One of the first appearances of the V8 was in one of Aston Martin's prototype cars MP222 (Jan 1965). This car was originally fitted with another prototype engine 480/001/P and then converted to take the engine which it has today V/540/001/R.

When the car was modified to become one of the first DB5 V8s it was given a new chassis number 001/D/P and the de Dion rear suspension from the DB6

DBS V8

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The DBS V8 was announced in September 1969, with the first cars being produced in April 1970. The DBS V8 was launched with the Bosch fuel injection system as standard as well as the GKN alloy wheels. The DBS V8 is the first of the real V8s. Production continued until May 1972 with a total production of around 400 cars.

V8 Saloon

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The V8 Saloon was announced in April 1972 and used the same Bosch Fuel Injection as the DBS V8, but the bodywork had been significantly modified with 2 iodine quartz headlights to give the familiar AM V8 nose reminiscent of the DB3S and DB Mark III and the overall length of the car was increased to 15' 3".

In August 1973 the Weber Carburettor version of the car was announced to allay some of the alleged concerns about the Bosch FI system and to meet the US emissions standards.

In August 1978 the Oscar India (OI) version of the Saloon was announced with the integral boot spoiler and other cosmetic differences but most notably with the increased performance engine the 580 Series.

The final incarnation of the V8 Saloon came in January 1986 with the re-introduction of a Fuel Injection system although this time made by Weber

The V8 Vantage was announced in February 1977 and production started in March 1977 and continued until 1989. During this time the car underwent significant improvement and development. The V8 Vantage was produced in several forms, the early flip tail Vantages V8s with the 540 series engine (including the Bolt-On Flip Tail) of which only 39 were built, the 540 Series engined Vantages with updated bodywork, the 580 Series engined Vantages and finally the X Series or X-Pack Vantages. There were an additional 13 Vantage look alike's for the US market, but these did not have true Vantage specification engines.

V8 Volante

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The V8 Volante launched on 21 June 1978 to meet the continuing demand for convertibles in the UK as well as the great demand and market opportunities from the USA. The car was produced in 2 main types, the carburettor cars of which there were 656 cars built and Weber Fuel Injection cars of which there were only 245 cars built.

V8 Vantage Volante

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The Vantage Volante was the logical next progression from the standard Vantage and with the V8 on borrowed time it came with flared wheel arches, deeper spoiler and closed in front grill.

The Prince of Wales was interested in the Vantage Volante, but wanted it in a less ostentatious form and thus was born the PoW specification having Ronal wheels, no skirts, only slightly flared wheel arches and a smaller front spoiler

V8 Zagato

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The V8 Zagato was launched on 1st March 1985 at a time when the marketplace was screaming out for another exotic / classic car. The V8 Zagato aimed to reproduce the success that had been created with the DB4 GT Zagato as a small production short chassis road car.

The total production lasted 2 years from 1986 - 1988 and produced 52 saloons plus an additional 37 Volantes.

Virage

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In October 1988 the Virage was announced at International Motor Show in Birmingham. The car featured a new stiffer and stronger CAD designed chassis, new interior and a completely new body. The car retained analogue instruments and the rear brakes had been moved outboard to the wheels.

The car feature an all alloy 5.4 litre V8 engine that had been developed in conjunction with Callaway Engineering and was suitable for use in the US without modification. The car started production in October 1988 and continued until 1995 with over 400 cars being produced.

AMR1

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V8 Virage Volante

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The Virage Volante was the first of the follow on cars from the Virage Saloon and was the first of the "V" cars as they would later become known by the factory. The car was previewed in Geneva in 1991, but did not go into production until 1992 due to extensive modifications and testing.

The car was in production from October 1992 - 1995 and used the newly developed 32 valve 6.3 litre V8 engine.

In March 1996 the successor to the Virage was announced at the Geneva Motor Show. The car took a lot of its styling from the Vantage, but had cleaner lines and a normally aspirated engine producing 350 b.h.p.

The car was in production for 3 years from 1996 - 1999 and there were only 101 cars built.

The Vantage

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In 1992 Aston Martin produced their fastest car yet, the Vantage. The Vantage had no less than 550bhp and whilst superficially similar to the Virage the Vantage had been extensively re-engineered to cope with the massive increase in performance. The car was produced from April 1995 to June 1999 with 240 cars being produced in standard form plus an additional 40 special edition Vantage Le Mans (see below).

The Vantage Volante

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The Vantage Le Mans

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In March 1999 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Le Mans victory by the DBR1, Aston Martin announced that it would build 40 special edition cars. These cars had been cosmetically updated and included a DBR1 like side vent as well as a plaque inside the car which recorded the name of the first owner of the car.

The car was offered in 2 engine sizes 550 b.h.p. and 600 b.h.p. as well as up rated braking and suspension systems.

V600

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