1999 Aston Martin V8 Vantage Le Mans Photos, engines & full specs

In 1959 Aston Martin won the 24-hour race from Le Mans with Caroll Shelby and Roy Salvadori at the wheel, and four decades later, the British automaker produced a limited edition of the V8 Vantage that celebrated that success.

It was a huge victory for the small British company, and it won not because they had a better car but a better team. Still, a win it's a win, and that allowed it to brag about even forty years later when it introduced the limited-edition V8 Vantage Le Mans at the 1999 Geneva Motor Show in March. But it wasn't just a regular vehicle with some badges and new spoilers. It was based on the V600 version. It was the most powerful car on the market, and only 40 units were made.

Judged from the outside, it was easy to see similarities with the rest of the V8 Vantage range, such as the Audi-borrowed headlights and Volkswagen taillights. But the front grille featured a panel that almost blocked the entire cooling area, apart from two side openings. The lower bumper featured an aggressive spoiler that was designed to grab the air and push the car's nose to the ground. On the sides, the scoops behind the wheel arches were functional and decreased the lift provoked by the air trapped inside the wheel wells. Strangely, though, there was no wing or spoiler on the trunk.

Inside, the British automaker carried over the door handles from Jaguar and some buttons and switches from Ford. But the rest of it was a luxurious, leather-wrapped interior that expressed nothing more than luxury and comfort.

Under the hood, the twin-supercharged V8 powerplant was pumped-up to 600 hp (608 PS), which made it the most powerful vehicle on the market at the time of its launch. The transmission was a five-speed manual-only affair.