Prepare for complete and utter envy: the Aston Martin Vanquish Zagato is going into a very limited production run, ready for 2017. If you don’t know what we’re talking about, cast your minds back to the Aston Martin extravaganza at Villa d’Este in Italy, which showcased the best of this incredibly chic marque.
It was here that the Zagato was first unveiled as a concept in May 2016, commemorating the marque’s partnership with prestigious Italian design house Zagato. Now, thanks to ‘unprecedented consumer interest’, Aston Martin will be manufacturing 99 road versions of the car, which is the fifth to be made by the marque and the design house. Prices are unspecified but it could be quite the investment – the first car built in collaboration with Zagato was the DB4 GT Zagato racing car of 1960 – now valued at over £10 million.
The Vanquish Zagato will be “a GT car that blends Aston Martin’s inherent refinement and capabilities with Zagato’s characteristic design details”, featuring a 6.0L V12 powertrain that has been uprated to increase its output to 600PS, meaning that the car is capable of delivering a projected 0-60mph time of 3.5 seconds.
Shaped from large one piece panels of carbon fibre, the car borrows design cues from both the one-77 and the DB11, with notable features included the retractable spoiler, rippling carbon fibre sills and the aggressive glasshouse wrapped around the bodywork like a visor. The roof, meanwhile, features the iconic ‘double-bubble’, its shallow radius dipping into the rear window glass to give the car an unmistakeable rear silhouette. This has been a Zagato trademark since the early 1950s, and originally arose from the need to accommodate racing helmets with a minimum impact on the aerodynamic profile.
Inside, special features of the car include the unique ‘Z’ quilt pattern stitch used on the seat and door sections, as well as the celebrated trademark Zagato ‘Z’ embossed on headrests and stitched into the centre console.
The lucky few who have been able to buy this car, and we suspect they’re sold out already, will take delivery of their Zagatos early next year. We can’t wait to see one in the flesh!