Vehicle Description
Chassis No. SCFCV81V8KTL15784
Engine No. V/585/5784/LFA
As the 1980s unfolded, Aston Martin sought to reaffirm its identity
as the purveyor of handcrafted grand tourers with muscle to match
their elegance. Aston had already won the performance car arms race
in 1977 when it released the 170-mph V8 Vantage, which the world
would crown as Britain's first supercar. The V8 Vantage Volante
emerged in 1986 as the marque's boldest statement yet, taking the
high-performance variant of the Aston Martin V8 to new open-topped
heights before sending it off with a bang. Introduced to satisfy
growing demand for open-air motoring without compromise,
particularly in the United States, the convertible Vantage sported
an Everflex electric-powered soft top and a host of aesthetic
revisions over its hard-top sibling. The Volante was furnished with
wider wheel arches, extended side skirts, a rear spoiler, and
deeper front spoiler-further enhancing the V8 Vantage's
era-defining muscularity.
The V8 Vantage Volante's legacy was sealed when it brought James
Bond back behind the wheel of an Aston Martin in The Living
Daylights (1987), finally reuniting the two icons of British cool
after a 16-year hiatus. Aston Martin produced V8 Vantage Volantes
and crafted only 53 examples for the U.S. Market, making it one of
the rarest and desirable Astons of its era.
This 1989 Aston Martin V8 Vantage Volante is a U.S. market car
finished in Cannock Black with a matching soft top and Black
Connolly leather interior. It is one of just 11 examples bound for
the United States equipped with a five-speed ZF manual transmission
and sports final-year touches including cruise control. The car
boasts several major upgrades from premium collector car dealership
Autosport Designs in New York. The Vantage's Weber-Marelli
fuel-injected numbers-matching V8 has been rebuilt and upsized to a
6.3-liter "Big Bore" V8, which Autosport commissioned from British
tuning specialists Oselli in Milton Keynes, England. These upgrades
yield a reported 485 horsepower and roughly equal torque,
solidifying this 1989 Aston Martin as a capable performance car
even today. Despite its incredible performance boost, the V8
Vantage Volante is nearly indistinguishable from other examples,
with Oselli making sure to keep the engine bay identical to a stock
example. Autosport also fitted the Vantage Volante with European
chrome bumpers and upgraded the suspension with a Harvey Bailey
handling kit.
This example was delivered new to Bruce P. McNall in Los Angeles
via Gregg Motors. It moved to Illinois in 1999 and remained there
until 2007. Autosport Designs acquired the car in 2010 and
performed their transformative upgrades, selling the car shortly
thereafter to a renowned collector for his private museum in
Switzerland. The Aston was re-imported to the United States in 2016
and has remained on the West Coast since. In April 2024 receipts on
file show British European Auto conducted an inspection and service
to the car. A clean CARFAX Vehicle History Report shows that the
Vantage also underwent an in-depth service through Automotive
Performance Consultants in San Juan Capistrano in December 2024 and
again in July 2025. This well-documented Aston is now offered with
35,648 miles at cataloging and retains its original owner's manual
and tool kit.
Through no coincidence and perfectly in harmony with the car's
cinematic portrayal, this V8 Vantage Volante evokes the spirit of a
proper Bond car: a tasteful British performance vehicle with an
arsenal of weapons hidden within-albeit trading firepower for
horsepower.
