Gallery: Aston Martin’s V12-powered Vantage RS

To celebrate the opening of Aston Martin’s first ever dedicated design centre in Gaydon, officials unveiled the new 600hp (450kW) V12-powered Vantage RS concept car, and if any car is worthy of a gallery it’s the gorgeous Aston. The V12 Vantage RS concept is based on Aston Martin’s V8 Vantage coupe, but engineers have shoehorned the racing version of the 6.0L V12 into its engine bay - fully exploiting the design flexibility of the VH architecture.

The engine has benefited directly from the race development used for the DBR9 race car. It features a dry sump lubrication system, tuned length exhaust manifolds, forged pistons and steel con-rods, revised lift and duration camshafts and modified cylinder heads. Peak power is achieved at 6,250rpm and peak torque of 690Nm arrives at 5000rpm.

Just as significant as the new powerplant is the level of weight reduction achieved by engineers. With a kerb weight of less than 1,600kg, the RS concept should offer the performance usually restricted to cars in the supercar arena.

With a power-to-weight ratio of over 375hp per ton, the V12 Vantage RS concept is the fastest accelerating road car ever built by Aston Martin, capable of reaching 62mph (100km/h) from rest in 4.0 seconds and 100mph (160km/h) in just 8.5 seconds.

In common with the recently launched DBS, the bonnet and trunk lid are molded in carbon fiber and the concept also adopts motor sport-inspired carbon ceramic brake discs.

The bonnet louvers extract air from the fully ducted cooling pack and the trunk lid features a deployable spoiler that rises automatically at high speeds to increase rear down force. The front bumper features cooling ducts for the carbon ceramic brakes and a carbon fibre splitter to balance down force.