Aston Martin is building 50 Vanquishes to celebrate the one that started it all
A nameplate that outlived almost everything around it
The first Vanquish arrived in 2001, and 25 years later the name still means the same thing at Aston Martin: front engine, twelve cylinders, no apologies. To mark the anniversary, Q by Aston Martin has put together a run of 50 cars that lean hard on that continuity rather than trying to reinvent it.
Fifty cars, split evenly
The Vanquish 25 is a Q commission, which is Aston Martin's way of saying the bespoke department did the work rather than the standard options list. Production is capped at 50 examples worldwide: 25 Coupes and 25 Volantes. Buyers can choose between 2+0 and 2+2 seating, which is a rare bit of practicality in a car this exclusive.
The specification
Mechanically this is the standard Vanquish, which is no bad place to start. The 5.2-litre twin-turbo V12 delivers 835 hp and 1,000 Nm, good for 0 to 100 km/h in 3.3 seconds and a top speed of roughly 345 km/h. In an era where twelve cylinders keep getting quietly retired, that engine is a large part of why this anniversary is worth marking at all.
What Q actually changed
Every car wears exclusive Q Skye Silver paintwork, with Q Commission metal foil detailing on the side sills and shield vanes and bespoke Aston Martin script foil work. There is a Q Commission exhaust finisher with stainless steel side strakes, unique Vanquish 25 badging, and a subtle V motif picked out on the 21-inch forged alloy wheels. It is restrained rather than shouty, which suits the car.
Inside
The cabin comes in Onyx Black, Oxford Tan or Phantom Grey, each with unique perforation patterns and trim splits. Seatbacks carry an embroidered Vanquish 25 logo, the inlays are laser etched, the headlining is black Alcantara, and the start button is bright red with bespoke rotary geometry. Small details, but they are the sort of thing owners point at.
When and where
"25 years on from the unveiling of the very first Vanquish it is only right that we mark this nameplate's contribution to our heritage," said Vittorio Gabba, Head of Q at Aston Martin. The global premiere takes place at Monterey Car Week in California between 10 and 16 August 2026, with first deliveries scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2026. Aston Martin has not disclosed pricing, though with 50 cars and a Q build sheet, that question tends to answer itself.
AutoNext Take
Anniversary editions are usually a paint code and a plaque, and on paper this one is not far off that. What saves it is the timing. Twelve-cylinder engines are disappearing from almost every price bracket, and a front-engined V12 grand tourer that has survived 25 years under three different ownership structures deserves more than a press release. Aston Martin has kept it deliberately understated, and the restraint is the right call.
The frustration is the arithmetic. Fifty cars worldwide, split across two body styles, is not a celebration many people get to participate in. Then again, that is rather the point, and the rest of us still get the standard Vanquish with the same engine.
