Aston Martin is working on a new Vantage, so eyebrows were raised when spy photographers snapped a V12 Vantage undergoing testing in Europe.
At first glance, the car doesn’t look too remarkable aside from stickers noting it’s a “prototype vehicle.” However, a closer inspection reveals a center-mounted triple exhaust instead of the usual dual-exhaust system.
That’s interesting by itself, but the cabin appears to be hiding a manual transmission. That’s just a guess, but we can see a black sheet covering a tall object protruding from the center console. The latter has also been revamped as the ‘hood’ over the rotary controller has been jettisoned and this presumably makes shifting far more ergonomic.
More: Aston Martin Gives The V12 Vantage A 690 HP, 200 MPH Send Off
Update: Aston Martin released pictures showing the car will have a revamped center console, three pedals, and a fancy shifter with a wooden ball.
When the V12 Vantage was introduced in 2022, Aston Martin called it a “spectacular finale for an iconic bloodline” and the “final time a 5.2-liter twin-turbo V12 will be fitted to the Vantage.” However, shortly after the coupe was introduced, the company followed up with the V12 Vantage Roadster.
The V12 Vantage Coupe was limited to 333 units and it can accelerate from 0-60 mph (0-96 km/h) in 3.4 seconds thanks to its 690 hp (515 kW / 700 PS) engine. The V12 Vantage Roadster is even rarer as production was limited to 249 units, which were all spoken for before the car was officially announced. The manual V12 Vantage will be introduced tomorrow and likely be sold in even smaller numbers.
