Close-up of the engine bay of a 1991, Aston Martin Virage on display at the Quay Green Classic Car Meet, part of the 2018 Sandwich Festival, Kent
The Aston Martin Virage is an automobile produced by British luxury automobile manufacturer Aston Martin as a replacement for its V8 models. Introduced at the Birmingham Motor Show in 1988, it was joined by the high-performance Vantage in 1993, and then the name of the base model was changed to V8 Coupé in 1996. The V8-powered model was intended as the company's flagship model, with the 6-cylinder DB7, introduced in 1994, positioned below it as an entry-level model. Although the DB7 became available with a V12 engine and claimed a performance advantage, the Virage remained the exclusive, expensive and hand-built flagship of the Aston Martin range. It was replaced in 2000 with the Vanquish. By the end of the 2000 model year, 1,050 cars in total had been produced. The V8 Vantage name reappeared on a new entry-level model in 2005. A new generation of the Virage was introduced at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show, to fit into the middle of Aston Martin's then current lineup but was discontinued in 2012 due to many similarities between the brand's other models. When compared to the preceding V8, the design was fresh and more modern. The Virage was more similar in design language to the Lagonda than the V8 it replaced. Indeed, the chassis was an evolution of the Lagonda's, with a de Dion tube rear suspension, located by triangulated radius rods and a Watts linkage, and a double wishbone unit at the front. To cut costs, many of the less-important pieces came from other companies, as had been the case for Aston Martin automobiles of the past. The sleek headlights and taillights were sourced from the Audi 200 and the Volkswagen Scirocco respectively, while General Motors, Jaguar, and Ford provided the steering column, climate control panel, wing mirrors and dash switches. In fact, Ford had purchased Aston Martin and Jaguar shortly before the Virage debuted and it became the first model to be introduced under the new ownership.
Size: 5616px × 3744px
Location: The Quay Green, Sandwich, Kent
Photo credit: © John Gaffen / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: 170mph, 2+2, 2-door, , 284, 1991, 2018, 5340cc, aston, bay, car, classic, close-, coupé, david, engine, festival, green, kent, lagonda, limited, martin, meet, nurney, production, quay, sandwich, technology, v8, virage
