New car news

22 May 2009 - 10:00

V12 Vantage hits the ’Ring

See more hot V12 Vantage metal

There was a lot of cool metal racing at the Nurburgring 24 Hours this weekend - a pair of 370kW Lexus LF-As, gas-powered VW Sciroccos - but this is surely the coolest of the bunch.

This is the Aston Martin V12 Vantage racer, which tackled the Green Hell in the capable hands of Dr Ulrich Bez, Aston's chief exec.

In case you're not up to speed on the road-going V12 Vantage, here's how it works: essentially, Aston has wedged the massive 375kW, 6.0-litre V12 from the DBS into the petite frame of the V8 Vantage.

Add some bigger gills, vents and splitters and you've got a dinky two-seat coupe capable of hitting 100km/h in a scant 4.2 seconds. General Clarkson has driven the road-going V12 Vantage, and suffice to say he likes it.

And the racing version? Aston says the track-prepped V12 Vantage has received only ‘minor modifications' to compete in the endurance race.

"For me, this race is still the ultimate endurance challenge for any car," says Dr Bez. "It is right that we subject our new V12 Vantage to this extraordinary test."