Aston Martin Zagato confirmed for production

Buoyed by the enthusiastic response from the unveiling of the Zagato-bodied concept of their new Vanquish flagship, Aston Martin has announced that they will be putting their Vanquish Zagato concept into production.

Only 99 examples of the Aston Martin Vanquish Zagato coupé will be produced from Aston Martin’s Gaydon factory in England, with customer deliveries slated for the first quarter of next year.

The original concept, which was first exhibited at this year’s Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este last month, featured plenty of styling cues that many come to recognise as the trademark design touches of Zagato. These styling cues that were worked into the Vanquish’s bodywork includes a more prominently curvaceous body with exaggerated lines, a glass house that appears to wrap around the cockpit, a uniquely curved rear window, and a smoothly shaped ‘double-bubble’ roof.

Inside the Italian design house’s ‘Z’ symbol adorns the headrests and is stitched into the centre console, while the ‘Z’ quilt pattern is stitched into the seat and door sections to mark it out as a Zagato-styled special.

The English brand’s partnership with Zagato started in the 1960 with the DB4 GT Zagato racing car, which has become one of the most sought after and valuable Aston Martins today.

Its exterior design isn’t just pure Zagato however, the Vanquish Zagato also features design cues carried over from Aston Martin’s previous models and concepts.

Its round taillights mirror that of the 2011 V12 Vantage Zagato, only this time it is finished with the protruding LED lighting elements from the Vulcan track car. The elongated wing mirrors are said to be closely related to those used on the One-77 supercar, whereas its new side strakes are reminiscent of the British company’s 2013 centenary CC100 Speedster concept.

Aston Martin assures that much of the concept’s design elements will be retained on the production version, though one particular addition to the production model is an uprated version of the Vanquish’s 6-litre naturally-aspirated V12 engine. Peak power from the V12 has been raised from 424kW to 441kW, dropping its 0 to 60mph (96km/h) time from 3.6 seconds to 3.5 seconds. Just as it is with the Vanquish, the Vanquish Zagato’s bodywork will be entirely shaped from carbon-fibre. The Vanquish Zagato is also said to sport its own unique suspension setup to suit its intent as the brand’s ultimate grand tourer.

The Vanquish Zagato is the fifth collaboration between Aston Martin and the famed Italian design studio. The English brand’s partnership with Zagato started in the 1960 with the DB4 GT Zagato racing car, which has become one of the most sought after and valuable Aston Martins today. In 1986, Zagato designed the V8 Vantage Zagato, while the turn of the century saw the 2002 DB7 Vantage Zagato, and followed lastly by the 2011 V12 Vantage Zagato.

Don’t expect to see the Vanquish Zagato listed at the nearest Aston Martin dealership though,  as each of the 99 examples will be built to order.

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