Aston Martin Virage

In 1990 Aston Martin began production of its new V8 model, the Virage. The Virage was intended to be a new "world-car" for Aston which meant it could be sold in all markets without major modifications to the engine or body (as had happened with the previous V8 range) The Virage would use a new 32 valve version of the trusty old 5.3 litre V8 fitted with Weber fuel injection.

The body for the Virage was all new and used the traditional Aston recipe of alloy panels fitted onto a steel frame/chassis. The independent rear suspension sat on an "A" frame carrier which needed replacement under warranty of the first handful of cars. Sadly the Virage suffered from a combination of quality, design faults, new emission laws and a world-wide recession in the early 1990's.

The Virage coupe was quickly developed into a variety of different versions including a 2+2 Volante, two and four door "Shooting Brakes" along with high performance "6.3 litre" conversions offered by the factory. A special "Virage LE" Limited Edition was built in 1994 of just 9 cars. These cars featured special paint, trim, front grille and analogue instruments carried over from the Virage Volante (Virage Coupes had troublesome electronic dash and trip computer units)

In 1996 the Virage was superseded by the V8 Coupe which shared its styling with the more powerful and more purposeful V8 Vantage.