It will be a sad day when we see the V-12 engine disappear from an Aston. — Andy Palmer, Aston Martin CEO
There's more good news: Aston remains committed to making V-12s as well, with company insiders indicating that production of the brand's 5.2-liter twin-turbo, which is currently made at the Ford plant in Cologne, Germany, will also be shifted to the U.K. to be built alongside the new V-6. With most other makers of 12-cylinder engines admitting that their engines are approaching retirement, that is an impressive commitment to the future of the range-topping powerplant; last year Aston made 1780 cars with V-12s, which was close to a third of its total production for all markets.
"I hope the V-12 is around for a good while longer," Palmer said. "You can see in the longer term it won't last, but certainly over the next few years we can continue to produce V-12 engines and we can make them more CO2 friendly. It will be a sad day when we see the V-12 engine disappear from an Aston.”
Palmer was also keen to emphasize that the U.K. government's move to ban all cars with gasoline and diesel engines by 2035 won't necessarily impact other markets. "It's a controversial subject, isn't it?" he said. "The key point is that we make cars for the world, and the world hasn't said there isn’t a future for hybrids or plug-in hybrids. If we were only selling to the United Kingdom it would be different, but we're selling to a worldwide market where there are a variety of views in terms of future technology and how it will be deployed."
Manual in Vantage May Expand to Other Models
We also sneaked in a question about manual gearboxes, since Aston started offering the option in the Vantage last year. While acknowledging it will be a minority choice, he insisted developing it was the right decision.
"I think it reinforces our position as an enthusiast brand, because nobody else in this part of the market is developing those cars," he said, "I think there is a group of people who love what I'd call the romanticism of the manual car. I wouldn't stick a pin in and say the Vantage is our last one, I'd like to think there might be the room for more in the future, but I can’t say that with certainty."
