Aston Martin earlier in February unveiled the heavily updated 2025 Vantage sports car, and on Tuesday the new Vantage GT4 racing version made its debut.
The customer race car is eligible for the 2024 motorsports season, together with a Vantage GT3 that was unveiled together with the updated road car.
Some early examples of the Vantage GT4 already took part in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge coinciding with last month's last month's 24 Hours of Daytona, the opening round of the IMSA SportsCar Championship. Examples of the Vantage GT3 ran in the 24-hour race.
Compared to the previous Vantage GT4 introduced for the 2019 season, the new car benefits primarily from improved aerodynamics and cooling, the latter helped mostly by the larger mouth on the latest Vantage. Aston Martin also made improvements to the chassis, drivetrain, efficiency, and ease of use, the company said.
2024 Aston Martin Vantage GT4 race car
Due to the FIA's strict GT4 regulations, the Vantage GT4 is very close to the road car on which it is based. Around 80% of the central bonded aluminum structure is common to both cars, with the race car gaining a roll cage to meet safety regulations. An air jack system is also included.
Both cars also share the familiar Mercedes-Benz-sourced twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8, though in the race car the engine is paired with a 6-speed sequential transmission whereas the road car has an 8-speed automatic. The race car's power can be adjusted depending on race rules, but as a base case delivers around 470 hp. In the road car the engine pumps out 656 hp.
The chassis has been heavily upgraded to handle the rigors of racing. This included changing the geometry of the double-wishbone suspension at both ends, and adding KW 2-way adjustable dampers plus a set of adjustable anti-roll bars. The brake package is from Alcon and includes 6-piston calipers up front and 4-piston calipers at the rear. They clamp down on ventilated rotors, also from Alcon. The brakes sit within a set of Braid forged aluminum wheels measuring 18x11 inches at all four corners.
2024 Aston Martin Vantage GT4 race car
Impressively, most of the body panels are shared with the road car. The one major exception is the new vented hood, which uses natural-fiber composites instead of the road car's aluminum. The natural fiber is also used for additional aerodynamic elements, including the front splitter and rear wing, which are strengthened with a core made from cork.
The dry weight of the car is approximately 3,230 pounds.
Aston Martin is currently building the cars for customer teams and said around 40 units will be built in 2024. Pricing hasn't been revealed.
