AMV8, V8 Vantage and V8 Volante (1972-1989)

When Aston Martin came into the ownership of William Willson in early 1972, the field was actually well prepared. The large GT was available with two modern engines from Tadek Marek. The in-line six-cylinder engine was discontinued in 1973. The car formerly known as the DBS V8 was given a redesigned front end and was simply called the Aston Martin AMV8. This car was produced in four series until 1989.

The V8 Vantage, which was sold from 1977 onwards, produced 395 hp with four Weber 48 IDF carburettors over the entire production period. More powerful versions with up to 450 hp were offered by Aston Martin, even more powerful versions with up to 7 ltr. displacement were available from independent tuners. Less powerful cosmetic versions were produced for the US and Japanese markets.

Traditionally, the open versions of Aston Martin cars are called "Volante". Nearly 800 of these "Volante" models of the Aston Martin V8 were produced in 3 series between 1978 and 1989. From the 1980s onwards, the body design felt outdated. US safety bumpers and the obviously unavoidable wrap-around body-kits had a strong impact on sales. In 1988, the successor Virage was presented in Birmingham, which was available from 1989.