The Things I Love And Hate About The Aston Martin V12 Vantage S Roadster

Love: The looks

The V12 Vantage S Roadster is a sexy drop-top supercar; wide, sleek, squat, lean and athletic, it’s got all the hallmarks of a pin-up.

The details I like most include the beautiful three-layer cloth roof (this takes 14 seconds to open and can be used at speeds up to 30mph), the classy rear lights and the elegant rear spoiler. The V12 Vantage S-specific 10-spoke lightweight wheels are another highlight, as are the massive ventilated carbon ceramic discs (398mm at the front, 360mm at the rear).

I’m not overly fond of the boisterous bonnet vents, but anything that helps cool a V12 is alright by me.

Hate: the gearbox

The major talking point of our video review was the seven-speed Sportshift III automated manual transmission. Aston describes the ‘box as ‘improving performance over a manual shift gearbox’, which is true when you’re doing over 100mph and changing up nice and high in the rev range.

For day to day, low-speed driving, however, the gearbox is slow and laboured. The most frustrating thing about the seven speeder is that it jerks your head backwards and forwards with every cog change. Think of it as changing from first to second gear in a manual car, and dabbing the brakes at the same time. Not pleasant.

Love: it’s fast and hides its weight well

The Aston roadster weighs the same as a Jaguar XF Sportbrake at 1820kg, and yet it feels incredibly nimble and light on its feet. Despite its heavy V12 engine over the front axle, turn-in is light, quick and self-assured.

Acceleration - especially with some momentum behind you - is as strong as you’d expect given its 565bhp power and 457lb ft torque figures. On paper, the V12 is good for a 0-62mph sprint time of 3.9 seconds and top speed of 201mph. Not only is this the fastest cabriolet in Aston history, it’s also one of the fastest cars (on a longish list) in the world.

Hate: the seats

If your upper body is bigger than average, then good luck with these seats. While they look snug, comfortable they are not. My first experience came after I jumped out of the seat of a Nissan GT-R into that of the Aston to then drive to Wales for a video shoot the next day.

I remember falling into the seat and immediately swearing while looking behind behind. ‘What was this thing pushing my shoulders forward from both sides?’ Of course, a couple of days behind the wheel meant that I quickly got over my initial displeasure with the high and narrow sides, but when I then slipped into a Nissan 370Z Nismo, I again realised how hunched my shoulders had been in the Aston.

Love: the noise

Something I learned from the V12 Vantage was that it only takes two tailpipes to make one of the best exhaust noises known to man. I can still hear it now; throaty, deep, unapologetically loud and and unashamedly OTT.

The lightweight exhaust system itself has been derived from that of the One-77 hypercar, and it produces the sort of noise that will make any man need to take five minutes. Speaking of which…