THIS review was written by 13-year-old Elliot Morris who wants to be a motoring journalist. Here, Car Dealer gave him the opportunity to have a go at writing a review. This is his take on the Aston Martin Vantage.

WHEN you see it, you want it! This is the Aston Martin Vantage. One of the most mind-blowing and the most elegant Aston Martins ever made.

This is the smallest in the range but now comes with an engine from its bigger brothers. Based on the V8 Vantage, the maker has fitted a brilliant 5935cc 6.0-litre V12 engine which revs up to 6,500rpm.

Undoubtedly the best part of the Aston is the noise. It’s the sound of a V12 God! The design of the Vantage is absolutely gorgeous too. With its hardcore vents, its roar simplicity and beautiful elegance, makes it look like the perfect supercar.

One of the key things to make a very quick car is to make it light and Aston Martin have achieved that by using carbon fibre.

The performance figures are immense! 0 to 60 takes 4.1 seconds and the top speed is a blistering 190mph (305kph). That is spectacularly quick. The maximum power of the Aston is 510bhp, that’s 90bhp more than the old model.

The V12 Vantage comes with carbon ceramic brakes rather than steel. The carbon ceramic brakes are a massive improvement by creating amazing stopping power.

The vents play an important part in the car too. Why? Well, it’s not just about style; it cools the engine by channelling air through the four vents, which helps the engine to cool.

Inside it looks very futuristic and luxurious. With its high tech centre console and its lightweight materials, it creates a perfect combination of performance and style.

However there are though a few problems: the Aston will struggle to do 20mpg. Also there are only two seats and it’s also quite cramped inside. The CO2 rating is very high as well.

For a car with so much racing pedigree, it’s also quite practical for a supercar because it has a boot luggage capacity of 300 litres.

The Vantage then has progressed from a V8 sports coupe, to a V12 racing machine. Overall, this is a fantastic achievement to put a 6.0-litre V12 monster in the smallest baby range of Aston Martin. It’s an incredible supercar.

By Elliot Morris, 13

Tags: aston martin, road-tests

This entry was last updated on Thursday, July 29th, 2010 at 7:08 am and is filed under road-tests.