Virage 6.3 litre Coupe
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Virage 6.3 litre Coupe

Virage 6.3 litre Coupe

(1992 - 1995)

Because 330 bhp is simply not enough, in January 1992, AML Customer Service Division (now known as Aston Martin Works) introduced the Virage 6.3 conversion, based on experience gained on the AMR1 Group C race cars. The work carried out on customers own cars was much more than just an enlargement of the engines capacity to 6347cc. The £50,000 conversion (at 1992 prices) also involved extensive changes to the suspension, brakes, wheels, tyres and bodywork to cope with the additional power and torque.

Virage 6.3 litre Coupe

Initially peak power was quoted as 465 bhp but was revised in 1993 with the adoption of a high lift cam and solid tappets to 500 bhp @ 6000rpm and 480 lb of torque @ 5800rpm – that’s a 60% increase from the standard engine. The 14 inch ventilated and cross drilled disc brakes with four cylinder racing callipers, also derived from the AMR1, were at the time claimed to be the largest fitted to any production car in the world.

Many of the hand-crafted aluminium body modifications related to the 6.3 are well evident in the photographs; substantially flared wheel arches, deep front air dam, boot mounted spoiler, extended sills, extended rear valance and side air vents. The side air vents were a feature of the initial Virage design but were not used on production cars at least initially. They reappeared with the 6.3 and later Virages and also on the Volante and Vantage. Stylish split rim five spoke 10.5*18 inch OZ alloy wheels with 285/45 ZR Goodyear Eagle tyres ensure more than adequate grip and traction. A small number of cars were also modified to 6.3 cosmetic specification retaining the 5.3 engine in unmodified form. These are known as 6.3 Cosmetic or Virage wide body.

Driving through a five or six speed manual ZF gearbox, or three speed automatic transmission, the extra power is sufficient to power the Virage 6.3 to 175mph, with 0-60 and 0-100mph acceleration taking just 5.1 and 11.5 seconds respectively.

Among the photographs below is a 6.3 Virage, photographed at Stratton Motor Company during 1998. It features attractive Vantage style front and rear bodywork, modified at the long established Aston Martin Heritage dealership near Norwich. This is a later picture of the same car pictured at the top of this page.

  • Body/Coachwork:
    • 2 door 2+2 coupe
    • Steel platform chassis with handcrafted aluminium alloy body panels
    • Aidam, bumpers and side sills in GRP
  • Interior:
    • Full Connolly leather interior
    • Alcantara headlining or optional leather at additional cost Leather trimmed Wilton carpets, Lambswool floor rugs at additional cost
    • Burr walnut veneer set to facia, console and door trims
    • Electrically operated and heated front seats (Rover 800)
    • CFC free air conditioning system
    • Analogue instruments in a single backlit binnacle
    • Computerised vehicle information centre (VIC) and fault finder
    • Virage Volante style instruments and three dial centre console on a few late cars
    • Leather steering wheel with driver airbag on a few late cars
    • Blaupunkt radio cassette 4 speaker audio system Optional radio CD system
    • Optional Sony Disc Jockey CD autochanger
    • Heated front and rear screens
  • Engine:
    • Front mounted All -alloy 90° V8, 6347cc; four-valves-per cylinder, twin overhead camshafts per bank. Designation suffix /6.3
    • Bore 103.14 mm. Stroke 95 mm. Compression ratio 9.5:1
    • Modified and remapped Weber/Alpha engine management system, fully sequential system with closed loop Lambda control and on-board diagnostic system (OBDI).
    • Exhaust emissions controlled by two, three-way, catalysts with Lambda sensors
    • Maximum power: initially quoted as 465 bhp @ 5,750 rpm but from Autumn 1993, 500 bhp @ 5,850 rpm
    • Maximum torque: initially quoted as 460 lb.ft @ 4,400 rpm but from Autumn 1993, 480 lb.ft @ 5,000 rpm
  • Transmission:
    • Automatic: Chrysler Torqueflite 3 or 4 speed automatic
    • Manual: 5 speed ZF gearbox from donor car or 6 speed ZF as used in the Lotus Carlton and Corvette ZR1
    • Final drive: Salisbury hypoid bevel with Powr-Lok limited slip differential. Optional final drive ratios: 3.54:1 or 3.33:1 (manual), 3.33:1 or 3.058:1 (automatic)
  • Steering:
    • Power assisted rack and pinion, 3.2 turns lock to lock
    • Turning circle between curbs of about 10.5 metres Adjustment for rake
  • Wheels and tyres:
    • OZ 5 spoke 10.5 x 18” split rim alloy wheels
    • Goodyear Eagle 285/45 ZR18 tyres
  • Suspension:
    • Front: Independent, transverse unequal length wishbones, co-axial spring damper units and anti-roll bar.
    • Rear: De Dion unit, radius arms, Watts linkage, coil springs, telescopic dampers and anti-roll bar on 500 bhp version
  • Brakes:
    • Front, Ventilated steel discs, 362 mm diameter with AP Racing four pot calipers
    • Rear, Outboard ventilated steel discs, 286 mm diameter with AP Racing four pot calipers
    • Servo assisted tandem master cylinder with Bosch four channel anti-lock braking system
  • Dimensions:
    • Length: 4,737 mm
    • Width: 1,944 mm
    • Height: 1,321 mm
    • Kerb Weight: 1969kg
    • Wheelbase: 2,611 mm
  • Performance:
    • Acceleration: 0-60 m.p.h 5.1 seconds
    • Acceleration: 0-100 m.p.h. 11.5 seconds
    • Maximum speed: 174 mph
  • Price at launch:
    • 1992, Total conversion in the region of £50,000 to £60,000 depending on owners individual requirements
    • Engine conversion, £28,116
    • Six-speed ZF manual gearbox, £10,744
    • Bodywork changes, £10,188