I’ve probably seen every James Bond movie at least four times. Recently, my wife’s uncle came into town and showed me all of the content options on Pluto TV, including his program of choice, “Columbo.” It didn’t take me long to discover it also has a 24/7 James Bond channel. Let’s just say I got reacquainted with the 007 movies for a few weeks while I was eating breakfast, relaxing, or washing dishes. It doesn’t matter how many times I watch them – I’ll still watch them again. Even one of the worst ones, “Die Another Day.” Why? Because it has the curvaceous and muscular Aston Martin Vanquish in it. That’s also why I chose its more powerful sibling, a 2006 Vanquish S offered by a Pennsylvania dealership, as the Pick of the Day.
Released in 2005, the Vanquish S had the same handsome design and engine size as the regular Vanquish it replaced, but it came equipped with strategic exterior revisions to help it handle the higher output under the hood. According to Aston Martin, “Discreet changes to ‘S’ included a bigger, revised grille, front splitter and a raised rear ‘spoiler’ built into the boot lid to keep the car stable at high speed.” At the time, the Vanquish S was the company’s fastest production car, with a reported top speed of more than 200 mph.
The Vanquish S was able to hit that higher limit (and 60 mph in 4.8 seconds) thanks to its enhanced 5.9-liter V12. Aston Martin modified it with a higher compression ratio, new cylinder heads, fully machined inlet ports, forged connecting rods, a revised injection system, and a remapped ECU. The results of those changes were 520 horsepower and 425 lb-ft of torque, increases of 60 and 25, respectively, compared to the normal Vanquish’s figures.
Unlike 007‘s Vanquish, this S model seems to have lived an easy life. It wasn’t flipped onto its roof by a missile strike, rammed into a pair of snowmobiles, or crashed through a palace made out of ice – and it shows. Someone had the restraint to only put 12,653 miles on the odometer, so the Meteorite Silver paint still has a wet shine to it. The black leather in the 2+2 cabin, including the hide Aston Martin added to the dashboard and other areas for the S model, appears to be hydrated and rarely contacted. There doesn’t seem to be any wear on the buttons next to or below the navigation screen (and no – there’s not a button marked “Ejector Seat”).
The holidays are here, which means you’ll have some free time to lounge around and put on a James Bond movie. Or you can buy this 2006 Aston Martin Vanquish S (after contacting the dealer for the price) and pretend you’re in one every time you drive it.
Click here to view the listing for this Pick of the Day on ClassicCars.com.
Source: www.classiccars.com