 (12 years ago) V600.

Source: en.wikipedia.org

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