V8 Vantage AMR « Aston Martins.com

V8 Vantage AMR

(2017 - 2018) 2018MY

Launched at the Geneva Motor Show 2017, the AMR sub-brand amplifies and accentuates the sporting prowess of the British marque’s road cars, by taking inspiration or direct influence from Aston Martin Racing’s participation in the FIA World Endurance Championship.

A few months later to coincide with the 2017 Le Mans 24 hour race, AML unveiled what became the final production derivative of the VH2 V8 Vantage, the run-out V8 Vantage AMR. It was being billed as the first production derivative of the new race-inspired performance sub-brand although the first shown to the public was the Rapide AMR.

V8 Vantage AMR

The AMR sub-brand was introduced with two distinct tiers. Series production limited edition models such as the V8 & V12 Vantage AMR sit at its entry point, while extreme and extensively modified AMR Pro models created by Q by Aston Martin Advanced Operations sit at the pinnacle of the range, including the exclusive Vantage AMR Pro announced at the 2017 Geneva Motor Show.

The V8 engined AMR was fitted as standard with the Prodrive designed Sportshift II automated sequential manual paddle-shift transmissions but the six speed manual gearbox was also available as an option.

The V8 Vantage AMR was available in five distinctive AMR exterior schemes: the AMR ‘Halo Pack’ was taken from the Aston Martin Racing’s 2016 World Endurance Championship-winning #95 Vantage GTE, with a combination of Stirling Green paint and vivid Lime Green front to back stripe and other accents to dramatic effect. Also available was Stratus White with an Orange graphic; Ultramarine Black with Blue graphic; Zaffre Blue with Red graphic and Scintilla Silver with Grey graphic. As a finishing touch, a special Union Jack-enameled AML wings badge, made by Vaughtons and previously featured on the previous year’s GTE racer, was available as a no-cost option.

Each of the exterior schemes is matched to a different interior scheme with a combination of leather and Alcantara for the Coupe to compliment the exterior colours. In keeping with its exterior the Halo Pack interior features boldly contrasting colours, including Lime Green welts and accents.

Lightweight carbon fibre seats were standard fit on the AMR and the car had many other carbon fibre features, including a lightweight front grille, side strakes, lamp infills and mirror caps on the outside, instrument surround, door tops and door grabs on the inside. The V8 Vantage AMR came with 5-spoke alloy wheels with a choice of three different finishes.

Alongside the introduction of the AMR cars, AML also introduced a range of AMR accessories, many of which can be also fitted to earlier cars. Suitable for the whole V8 Vantage range was the Aero-kit, lightweight mesh grille, performance clutch for the manual box, titanium exhaust, and a multispoke AMR wheel.

Mechanically, the V8 Vantage AMR was identical to the previous year V8 Vantage S with the same 430 bhp 4.7 litre engine.

Total production of the V8 Vantage AMR Coupe and Roadster began in the final quarter of 2017 and was limited to just 200 examples. According to recxords held by the Aston Martin Heritage Trust, the coupe version only accounded for 137 of the 200 AMR cars. The AMR was only available in the UK, Europe, Asia Pacific and China but not North America. The 2018MY V8 Vantage was not homologated for sale in the US market, so the last V8 Vantage cars sold there were the 2017MY V8 Vantage GTS.

In the UK, the V8 AMR coupe was priced from £97,995 (about £3,000 more than the outgoing V8 Vantage S) which represented excellent value due to the previously optional features fitted as standard.