Caramble

Finally, the partnership between Aston Martin and Mercedes has fruited into something beautiful. The new 2018 Vantage is the perfect combination of gorgeous, timeless Aston Martin styling coupled with Mercedes electronics and their V8 engine. The perfect combination; British styling with German reliability. The Vantage takes the modern elements that the DB11 pioneered and partners them with more aggressive and sports car styling.

The engine produces a seemingly mediocre 503BHP, but when you consider the car is still technically a sports car, those figures suddenly appear more than adequate to tackle its rivals. The new Vantage maxes out at an impressive 195mph and puts out a 0-62 time of 3.6 seconds.

The most dramatic element of the car is arguably the rear light design. The continual break line, which flows with the boot lid, allows for both a sporty and elegant design. It also highlights the brands future plans to become more “individual and confident”- words of the man who designed the car.

All Photo’s are from @petroliciousco

Naturally, the 348 is deserving of the title of one of the worst Ferrari’s. Its questionable looks, its shoddy handling, lack of power and excessive weight have all led car lovers from all corners to dismiss the 348. Most people couldn’t even tell you what a 348 was if they saw one; the car was that unpopular.

This negative stance was understandably continued when the 348 Challengearrived on the scene. With the standard 348 failing to ignite any passion, the Challenge was disregarded. However, that should not be the case. Most of you will know of this cars predecessors, the 458 Speciale and the F430 Scuderia to name a few. The 348 Challenge started this long line of challenge cars that we all love. As stated in the @petroliciousco article the pictures were from, the Challenge is an important and key part of Ferrari history, a piece of history that most don’t know about. The car was genuinely good, too. It fixed most of the 348′s quirks, making it a remarkably good car.

The latest Aston Martin to be spawned out of the companies modernisation focused revamp initially packs quite a punch. It is sporting the iconic DBS branding and features a twin turbo charged V12, producing a magnificent 715bhp.

There’s more. The car is hindered by the usual faults which left previous Aston’s bedridden for the majority of the ownership. This car, like with the new Vantage and DB11 feature technology derived from Mercedes Benz, so technological quality is assured. The interior is blissfully tasteful, too, keeping in trend with the lesser models to create a sense of brand unity. However, the interior is less breathtaking than the new Continental which also performs a similar role for a £60,000 less than the Aston.

The acceleration is less impressive, with the car only achieving 0-60 in a mere 3.4 seconds. At first glance, this figure is seemingly acceptable. However, when you compare that to its closest rival, the Ferrari 812 Superfast, which can do 0-60 in 2.9 seconds, the DBS becomes almost sluggish. However, both still manage an impressive 211mph top speed; we can’t complain too much.

However, the main issue I have with this car is the styling. At a glance, you might think it looks fine. But, on closer inspection, you can see the numerous oddities, well I did. The grill at the front is extraordinarily wide, giving the DBS an unflattering gaping pose. The rear is also abrupt and tall, giving the car a chunky back. This is then exacerbated by the thin lights which fail to end any rear definition. The front I can live with, but the back is inexcusable. It loses the sculpture which the side body lines work so hard to maintain.

For those not in the know, Singer are an American based company run by an Englishman creating bespoke, classic and air cooled 911′s for a fair sum of money. They take, mostly, old Porsche 964′s, re-body them, add some 930 inspired turbo flares, 17inch Fuchs wheels and a whole host of other retro mods and create a gen one looking, 930 hybrid 911. They also offer pretty much unique options for interiors, too. This may sound rather messy, but as you can see from the William’s collaboration model shown above, I think it works rather well. 

Now, onto the topic in question. Porsche have recently revealed that they are going to start manufacturing a classic 911 again, much like Jaguar did with their D Type revival and the same with Aston Martin and their DB4 GT. At first glance, this may just seem like Porsche making an innocent following of the current classic loving trends; however, more covert intentions may be lurking. 

The 2018 GoodWood Festival of Speed saw the introduction of a special new Singer, with Formula 1 technology from Williams, valuing over £1.5 Million. The announcement by Porsche to ignite this classic programme was made not long after. Connected? Coincidence? Porsche have most likely decided they want a deserving slice of the Singer market, especially with the announcement of the new Williams model. Standard Singer’s sell at list price for around £600,000, which I imagine is tempting for Porsche. 

But, would the introduction of 911 classic drive customers away from Singer? The answer, to some surprise, is no. It is simple really; you don’t buy a SInger just to get a classic Porsche. There is already endless amounts of early generation 911′s sitting at 1/6th of the cost of a normal Singer. But customers still choose to buy a Singer. A classic by Porsche would most likely list at £200,000, 1/3rd of the cost of a Singer. Tempting. But you don’t get the customisation from Porsche as you would do with Singer. As long as your wallets big enough, Singer will give you pretty much what you desire. Porsche struggle to give you PTS when you request it. I feel Porsche has tried to jump into two markets at once but failed to do so on Singer’s side.

The all new Aston Martin DBS Superleggera.

The latest Aston Martin to be spawned out of the companies modernisation focused revamp initially packs quite a punch. It is sporting the iconic DBS branding and features a twin turbo charged V12, producing a magnificent 715bhp. 

There’s more. The car is hindered by the usual faults which left previous Aston’s bedridden for the majority of the ownership. This car, like with the new Vantage and DB11 feature technology derived from Mercedes Benz, so technological quality is assured. The interior is blissfully tasteful, too, keeping in trend with the lesser models to create a sense of brand unity. However, the interior is less breathtaking than the new Continental which also performs a similar role for a £60,000 less than the Aston. 

The acceleration is less impressive, with the car only achieving 0-60 in a mere 3.4 seconds. At first glance, this figure is seemingly acceptable. However, when you compare that to its closest rival, the Ferrari 812 Superfast, which can do 0-60 in 2.9 seconds, the DBS becomes almost sluggish. However, both still manage an impressive 211mph top speed; we can’t complain too much. 

However, the main issue I have with this car is the styling. At a glance, you might think it looks fine. But, on closer inspection, you can see the numerous oddities, well I did. The grill at the front is extraordinarily wide, giving the DBS an unflattering gaping pose. The rear is also abrupt and tall, giving the car a chunky back. This is then exacerbated by the thin lights which fail to end any rear definition. The front I can live with, but the back is inexcusable. It loses the sculpture which the side body lines work so hard to maintain.