Aston Martin’s Vantage Revealed

GENEVA – Selling 3,000 units a year is profitable, visible and still exclusive, says Ulrich Bez, head of Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd., in unveiling the new AM V-8 Vantage at the auto show here.

The handcrafted sports car is the smallest and most affordable in the 3-car lineup of the premium brand for Ford Motor Co. It is expected to account for 3,000 of Aston’s 5,000-unit annual sales.

The Vantage goes on sale in the U.S. at the end of the year. Pricing is expected to be in the $100,000 range.

The mid-mounted 4.3L V-8 delivers 375 hp and 302 lb.-ft. (410 Nm) of torque at 5,000 rpm. The engine is hand-assembled in a separate facility at Ford’s Cologne, Germany, manufacturing complex, and is mated to a 6-speed manual transmission.

The car itself is lightweight, with an all-alloy structure. Top speed is 174 mph (280 km/h).

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