What's the news?
For an engine that was (kinda-sorta) two Ford Mondeo V6s bolted end-to-end, Aston Martin's 6.0-litre V12 has become quite the superstar powerplant, nestling noisily under the bonnet of such as the DB7, DB9, Vanquish, Vantage V12, Rapide, Virage, and others. Now, it's having its swansong, under the sexy shape of the Aston Martin Vanquish S Ultimate.
The Aston Martin Vanquish S Ultimate will be limited to just 175 cars worldwide, in both coupe and convertible Volante forms. On the mechanical front, it will have that vunderbar V12 in 595hp trim, bolted to an eight-speed Touchtronic III transmission, aided and abetted by three-stage adaptive damping suspension and carbon-ceramic brakes.
Special details for this model include carbon-fibre wing vents with the word 'Ultimate' picked out in rose gold, carbon-fibre treadplates, an 'Ultimate' plaque, and special quilted leather seats.
There are three colour schemes available; Ultimate Black, which comes with Copper Bronze highlights around the grille, side sills, and rear diffuser. The interior for that car comes in Obsidian Black with Chestnut Tan accents, and lots of carbon-fibre trim.
The Xenon Grey model is meant to evoke high-tech sportswear, and includes Cobalt Blue graphics, yellow brake callipers, and yellow and blue accents for the Phantom Grey interior.
Finally, there's White Gold paint with Warm Bronze graphics and highlights, which gets a Chestnut Tan interior with Obsidian Black detailing.
Mind you, those are just the colours that Aston has chosen. As a no-cost option, you can pick and choose your own if you like.
Marek Reichman, Aston Martin Chief Creative Officer, said: "With the Ultimate Edition we have accentuated the Vanquish S's unique blend of tradition, technology and craftsmanship with a selection of three bold exterior paint schemes and hugely appealing interior packages that make creative use of exciting materials. Our design team has created three unique themes which unite an exterior and interior package, but we have been careful to ensure each exterior colour and interior theme work well together to offer our customers maximum choice."
Aston Martin VP & Chief Sales Officer, Christian Marti said of the Vanquish S Ultimate Edition: "Since the Vanquish was first introduced it immediately established itself as the pinnacle of our series production range. It has since evolved into a truly formidable machine. As the much-loved and highly-acclaimed Vanquish S nears the end of production, we wanted to celebrate its success with a limited run of very special cars. The Ultimate edition perfectly captures the spirit of Vanquish and is sure to be sought after by collectors around the world."
If you're paying Irish VRT and VAT, don't expect much change from €600,000 for one of these. Orders are being taken now for delivery early next year.