The N-Series

The N24

In 2006, Aston Martin entered a near-standard V8 Vantage — badged the N24 — in the Nürburgring 24 Hours, one of the toughest endurance races in the world. Of 220 starters that year, 79 crashed or retired to mechanical failure; the N24 didn't miss a beat, finishing 4th in class and 24th overall. Driven in part by the company's own CEO, Dr. Ulrich Bez, it was a strong enough result that Aston Martin fielded a two-car N24 entry again in 2007, and the result gave the company something to build road cars around.

V8 Vantage N400

The N400 was unveiled alongside the DB9 LM at the 2007 Frankfurt Motor Show, drawing its name from two things at once: the N24's Nürburgring success, and the car's peak output of 400bhp from a reworked 4.3-litre V8. Aston Martin timed a fully road-going N400 lapping the Nordschleife in under eight minutes — and since eight minutes is 480 seconds, that became the production cap: 480 cars, split evenly between 240 coupes and 240 roadsters. Most were hand-built in March and April 2008.

Beyond the power bump, the N400 added a Sports Pack (uprated springs, dampers, and a rear anti-roll bar), lightweight forged wheels, and a handful of details that nodded to the Nürburgring itself: three new colours — Bergwerk Black, Lightning Silver, and Karussell Orange, two of them named for corners on the Nordschleife — plus a stitched circuit map on the centre armrest and a numbered sill plaque in every car.

V8 Vantage N420

Three years on, the N420 picked up where the N400 left off — built on the newer 4.7-litre V8 that had by then become standard across the Vantage range, tuned to 420bhp and matching the model's name. Aston Martin intended no more than 420 examples of each body style; in practice, 252 coupes are believed to have been built.

The N420 leaned further into the motorsport connection: a carbon-fibre front splitter, side strakes, and diffuser, plus 10-spoke diamond-turned wheels shaved about 27kg from the car. Buyers could option distinctive two-tone 'Race Collection' paint schemes, each one a tribute to a specific N24 race livery — 'Rose' yellow, 'Kermit' green, 'Elwood' blue, and the Aston Martin Racing green among them.

V8 Vantage N430

The N430 arrived just ahead of the 2014 Geneva Motor Show as the last of the line — and the last major special edition of the V8 Vantage before Euro 6 emissions rules ended the model's run. It borrowed the 436PS engine and suspension from the V8 Vantage S, then added the N-series' now-familiar formula: lightweight forged wheels, carbon-fibre and Kevlar seats saving 20kg, and paint schemes drawn from Aston Martin's GT3 and GT4 racers, right down to colour-matched brake calipers.

Where the N400 and N420 celebrated a single race result, the N430 celebrated the whole racing programme that had grown up around the Vantage in the years since — a fitting send-off for the car that started it.