In celebrating 100 years in existence, Aston Martin has launched “its year of centenary celebrations.” What those celebrations entail will be events staged throughout the year and 400 special-edition Astons to mark the brand’s 100th birthday. Aston will produce 100 examples each of the V-8 Vantage, the DB9, the Vanquish, and the Rapide, to be known as Centenary editions.
The purely cosmetic changes pertain to the exterior paint and interior components. The changes to the exterior are limited to the roof and the hood, and both alterations involve darkening the Astons’ appearances. The hood features a bespoke paint scheme that Aston claims adds 18 more hours to the car’s already 50-hour painting time. The underlying Skyfall Silver gives way to an increasingly darker and wider strip of charcoal until arriving at the base of the windshield. The roof’s Skyfall Silver is replaced by the same charcoal color, except on the Vanquish, whose carbon-fiber roof is left exposed for the world to see. Interior-wise, there is a special black leather previously offered only on the now-sold-out One-77 supercar; silver stitching serves as contrast, and there are special applications on the door sills.
Moreover, Aston Martin provides a gift box with each car. It includes giveaways such as silver cufflinks, a silver ballpen, B&O headphones, two glass keys, and two leather key bags. The group in Gaydon have even thrown in a polishing cloth.
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Aston Martin won’t disclose the price of the special editions, but we suspect the premium will somewhat exceed the actual value of the paint, leather, and gift box. While the special editions are good news for those prospective buyers of a rear-wheel-drive Aston Martin, lovers of the brand’s entry-level model will be deeply disappointed. The Cygnet, a dolled-up Scion iQ, will not be offered with any of the Centenary fare.
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