The Appeal of Aston Martin Vantage and ICE Sports Cars
It’s hard not to grin when you hit the throttle on the new Aston Martin Vantage. While Aston Martin executives might emphasize the car’s cutting-edge infotainment system, it’s what’s under the hood that truly excites: a hand-built, heavily modified 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 engine that delivers 656 horsepower and a thunderous roar. Whether you’re navigating winding roads or pushing its limits on a racetrack, the Vantage’s bold, boisterous exhaust note responds eagerly to every driver input. This latest iteration of the British brand’s 60-year-old sports car meets enthusiasts’ demands: a powerful engine that you can see, smell, and experience.
The Vantage isn’t for environmentalists seeking performance with zero emissions. In fact, Aston Martin has postponed its plans to produce an all-electric sports car, citing a lack of consumer interest. Instead, they are focusing resources on launching a “fearsome” V12 engine, projected to produce 824 hp. Aston Martin isn’t alone in this approach. Bugatti’s upcoming hypercar, debuting June 20, still features a W16 engine. Lamborghini announced that the successor to the Huracan will have a twin-turbo V8 engine.
“Enthusiasts absolutely want a V8 in the supercar segment,” said Alex Long, Aston Martin’s director of product and strategy, to ABC News. “They want the sound quality, the cabin feel, everything. Our customers aren’t asking for an electric Aston.”
Consumer Sentiment and Industry Trends
This anti-electric sentiment extends beyond just car enthusiasts. A recent poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago revealed that 46% of Americans are “not too likely or not at all likely to purchase” an electric vehicle (EV). Earlier this year, luxury German automaker Mercedes postponed its electrification plans by five years, with CEO Ola Kaellenius affirming the company’s continued commitment to producing combustion engine cars. Similarly, Toyota executives recently announced their engineers are developing smaller, next-generation engines capable of running on alternative fuels like liquid hydrogen.
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Industry insiders are dubbing this trend a “return to ICE,” or internal combustion engines. “Maybe there was a bit of hype around EVs. There are challenges with an all-EV world,” McKeel Hagerty, CEO of Hagerty, an automotive enthusiast brand, told ABC News. “There’s a place for EVs for people who really want them, especially the high-performance ones, but they don’t seem to be selling, and I think that tells us something.”
Tony Quiroga, editor-in-chief of Car and Driver and co-host of the magazine’s “Into Cars” podcast, noted that while EVs can work for some Americans, the inconvenience of charging can outweigh the benefits. “Everyone who wanted an EV has one now,” he told ABC News.
For enthusiasts, the appeal of electric sports cars is diminishing, he argued. “Aside from acceleration, it’s not the same experience as an ICE sports car,” he said. “So many EVs can perform as quickly in a straight line for under $100K, and buyers are realizing that.”
The Enduring Appeal of V8 and V12 Engines
V12 and V8 engines are becoming increasingly rare, creating a sense of exclusivity and nostalgia among gearheads. Rimac CEO Matt Rimac acknowledged that wealthy drivers have shown little interest in his highly promoted Nevera hypercar, which generates a staggering 1,914 hp from four electric motors. Limited to 150 units, the Croatian company has struggled to find buyers.
“We started to develop the Nevera in 2016/2017, when electric was cool,” Rimac said at the Financial Times Future of the Car conference in May. “At that time, we thought electric cars would be cool in a few years — the best cars, or with the highest performance, and so on. We notice now that as electrification is becoming mainstream, people at the top end of the sector want to differentiate themselves.”
Hagerty invites skeptical enthusiasts to drive his all-electric Porsche Taycan Turbo S in Michigan to experience the “undeniable performance” of electric sports cars. “I put them behind the wheel and say try this Taycan — you don’t even have to put it in sport mode,” he said. “The joke is that some EVs don’t feel like a car, that they’re an electronic appliance. The Taycan feels like a car, rides like a car, and gets that torque and performance.”
He added, “I bought it because I am open to these things.”
Hybrids: The Middle Ground for Enthusiasts and Environmentalists
Jason Cammisa, an award-winning automotive journalist and successful YouTube host, argued that electrification would always be a tough sell to the hardcore automotive community that prefers the “old, screaming, antiquated tech” in ICE cars. While there are positives to driving electric sports cars — the low center of gravity, the insane speeds — many enthusiasts seek more than just performance numbers, he said.
“For me, the most interesting cars in the world right now are naturally aspirated, high-revving, manual transmission — a return to 20 years ago,” Cammisa told ABC News. “You can’t win a race with an ICE car [versus an electric one], so let’s go back to what makes these things great.”
Cammisa pointed out that even reducing cylinders in an engine can cause an uproar. He cited the example of when Porsche introduced a turbocharged four-cylinder engine in the Boxster and Cayman. Owners revolted, and sales declined. To appease critics, Porsche reintroduced a naturally aspirated flat-six engine in these cars, leading enthusiasts to compete for an allocation, often paying above sticker price to secure one.
“Everyone is a little hysterical right now. It’s always in response to fear,” Cammisa said. “The regulatory environment will determine the mix of ICE and EV vehicles. Consumers are trying to send a message to the government — stop pushing so hard on EVs — and we’re seeing a battle between the government and consumers right now.”
The solution for enthusiasts — and average motorists — may lie in hybrids. The Corvette E-Ray and upcoming hybrid models from Porsche and Aston Martin showcase how hybrid technology can offer a satisfying blend of performance and environmental consciousness.
For the sports car crowd, Cammisa praised the Corvette E-Ray, calling it “an example of a hybrid done correctly.” It may not be tuned for efficiency, Quiroga said, but the E-Ray, the first electrified Vette with all-wheel-drive capability, is “spectacular.”
“The electric motor fills in the power before the gas engine does … it’s heavy, but you can’t really notice the weight. It’s so quick and wonderful,” he added.
Karl Brauer, executive analyst at iSeeCars.com, predicted more performance hybrids in the coming years. The Huracan successor pairs three electric motors with the V8, and even Aston Martin’s Valhalla, a mid-engine hypercar, features a hybrid powertrain.
Porsche recently announced that the 2025 911 Carrera GTS will have a unique T-Hybrid system that includes an electric exhaust gas turbocharger. The electric motor also functions as a generator.
“I am a huge fan of hybrids, and they are the brilliant option now,” Brauer told ABC News. “We’re at an important reflection point of where we are and where things are going.”
Long, of Aston Martin, noted that the Vantage offers more than just a snarling V8 engine. “It’s a complete reappraisal of vehicle dynamics from us,” he said. “Even people who have been with the brand for a long time, they cannot believe the level of sophistication in the ride, the lateral grip, the responsiveness. This is their trophy car.”
