Aston Martin announced a new version of the Vantage GT3 race car based on the V12 Vantage road car for the 2012 season. This car will replace the current DBRS9 racer.

The DBRS9 is not only a great race car, it’s also one of the prettiest on the grid. The new car seems to be even better, at least in terms of the looks! The new Vantage GT3 joins Aston’s lineup of race cars including Vantage GT2, GT4, DBR9 GT1 and the AMR-One LMP1.

As mentioned above, the car is based on the production V12 Vantage and features an aluminium VH architecture with a lightweight dry-sumped 6.0 litre V12 engine. The car is still under development so it’s too early to talk about facts and figures but Aston Martin Racing has set a target weight of 1250kg and target engine performance figures of more than 600bhp and 700Nm. Other features include a race semi-automatic paddle shift Xtrac gearbox and the latest race-developed ABS and traction control systems, optimised for the Vantage GT3.

The first examples will be ready as soon as July 2011 and will undertake an extensive test and development programme during the rest of the year. For the start of 2012 season Aston will provide ten Vantage GT3 customer cars.

John Gaw, Aston Martin Racing Managing Director added: “The DBRS9 has been a very successful GT3 racing car and, despite being more than six years old, is still competitive today.“However, the competition has moved on and we needed to create a new car that combines our six years’ experience in this category with the latest race technology to continue Aston Martin’s success in GT3 for many years to come.”