Aston Martin’s CEO has confirmed that the new Vanquish will arrive in 2022 with a manual transmission option.
Last year, rumors began to swirl that Aston Martin would revive their long-standing Vanquish nameplate but do so as a mid-engine supercar instead of a front-engine, rear-wheel-drive model. Now we’re getting told straight from Andy Palmer, Aston Martin’s CEO, that the Vanquish is under development and will arrive by 2022.
And it will also have a manual transmission.
Carsales.com sat down with the Aston Martin chief to discuss details on the upcoming Vanquish and confirmed Aston’s desire to offer a manual transmission even after other manufacturers have long since given up on the ancient technology.
"I've already made a commitment that I want to be the last manufacturer in the world to offer manual sports cars and I want to honor that commitment," Palmer said just before clarifying that while the Vanquish will have a manual, the Valhalla hypercar will have to make do with a dual-clutch with paddle shifters.
If Palmer sticks to his guns, Aston Martin would be the last remaining supercar maker that still puts a manual transmission in one of their cars.
Carsales also reported the likeliest candidate for said manual would be the same 7-speed transmission as on the Vantage AMR. In that car, the first and reverse gear positions are swapped to make the most used gears easier to get at. It also uses Aston’s AMSHIFT technology to allow full-throttle upshifts and to automatically blip the throttle on downshifts.
Under the rear engine cover will be a 3.0-L twin-turbo V6 with some form of hybridization. Aston is targeting the Ferrari F8 Tributo and McLaren 720S with the Vantage, so expect somewhere between 700 and 800 hp.
Unlike the McLaren, the Vantage will ride on an aluminum monocoque chassis rather than a carbon fiber one. When asked about this, Palmer indicated that the aluminum chassis offered greater everyday usability and space than the carbon fiber chassis.
It didn’t seem to bring down the price, however, as Aston plans to mark the Vantage at $450,000. Expect production to begin sometime in 2022.