Aston Martin releases new higher-performing Vantage S super sports car

James Bond’s frequent ride of choice are high-end sports cars from Aston Martin. Even among low-volume, high-powered sports cars out of Europe, Aston Martin tends to stand out.

“Aston Martin’s not a ‘look at me’ brand. It’s ‘look at this beautiful car.’ It’s understated elegance, and not meant to be so in-your-face,” said Beau Boeckmann, president of Galpin Aston Martin in Van Nuys.

The newest aspirational ride out of Gaydon in the U.K. is the 2026 Vantage S.

As if the regular Vantage didn’t have enough power, the S model gets a bit more from its twin-turbo V8: 670 horsepower. The suspension is also upgraded to better tackle the curves.

And the sound is purposely tuned to be both mean and elegant at the same time.

The British ultra-luxury sports car has a six-figure price tag: $199,500 before a customer piles on the optional extras.

Like a custom-tailored suit, mostly every Aston Martin is built to the buyer’s specifications. It’s not unusual for high-end cars and no two Vantage S examples will be exactly alike.

“That’s what’s so cool about it,” said Boeckmann. “You can create your own Aston Martin, in just about every way you can imagine. They can make up your own paint color for you, your own interior.”

Aston Martin keeps heritage, style and performance in mind with its cars.

And it has a decades-long association with the James Bond film franchise, the high-end sports cars being a frequent ride of choice for secret agent 007, going all the way back to “Goldfinger” in 1964.

“The James Bond franchise absolutely helps. And when the movies come out there’s definitely a buzz, and Aston Martin’s played into that as well with a couple of special editions that are James Bond-related,” said Boeckmann.