Aston Martin V8 Vantage GTE - 2017

Cette collection est une adaptation de 24H Le Mans ® Le auto delle corsa più leggendaria al mondo Éditeur : Centauria Editore s.r.l.

ASTON MARTIN V8 VANTAGE GTE

During the last year of its career and without having evolved since 2016, the British sports car achieved its best result at Le Mans at the very last minute: a victory in the GTE Pro category with the team of Jonathan Adam, Darren Turner and Daniel Serra.

The winning Aston Martin V8 Vantage in the GTE Pro class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans 2017, chassis number 005, achieving the same result at the Austin 6 Hours in 2013 and the Spa 6 Hours in 2015. © IXO Collections SAS - Tous droits réservés.

Traditionally, most Aston Martins have had a long commercial career. So it's hardly surprising that in 2017, almost ten years after its debut, the V8 Vantage was once again competing in the Grand Touring classes. Its first appearance dates back to 2008: while the official Aston Martin team was seeking overall victory in the LMP1 and GT1 categories with the Lola-Aston Martin prototypes and the DB9, Aston Martin was also developing a GT2 category car (models derived from road cars like the GT1s, with more limited modifications) based on the V8 Vantage and initially intended for private customers.

The Vantage GT2 was the main rival of the Ferrari 430, 458 as well as the 488 and the various Porsche 911s, but it failed to impress in the early years of its career. But in 2011, following modest results in LMP1 and the end of the GT1 category, more attention was paid to the car by Aston Martin, which was redesigned to meet the new specifications of the now renamed GTE (Grand Touring Endurance) category. The aim of the new regulations was to keep a close link with the road models while reducing preparation costs (for example, limiting the use of special materials such as titanium, magnesium and carbon to just a few components).

1. To provide better night-time illumination, two additional headlights were fitted in the front bumper.

2. During the evolution of the Aston Martin from GT2 to GTE, the engine was repositioned and its accessibility improved thanks to some modifications to the chassis.

The structural aspect of the V8 Vantage was also revised to increase driver safety by modifying the roll cage and fuel tank, but also to make it easier for mechanics to replace parts and work on the engine. The car was made lighter and its aerodynamics were refined by the adoption of restyled bumpers, side skirts and spoilers. In this new form, the GTE V8 Vantage competed from 2012 in two sub-categories, GTE Pro and GTE Am in the WEC, World Endurance Championship, differentiated by the composition of their crews: GTE Am (for Amateur) cars had to include at least one Silver or Bronze category driver in their crew (see text box).

1. The principal new feature of the 2016 revamp was the large rear extractor permitted by a slightly more permissive category regulation that year.

2. Compared to the 2008 GT2, the 2012 V8 Vantage GTE benefits from a more robust roll cage, offering the driver greater safety.

3. The V8 Vantage racing car is slightly longer than the road car and follows the same shape. The only changes are to the wings and lower profiles.

The V8 Vantage achieved its first successes for Aston Martin in this GTE Am sub-category, winning the Drivers' title in 2013 and 2014, the latter of which was accompanied by a victory for the team. In 2016, the British brand scored another double success, this time in GTE Pro, followed by another double win in Am. However, at Le Mans, the results weren't as good: in 2012 and 2013 (the year of Aston Martin driver Allen Simonsen's fatal accident) the Vantage managed to finish in third place in the GTE Pro class just twice.

In 2014, David Heinemeier Hansson, Kristian Poulsen and Nicki Thiim finished first in the GTE Am class. In 2017, the last season prior to the new Vantage AMR GTE, the ‘old’ V8 Vantage finally scored a long-awaited win in GTE Pro. The victory was down to the team of Brazilian Daniel Serra and Britons Darren Turner and Jonathan Adam, and above all to the persistence of the latter who, with two laps to go, managed to overtake Jordan Taylor's Corvette in order to finish 17th overall, but first in class.

A. The three official Aston Martin team cars at the 2017 Le Mans 24 Hours are racing in the familiar English green and yellow livery. Until 2015, they wore the orange and sky blue livery of sponsor Gulf. © IXO Collections SAS - Tous droits réservés.

FROM PLATINUM TO BRONZE: THE DRIVERS' CATEGORIES

The introduction of driver categorisation in competition dates back to the early 2000s, when the FIA introduced specific categories for amateurs and ‘mixed’ crews, like the GTE Am category introduced at Le Mans in 2011 and in the WEC in 2012.

Classification primarily depends on the type of licence and the results achieved. Platinum category: professionals who have achieved major victories such as a class win at Le Mans and all those with a Formula 1 licence. Gold category: those who meet only one of these two conditions or who have had victories in minor series (DTM, Indycar or Formula 3). Silver category: drivers aged under 30 who are not eligible for the higher series. Bronze category: amateurs with no notable results.

Englishman Darren Turner in the stand at Spa: he is the only member of his crew classified as a Platinum driver at the start of the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2017. © IXO Collections SAS - Tous droits réservés.