Unveiled at the 2004 Paris Motor Show, the Vanquish S was the fastest Aston Martin ever made to that moment.
It’s over 200 mph (320 kph) speed qualified it as a supercar, even though it was based on a GT.

Aston Martin lived its final years with Ford when it launched the Vanquish S. Due to that, it had to get some bits and pieces from the American car-giant. Strangely, it wasn’t forced to get an American supercharged engine. It was allowed to develop its V12 and it did it well.

The Vanquish S was the sportiest version of the already existent Vanquish. But it wasn’t just a trim level. It featured new wheels, a slightly different front fascia with a small front splitter, a higher trunk lid, and a larger, integrated, spoiler where the third brake-light was installed. A Vanquish S badge was added to the back.

Inside, the plastic steering wheel from the early Vanquish has disappeared and a new, leather-wrapped one, was installed. The seats featured high bolsters to hold its occupants in place. The hand-stitched leather trim was extended across the center stack. In the rest, there was a mix of cast aluminum parts and switches from Ford Fiesta.

Under the hood, there was the same 6.0-liter V12 from the Vanquish but upgraded to develop 60 more horsepower. It was mated to the same 6-speed automatic, but tuned for performance.