When Aston Martin launched the Valour to celebrate the 110th anniversary of the marque, they did so with the slogan ‘Be afraid. Not of what is to come. But what we might lose.’ With this slogan they encapsulated everything this car is about. The Valour is consciously old school and analogue, designed to be engaging and exhilarating, a car which places experience above pure straight-line performance.

Aston Martin didn’t publish anything as vulgar as a 0-110 km/h time, because that’s not what this car is about. You just need to know that is an old school car, big engine, manual gearbox and more than sufficient power!

The 5.2 litre, twin-turbo V12, produces 715PS and 752NM of torque, but it’s the fact that all this power is paired to a manual gearbox which is truly remarkable in today’s market of hyper-effective hybrid powertrains and 8-speed automatics. The torque delivery was also derestricted, where it is limited in the automatic V12 Vantage, but in this manual configuration the full, almost flat, torque delivery is available from 1st gear, leaving on the driver to delivery the requisite power at his will.

Styling was also overtly retro without being cliché, blending design features from the DBS V8 which contested Le Mans in 1977 and 1979, and to our eye even more obviously the legendary V8 ‘X-Pack’ and V600 Le Mans. The elegant and taut aggression of the X-Pack is clearly visible in the overall form of the Valour’s carbon body, with the bonnet bulge and rear ‘flip-tail’ remaining defining features. In the details the X-Pack DNA is also evident, with the alloy wheel design clearly emulating the Ronal alloys fitted to the late V8 Vantage.

The interior is more contemporary Aston Martin, but all the better for it, showcasing the dramatic leap forwards the company has made in build quality and finish in recent years. The trimming and details are among the best in class.

Production of this genuine ‘end of an era’ car was limited to only 110 examples, and this example must be one of the most generously and tastefully specified.