Frankfurt am Main / Stuttgart, 29. September 2011. Following shortly after its launch to the market a few months ago, the Aston Martin Virage has been honoured with award recognition from Germany. In the annual readers’ vote of the motoring magazine Auto Bild Klassik, Virage has triumphed in the ‘Classic Golden Steering Wheel 2011’ award.
The V12-powered luxury sports GT of the British luxury brand has been crowned as the ’Classic Car of the Future’. This is the second consecutive year, Aston Martin has been awarded the prize, following last year’s top podium position by the four-door Rapide.
“Aston Martin has been recently voted as the coolest brand in the UK again. The fact that as a manufacturer with quintessentially British roots we are also recognised in other markets shows that we have become a globally successful brand”, said Dr. Ulrich Bez, Aston Martin CEO, at the awards ceremony in Stuttgart on Thursday. “Germany is the most competitive sports car market in Europe. We are therefore very encouraged as a British brand to be voted by readers of a German magazine as the victor.”
The Aston Martin Virage won in the category ’Sports Cars & Coupés’ well ahead of nine other competitors from Germany and abroad. More than 27,000 readers of the Auto Bild Klassik magazine casted their vote.
The Aston Martin Virage had its world premiere at the Geneva Motor Show in March and is now available at all official Aston Martin dealerships both in Coupé and Volante (cabriolet) derivatives. The Aston Martin Virage is positioned between the DBS and the DB9, completing the sporty GT-series of the British sports car maker. Its V12, 6.0 litre engine provides 490 bhp (365kW) and 570 Nm of torque. This sportiness is complemented by a newly developed adaptive damping system (ADS), which provides optimum grip in variable road conditions. This combination makes the Aston Martin Virage a powerful but still comfortable ride, with also the refined design details and modern elegance expected of contemporary Aston Martins.