A decade ago, the Jaguar F-Type returned a true sports car to the automaker’s showrooms 40 years after the last E-Type was built. And now, the final curtain is coming down on what will be Jaguar’s last internal-combustion sports car before the company switches to an all-EV lineup. When introduced, the F-Type won the World Car Design of the Year award. Performance covered a wide gamut, with a rip-roaring 575-horsepower supercharged V8 at the top. For the final year, that engine defines the F-Type R75 models and takes them into the sunset.
If you missed your chance at last year’s Aston Martin Vantage F1 Edition, you can now get the best consolation prize ever. The 2025 Vantage is a major upgrade over the previous Vantage in every way while maintaining the striking design. The biggest news is under the hood, where a new version of the twin-turbo V8 gets a nearly 25-percent boost to 656 horsepower. The new interior shows a major leap in elegance over the previous car. You can also expect a leap in the price, which has not yet been announced.
Ferrari had Pininfarina, and Aston Martin had Zagato, at least for a small number of very limited-edition models. The first was in 1961, the DB4 GT Zagato, with just 19 made. One of those sold for $9.5M a few years ago. The most ambitions collaboration between the British automaker and Italian designer/coachbuilder was a quartet of special bodies built around the second-generation V12-powered Vanquish model from 2017-2019. RM Sotheby’s 2024 Phoenix, Arizona auction is offering #33 of the 99 Vanquish Zagato coupes built, with an estimated selling price of $600K-$650K.
Has inflation taken a bite out of the exotic car market? Premier Financial Services Midwest Regional Sales Manager Ross Dressel has seen a dip in activity in the $200K-$500K heart of that segment. But meanwhile, “affordable” pre-owned exotics and classics in the $75K-$200K range are getting more action for America’s #1 exotic and classic car lease financing provider. Who’s up? Who’s down? Read here to find out.
Just a few months after unveiling its new DB12 “super tourer” coupe, Aston Martin has introduced the convertible version, called Volante. The British automaker first used the Volante name on a special run of 37 DB5 convertibles in 1965 and has used it on its convertibles since. The name is Italian for ‘flying’ or ‘moving lightly and quickly.’ The 671-horsepower DB12 Volante can certainly do that. The newest Aston Martin would seem to have just two direct rivals, the Ferrari Roma Spider and Bentley Continental GTC. Which would you choose?
Aston Martin bills its new DB12 grand tourer as a “super tourer” because, the British automaker says, “grand is not enough” to describe the DB11’s successor. Marketing fluff aside, the new DB12 appears to be a super new entry into a segment where its closest rival is the Ferrari Roma. The overall look will be familiar to Aston fans, and the interior steps up to a “super” level of grand touring luxury and tech. The Mercedes-AMG twin-turbo V8 gets a boost to a very super 671 horsepower, easily exceeding the DB11’s V8 and V12. Customer deliveries start in fall.
This Aston Martin will leave you shaken and stirred. At its Amelia Island auction, RM Sotheby’s is offering a 2005 Vanquish S, with just under 1,700 miles. Part of the Michael Fux collection until 2018, this Glengarry Gold Aston Martin has a pre-sale estimate of $125,000 – $150,000, and offered without reserve.
A 2004 Ferrari 360 Spider with just one-owner will be up for auction by RM Sotheby’s at its Amelia Island Concours auction in March. It features a F1 transmission and with just 392 miles. The $125k-$175k pre-sale estimate is about what its base price was when new.
