Aston Martin V8 Vantage Roadster (2007-) Review

On the road

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Sitting in the low, welcoming cabin of the Roadster is a special experience. Depress the clutch, turn on the ignition and the starter button glows red. Press it and the engine erupts with what at first sounds like a particularly rude V8 noise that soon settles into a hushed idle hinting at the car's split personality.

Ignoring the trademark Aston rev counter that swings counter-clockwise, the Roadster's interior is laid out logically. It's also easy to find a comfortable driving position behind the wheel, without any intrusion from the transmission tunnel or wheelarch.

Like other Astons, the Vantage Roadster has the Graziano transaxle with a six-speed manual gearbox as standard, with the option of a Sportshift automated manual (£3,000) that has already impressed in the Based on the coupe. The manual offers a fine, quick change, although our test car suffered a reluctance to engage first gear, especially when cold.

Thankfully, even in gridlocked traffic, smooth progress is possible due to a progressive, if weighty, clutch. But escape the city and the Roadster benefits from its compact dimensions on British B-roads that would challenge wider-hipped V12 Astons.

Push on and you find the Roadster is an easy car to drive quickly, especially when you leave the standard electronic safety net engaged: however, even if you do opt to switch it off, it still grips tenaciously, which allows you to make some serious cross-country pace. Push too hard, however, and the front washes wide, but squeezing on more power mid-corner allows for better balance.

What's not so impressive is the steering's off-centre feeling of numbness; something of a recent Aston characteristic that improves stability at high speed at the expense of accuracy.

Body control is impressive, thanks to well-judged, quick witted damping and firm springs. The brakes are also excellent, providing huge stopping power and fine progression - far better than our experience with early production coupes.

The 22 seconds it takes to drop the roof is well worth the wait, allowing the occupants to experience the full operatic quality of the 380bhp 4.3-litre V8. Taking the leading role are the exhaust bypass valves that transform a cultured and polite V8 into a rabid, savage bark. Sometimes their workings appear erratic, not always rasping under hard acceleration, but when they open you'll know.

Thanks to a weight increase of just 80kg, the V8 Roadster boasts, on paper, equally impressive performance as its coupe sibling. Sixty miles an hour from standstill is accomplished in just 4.9 seconds and top speed is an impressive 175mph. Getting to that mark means the V8 needs to be worked surprisingly hard, but that's something the free-revving engine relishes, so it's hardly a chore for the driver.