Preview: Aston Martin V12 Zagato

First look

The Aston Martin V12 Zagato has already proved its street cred at various performance-based events such as the 24 hours of Nürburgring enduro and the flagship is all set to make a debut as a road car at the Frankfurt Motor Show starting next month. The strictly limited production model has been shown off in the guise of the racing prototypes dubbed Zig and Zag earlier in the year and the new road car looks to pay a tribute to the 1961 DB4 Zagato at the classic’s 50th anniversary. Italian coach-builder Zagato brings its handcrafted finesse to the model that won the concepts and prototypes award at the Villa D'Este Concours not so long ago.

Aston Martin V12 Zagato

What’s new?

The future production model will be offered in four special Zagato exterior paint schemes. The coupe-only special edition Aston Martin V12 Zagato will feature Zagato-stamped plaques and logos on the interior taken from the V12 Vantage. The lightweight 19" alloy wheels are crafted specially for the V12 Zagato in forged aluminum and come wrapped in Pirelli P Zero Corsa tires.

What’s been refreshed?

Aesthetically pleasing and technologically sound, the V12 Zagato borrows liberally from the V12 Vantage for its shell and comes wrapped in LED lights. The ‘double bubble’ roof from the racing-specific original Zagato has been retained along with the Vanquish’s beefy flank.

The machine

The 2012 Aston Martin V12 Zagato is powered by a front mid-mounted 6.0L V12 engine. the 48-valve, 5935cc rear-wheel drive engine features a selectable ‘Sport’ mode. The 6-speed automated/manual gearbox comes rear mid-mounted with a limited slip differential and final-drive ratio of 3.71:1. Using carbon ceramic brakes, the powertrain on the Zagato V12 outputs 380 kW power at 510 bhp producing 420 lb-ft torque at 5750 rpm. The special edition Aston Martin V12 Zagato goes from 0-62 mph in 4.2 seconds and reaches a top speed of 190 mph.

What’s good?

Zagatos have always been considered one of the most belabored works of art in the industry and the 2012 edition is not different. AM have refrained from going the machine route for obtaining the delicately precise silhouette and each section of the entire aluminum design flourish has been hand-sculpted from sheet alloy with the help of a device named an English wheel.

Fabricated by hand, the sheet metal pieces were grafted together over several painstaking hours using hand-held hammers of all shapes, sizes and weights. The shell was created by putting together an extensive network of panels making it worth every penny of the half-a-million that it costs.

Picture Gallery

Aston Martin V12 Zagato

Aston Martin V12 Zagato Debuting in Frankfurt

What’s not so good?

The only down side to the handcrafted work of automotive art is that the V12 on it will not get a facelift mechanically. Probably because it is a tall order to expect the powerhouse fueling it to be bettered without flying too close to the sun.

Price and availability

Only 150 units of the Aston Martin Zagato V12 will be made with each of these stunning beauties being offered up for the equally stunning price starting at $ $525,000. The Zagato V12 will go into production in 2012.

Wrap-up

First introduced at the Concorso d’Eleganza, the Aston Martin Zagato V12 won the top honor for Concept Cars and Prototypes at the do held at Lake Como, Italy situated Villa D’Este. Stunning from every angle possible, the Zagato proved that it had the brawns to match its beauty with a successful showing at the 39th edition of the 24-hour ADAC Nürburgring race. The gorgeous red Aston Martin V12 Zagato will be built to match the company’s high stands of precision at its Gaydon, UK based headquarters.