For many of us born in the 1990s, our first encounter with the Vanquish was on the big screen with the twentieth James Bond film, Die Another Day. While the road-going variants aren’t equipped with camouflage paint or heat-seeking missiles, they do ooze with a magical kind of curb appeal that only the Aston Martin can pull off.

This is the brand new 2025 Aston Martin Vanquish and it replaces the outgoing DBS. There’s a lot to talk about. First off, the Vanquish finally looks like a halo product, one that’s distinctive and distinguishable from the Vantage and DB12. Previous models were too similar to the cheaper models and created a very homogenous line up. Not anymore.

The length of the front hood has been extended by 80mm, creating a phallic grand-tourer look much like the Mercedes-AMG GT. Check out the rear deck lid that Aston calls the ‘Shield’, which can also be spec’d in the body paint colour too. The massive side strake with ‘Aston Martin V12’ lettering is also specific to this car and frankly, we couldn’t spot any badges on the vehicle that actually say ‘Vanquish’.

The Vanquish takes the best of the limited Valour and Valiant special edition models and puts their design cues to good use. That includes a massive front grill and hood vents that cool that engine underneath which Aston Martin says are inspired by the engineering from their Formula 1 program. Marketing gimmick or engineering genius? We have yet to find out.

A new stainless steel exhaust system is standard but those who want to uncork the best British acoustics can opt for the optional titanium exhaust that uses a smaller muffler for a clearer and louder exhaust noise, as well as a 10.5kg weight reduction.

The real news is what lies under the hood. While the Vantage and DB12 have been delegated to V8 engine duty, the flagship Aston continues with a 5.2-litre twin-turbocharged V12 engine but it’s not the carried over unit. They say this one is brand new from the ground up with new turbochargers, pistons, cylinder heads, fuel injections, leading to grand output of 824 horsepower and 738 lb-ft of torque, more than the rivaling Ferrari 12Cilindri and enough to sprint from 0-100 km/h in 3.3 seconds and to a top speed of 344 km/h. All of this power is routed through an 8-speed ZF automatic gearbox and an electronic rear limited-slip differential. Other notable goodies include Bilstein DTX dampers and tailor-made Pirelli P Zero tires.

Inside is also a remix of Aston Martin’s latest, taking the best from the Vantage and DB12 and amalgamating it into a logical GT two-seater layout. The cabin is dominated by actual buttons and dials, as well as two 10.25-inch digital screens, one in front of the driver and one in the center. A panoramic glass roof rides the silhouette of the Vanquish, and it comes tinted to allow for only 6% of light to seep through into the cabin, keeping occupants protected from harmful UV rays. We would have preferred to see a sunroof option but we don’t think there are any that could fit that length. We also expect a future convertible variant for the sun-seekers.

Pricing has yet to be released but we expect a base price north of $500,000 CAD. The Vanquish will be limited to under 1000 production examples each year with the first deliveries scheduled for the end of this year but herein lies the real question. Will the next Bond film make it in time?