Have a problem with the factory grille of the Aston Martin Vantage? I personally think it looks good, but apparently some Vantage owners have been offended by it and have revised the front of their elegant British sports cars with aftermarket alternatives.
If you do drive a Vantage, you can now sleep well, because the company has come up with a solution. Aston Martin announced last week that it is offering a replacement grille called the Vane that can be fitted to existing cars at the company’s body shops. The design of the Vane grille is smoother and more traditional, with classic horizontal chrome strands and black vertical supports that contradict the edgy, hollow crop of the Vantage’s original Hunter design.
The result is sort of a cross between what the Vantage was originally launched with and the grille of the DB11. In February 2020, the automaker announced that the Vane face would be the standard version for the Vantage Roadster, while the Coupé would continue with the Vulcan-inspired Hunter mouth. I like the new version, although I think Aston was smart to leave it from the Coupé and the track-focused AMR version, where it would feel a bit too soft. Aston does not quote a price for the conversion; if you have to ask, and all.
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Of course, people will compare the Vantage’s alternative look to the aftermarket replacement built by a company called Revenant. The Revenant approach – a design that needs a different bumper cover – I find odd as it gives the car two stacked mouths of equal size. I’m not sure what to look at; I’m also not sure if I should think of the middle mouth as a nose. It confuses me, and I don’t like it.
Ultimately, it’s just weird to see a carmaker offering an alternative face to its car, even a luxury brand like Aston Martin doing so much customization for its customers. Usually companies stick to their guns to the very end, met the growing criticism with encouraged outrage, propelling a vicious spiral that is exacerbated with every snarling tweet. However, Aston Martin didn’t, and I give them props for that. Which schedule do you prefer?