Zagato celebrates 100 years with Aston Martin V12 twins

Italian design house Zagato marks its centenary with bespoke versions of the Aston Martin Vantage V12, built in the UK by R-Reforged.

Aston Martin V12 Zagato Heritage Twins

Italian design house Zagato is celebrating its centenary with bespoke versions of the Aston Martin Vantage V12.

Based on the 2011 V12 Vantage coupe and Roadster, the Zagato Heritage Twins come as a pair. A total of 38 will be sold to 19 customers, with the majority already spoken for.

The project is licensed by Aston Martin and production takes place at R-Reforged in the UK. Its Warwick facility also builds ex-Jaguar designer Ian Callum’s Aston Martin Vanquish 25 project – previewed in detail here.

60 years of Aston and Zagato

Aston Martin V12 Zagato Heritage Twins

Zagato has a long history of modifying Aston Martins. Its first collaboration, the DB4 GT Zagato, debuted in 1960 and only 25 were made. Surviving examples now change hands for £10 million or more.

The Heritage Twins are awash with classic Zagato styling cues, including a gaping front grille and the coupe’s ‘double bubble’ roof.

All body panels are bespoke carbon fibre, while both cars wear 19-inch centre-lock APP Tech alloys and 100th anniversary gold ‘Z’ badges.

A new pop-up rear spoiler is claimed to ‘improve stability at high speeds whilst maintaining the clean surfaces and pure lines of the Zagato design.’ 

Lots of grunt in the front

Aston Martin V12 Zagato Heritage Twins

Beneath their vented bonnets, the coupe and speedster twins use a reworked version of Aston’s 5.9-litre V12.

Quoted output is 608hp – 86hp more than the original car. Zagato hasn’t published performance figures, but these siblings won’t be slow. The standard V12 Vantage coupe hits 62mph in 4.2 seconds and a top speed of 190mph.

Crucially, the ‘AM11’ engine from the DBS is naturally aspirated. That means no turbo lag and a stonking soundtrack. Google ‘Aston Martin V12 Vantage sound’ to see what we mean.

Lots of poke, very bespoke

Aston Martin V12 Zagato Heritage Twins

These cars are anything but ‘standard’, of course, and there’s plenty of opportunity to tweak your Zagato Twins to your taste.

Buyers can meet with the designers at Aston Martin St Gallen in Switzerland, with options including an ‘infinity colour palette’. Want your supercars to match your shoes? Not a problem.

After choosing a specification (and presumably placing a hefty deposit), you can then watch both cars being hand-built at R-Reforged. 

Marella Rivolta Zagato, who co-runs the Milanese carrozzeria, specified the first twins, seen here. “When I was selecting the body colours, I looked for something that would simultaneously represent our 100-year heritage and our future,” she explained.

“The most symbolic colours are gold and platinum, which are precious metals. Gold, an emblem of purity and distinction, is in my mind a tribute to our first century. Platinum is resistant to corrosion and has great catalytic capabilities, which is what I wish for our next 100 years!”

Aston Martin V12 Zagato Heritage Twins

Company CEO and third-generation designer Andrea Zagato added: “The Aston Martin Vantage V12 Zagato Heritage Twins by R-Reforged are undoubtedly a highlight of our centenary celebrations. To own these collectible cars will be a very personal and emotional experience.”

This isn’t the first time Zagato Astons have been sold as a pair. Last year, the DBS Zagato – based on the current DBS Superleggera – was offered together with the DB4 GT continuation, a faithful reproduction of Zagato’s 1960 original. The price for the ‘DBZ Centenary Collection’? A cool £6 million.

The V12 Vantage Twins will likely be slightly more affordable, but you can still bank on spending well into seven figures. Just imagine the noise of them both firing up together…

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Tim Pitt
Tim Pitt
Tim has been our Managing Editor since 2015. He enjoys a retro hot hatch and has a penchant for Porsches.

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