Motor Trend: 2002 Aston Martin Vanquish

James Bond is a busy guy behind the wheel. What with baddies chasing him all over creation, rocket launchers to aim, and an exquisite dollybird in the copilot seat to chat up, he just can't mess about with old-fashioned shift levers and declutching. With Aston Martin's equally exquisite Vanquish as his new ride, he doesn't have to.

The Big V employs much the same Magneti-Marelli electrohydraulically managed shifting system as do Ferrari and Maserati. In this application, however, it controls a Tremec T-56 six-speed manual gearbox, similar to that in a Viper. A paddle on the right side of the steering column controls upshifts, the one on the left actuates downshifts. As with the Italians, these attractive, leather-trimmed aluminum paddles are fixed to the column and don't turn with the wheel. Buttons on the center of the instrument panel allow the choice of Sport, Winter, and fully automatic modes, as well as reverse.

We were taken aback when Aston said it was so confident this approach was right for the Vanquish that it wasn't even going to offer a conventional manual transmission. After driving it, however, we can comfort even the traditionalists. The system is beautifully sorted, with ratios and shift patterns ideally matched to the car's warbling-yet-turbine-like 460-hp V-12. Drive casually, and the tranny practically melts from gear to gear. Honk it, and shifts are fast and sharp, though still not as aggressive as the Maserati Coupe/Spyder or new Ferrari 575M will deliver. Upshifts seem to come a bit too soon when in fully automatic mode, and downshifts are equally less ardent. But it doesn't matter, as the engine has so much torque, the car more than gets the job done. Auto mode is for cruising anyway.

Let's not forget that this Q-inspired hardware comes in a nice wrapper. There are few rides on the road that look or drive better, and it's a proper British GT that edges near true sports-car territory. The Vanquish represented the world's first use of the Magneti-Marelli transmission-control mechanism in a front-engine car. And it still represents one of its best applications.