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2003
Aston Martin DB7 Vantage

Starts at:
$141,800
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Available trims

See the differences side-by-side to compare trims.
  • 2dr Cpe Vantage Manual
    Starts at
    $141,800
    12 City / 19 Hwy
    MPG
    4
    Seat capacity
    Gas V12
    Engine
    Rear Wheel Drive
    Drivetrain
    See all specs
  • 2dr Cpe Vantage Auto
    Starts at
    $141,800
    12 City / 19 Hwy
    MPG
    4
    Seat capacity
    Gas V12
    Engine
    Rear Wheel Drive
    Drivetrain
    See all specs
  • 2dr Volante Vantage Auto
    Starts at
    $151,800
    12 City / 19 Hwy
    MPG
    4
    Seat capacity
    Gas V12
    Engine
    Rear Wheel Drive
    Drivetrain
    See all specs
  • 2dr Volante Vantage Manual
    Starts at
    $151,800
    12 City / 19 Hwy
    MPG
    4
    Seat capacity
    Gas V12
    Engine
    Rear Wheel Drive
    Drivetrain
    See all specs

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Expert 2003 Aston Martin DB7 Vantage review

our expert's take
Our expert's take
By
Full article
our expert's take

Spend a week driving the car that James Bond drove, and you come away not at all shaken, but certainly stirred — the opposite of 007’s martinis.

Welcome to the driver’s seat of the Aston Martin DB7 Vantage, a nine-layers-of-paint, hand-treated piece of rolling art that just happens to have a V-12 engine.

How not to be stirred by a car that, with incredible subtlety, will move you to 185 miles per hour, although there was no racetrack, no desert floor, no permission from the manufacturer available this week to test the alleged top speed, so I’ll have to take Aston Martin’s word on it.

Few of us will ever get to drive an Aston Martin. Fewer still will ever own one, in part because of the $153,000 price tag.

Consider that in its 88 years of existence, Aston Martin has produced only about 18,000 vehicles. Consider that the DB7, introduced in 1993, accounts for 5,000 of those vehicles and you realize its importance to the company. And consider that of the 1,500 or so DB7s sold each year, fewer than 400 are sold in the United States.

That explains why every time I stopped to pick up the newspaper at my local store — Liar’s Paradise — I’d come back out to find a few folks, young and old alike, gathered around the car. Or why, out on a photo shoot with a Globe photographer at my local boat launch, a horde of teenagers launching canoes for an outing on Pawtuckaway Lake, left their teachers to the tasks and rallied ’round the Vantage, asking that the hood be popped. Or why, delivering my children to soccer, softball, and baseball games (swell team bus, huh?), we’d be surrounded before we even cracked a door.

Like all cars I drive, I used this one as a family car.

Of course, not many family cars have engines that produce 420 horsepower and 400 lb.-ft. of torque.

Not many have engines imbued with Ford/Cosworth technology: 6.0-liter, lightweight aluminum cast alloy with four valves per cylinder, twin overhead cams on each bank of cylinders, and produced at Cosworth Technology’s limited production plant in England — the same place that turns out Cosworth V-10 Formula 1 racing engines and turbocharged, V-8 Indy car engines.

And not many family cars drenched with power and luxury as standard features offer such options as custom-designed luggage, an umbrella holder, and an extended cargo area, or, as Aston Martin describes it, "individual accommodation for the carriage of family pets." Like Fifi or Spike will be yapping, barking, or shedding in my DB7 Vantage.

The DB7, offered in coupe form, as tested, or as a roadster called the Vantage Volante, comes with either a six-speed manual transmission or a five-speed automatic — again, as tested.

This powertrain was tested in development by running a prototype at 165 miles per hour for a 48-hour test period. That’s some endurance testing and driving.

There is not much that is overtly complex about this car. Subtlety abounds, if that is not an oxymoron. There is no cruise control, for instance. You drive at all times. Yet beneath its nine coats of paint, a lot of high technology looms, mainly in the form of a Visteon electronics system capable of handling 1.6 million commands per second. It monitors activities from fuel injection to traction control, from security to exhaust emissions, from ignition to engine diagnosis.

The result is a car that, while being driven as an everyday car, gives no hint that it is ready to run with the fastest, the twitchiest, the most temperamental, the most transparently brutal high performance cars in the world.

You can cruise sedately. You can pound pedal to the metal. And even while engaging in the latter, the Vantage keeps its grace about it. It does not whip you back into the seat. It positions you there. It does not roar in full throttle to announce its power. It burbles a basso.

A friend asked me which other car I would compare this to.

My answer: None.

That’s because it is not obviously a sports car such as a Porsche or Ferrari. It is certainly not a big luxury cruiser such as a Bentley or Maybach.

Instead, it has the fun potential and lurking power of the first pair, the elegance and grace of the last. Some combination.

The engineering is matched by an exterior design that is subtle as well. There are no big air scoops, no stabilizing wings, no muscular and bulging fenders. The winged Aston Martin badge is perhaps the most eye-catching giveaway for those not familiar with the shape of the car.

Inside, nothing is subtle. The tan-and-green leather seats — Aston Martin calls it "hide," not leather — are soft at the buttocks, firmly bolstered along thighs and torso. The stitching in all that leather, even the leather seams on the dash, is a perfect example of craftsmanship. Burnished wood appointments, chrome trim for gauges, even a green suede roof, cocoon you in utter luxury.

The rear seats are really for use only in necessity (or if your kids insist on being driven to their sporting events in an eye-catching car). In fact, if I were to own the DB7 coupe (please Mr. Editor, more pay, sir?) I’d get it with the optional extra luggage space, which eliminates the rear seats.

The trunk will not hold even one bag of golf clubs. But of course, if you own this car, you have a set in the locker at each exclusive club to which you belong.

In fact, hauling three soccer players to a game, I discovered I could fit a bag of only five soccer balls and a medical kit inside. Again, if I owned this, I probably would not be coaching kiddie soccer because I’d be playing for Real Madrid and I’d be driving the DB7 home to my palace in the Spanish hills each night.

The name Vantage has been used to indicate the highest performance version of Aston Martin models since 1950. That’s when the car maker differentiated the 120-horsepower engine in the DB2 from the 105-horsepower engine.

My, how times and horsepower change.

Nice touch: The analog clock at center dash. Another simple, yet telling, mark of elegance.

Annoyance: The automatic seat controls at the outer base of each front seat. Tiny little buttons. Fingers barely fit between seat and rocker panel.

2003 Aston Martin DB7 Vantage review: Our expert's take
By

Spend a week driving the car that James Bond drove, and you come away not at all shaken, but certainly stirred — the opposite of 007’s martinis.

Welcome to the driver’s seat of the Aston Martin DB7 Vantage, a nine-layers-of-paint, hand-treated piece of rolling art that just happens to have a V-12 engine.

How not to be stirred by a car that, with incredible subtlety, will move you to 185 miles per hour, although there was no racetrack, no desert floor, no permission from the manufacturer available this week to test the alleged top speed, so I’ll have to take Aston Martin’s word on it.

Few of us will ever get to drive an Aston Martin. Fewer still will ever own one, in part because of the $153,000 price tag.

Consider that in its 88 years of existence, Aston Martin has produced only about 18,000 vehicles. Consider that the DB7, introduced in 1993, accounts for 5,000 of those vehicles and you realize its importance to the company. And consider that of the 1,500 or so DB7s sold each year, fewer than 400 are sold in the United States.

That explains why every time I stopped to pick up the newspaper at my local store — Liar’s Paradise — I’d come back out to find a few folks, young and old alike, gathered around the car. Or why, out on a photo shoot with a Globe photographer at my local boat launch, a horde of teenagers launching canoes for an outing on Pawtuckaway Lake, left their teachers to the tasks and rallied ’round the Vantage, asking that the hood be popped. Or why, delivering my children to soccer, softball, and baseball games (swell team bus, huh?), we’d be surrounded before we even cracked a door.

Like all cars I drive, I used this one as a family car.

Of course, not many family cars have engines that produce 420 horsepower and 400 lb.-ft. of torque.

Not many have engines imbued with Ford/Cosworth technology: 6.0-liter, lightweight aluminum cast alloy with four valves per cylinder, twin overhead cams on each bank of cylinders, and produced at Cosworth Technology’s limited production plant in England — the same place that turns out Cosworth V-10 Formula 1 racing engines and turbocharged, V-8 Indy car engines.

And not many family cars drenched with power and luxury as standard features offer such options as custom-designed luggage, an umbrella holder, and an extended cargo area, or, as Aston Martin describes it, "individual accommodation for the carriage of family pets." Like Fifi or Spike will be yapping, barking, or shedding in my DB7 Vantage.

The DB7, offered in coupe form, as tested, or as a roadster called the Vantage Volante, comes with either a six-speed manual transmission or a five-speed automatic — again, as tested.

This powertrain was tested in development by running a prototype at 165 miles per hour for a 48-hour test period. That’s some endurance testing and driving.

There is not much that is overtly complex about this car. Subtlety abounds, if that is not an oxymoron. There is no cruise control, for instance. You drive at all times. Yet beneath its nine coats of paint, a lot of high technology looms, mainly in the form of a Visteon electronics system capable of handling 1.6 million commands per second. It monitors activities from fuel injection to traction control, from security to exhaust emissions, from ignition to engine diagnosis.

The result is a car that, while being driven as an everyday car, gives no hint that it is ready to run with the fastest, the twitchiest, the most temperamental, the most transparently brutal high performance cars in the world.

You can cruise sedately. You can pound pedal to the metal. And even while engaging in the latter, the Vantage keeps its grace about it. It does not whip you back into the seat. It positions you there. It does not roar in full throttle to announce its power. It burbles a basso.

A friend asked me which other car I would compare this to.

My answer: None.

That’s because it is not obviously a sports car such as a Porsche or Ferrari. It is certainly not a big luxury cruiser such as a Bentley or Maybach.

Instead, it has the fun potential and lurking power of the first pair, the elegance and grace of the last. Some combination.

The engineering is matched by an exterior design that is subtle as well. There are no big air scoops, no stabilizing wings, no muscular and bulging fenders. The winged Aston Martin badge is perhaps the most eye-catching giveaway for those not familiar with the shape of the car.

Inside, nothing is subtle. The tan-and-green leather seats — Aston Martin calls it "hide," not leather — are soft at the buttocks, firmly bolstered along thighs and torso. The stitching in all that leather, even the leather seams on the dash, is a perfect example of craftsmanship. Burnished wood appointments, chrome trim for gauges, even a green suede roof, cocoon you in utter luxury.

The rear seats are really for use only in necessity (or if your kids insist on being driven to their sporting events in an eye-catching car). In fact, if I were to own the DB7 coupe (please Mr. Editor, more pay, sir?) I’d get it with the optional extra luggage space, which eliminates the rear seats.

The trunk will not hold even one bag of golf clubs. But of course, if you own this car, you have a set in the locker at each exclusive club to which you belong.

In fact, hauling three soccer players to a game, I discovered I could fit a bag of only five soccer balls and a medical kit inside. Again, if I owned this, I probably would not be coaching kiddie soccer because I’d be playing for Real Madrid and I’d be driving the DB7 home to my palace in the Spanish hills each night.

The name Vantage has been used to indicate the highest performance version of Aston Martin models since 1950. That’s when the car maker differentiated the 120-horsepower engine in the DB2 from the 105-horsepower engine.

My, how times and horsepower change.

Nice touch: The analog clock at center dash. Another simple, yet telling, mark of elegance.

Annoyance: The automatic seat controls at the outer base of each front seat. Tiny little buttons. Fingers barely fit between seat and rocker panel.

Factory warranties

New car program benefits

Basic
2 years
Corrosion
2 years
Powertrain
2 years

Certified Pre-Owned program benefits

Age / mileage
10 years old or less / unlimited mileage
Basic
12 months / unlimited miles
Dealer certification
140-point inspection

Consumer reviews

4.6 / 5
Based on 5 reviews
Write a review
Comfort 4.4
Interior 4.2
Performance 5.0
Value 5.0
Exterior 5.0
Reliability 4.4

Most recent

  • This was a Dream Sports Car.

    This car was a real head turner. It went to many car shows and because of its limited production it always had a lot of interest. A joy to drive, 12 cylinders of pure acceleration, but it drove just as beautifully at cruise speeds as it did on the highway. I will continue to enjoy this car as an Aston fan for life.
    • Purchased a Used car
    • Used for Having fun
    • Does recommend this car
    Comfort 5.0
    Interior 5.0
    Performance 5.0
    Value 5.0
    Exterior 5.0
    Reliability 4.0
    2 people out of 2 found this review helpful. Did you?
    Yes No
  • Excellent bang for the buck

    Very good value if you are ready for a few highly priced maintenance items. Mine at 36,000 miles needed $3,000 spent on 12 new coil packs and 12 new plugs and associated seals and gaskets. All the V12 Vantage engines need this at this mileage. Be wary of it. It's expensive and the engine misses and puts on a check engine light if you do not do it. Performance is fantastic, looks are great although a bit like a Jaguar XK8. The interior is a bit basic and the finish is not as good as you would think it should be for a car that was $140,000 when new.
    • Purchased a Used car
    • Used for Having fun
    • Does recommend this car
    Comfort 4.0
    Interior 2.0
    Performance 5.0
    Value 5.0
    Exterior 5.0
    Reliability 3.0
    3 people out of 3 found this review helpful. Did you?
    Yes No
  • The least expensive James Bond car

    Of all the Aston Martin DB series cars, this is the least expensive to purchase and, per Hagerty's weekly review, is likely to appreciate. Amazingly, it looks just like all the Astons that superceed it. The car can't be beaten for looks, reliability, comfort, the sheer thrill of the ride and, last but by no means least, the looks of envy you get from all you overtake. Please remember, the low, low mileage, previous celebrity ownership and having just been inspected and serviced by the local Aston martin dealership.
    • Purchased a New car
    • Used for Having fun
    • Does recommend this car
    Comfort 5.0
    Interior 5.0
    Performance 5.0
    Value 5.0
    Exterior 5.0
    Reliability 5.0
    4 people out of 4 found this review helpful. Did you?
    Yes No
  • British Classic with V12 Performance

    DB7 appears to be a one of a kind Grand Touring Vehicle. It has the classic look of a British Gentleman with a Wildman heart of a V12 engine. This car is hand built in British with full leather wrap interior. Racing Green is the signature color of an Aston Martin. Compared to the other supercars, Aston Martin does not have a very aggressive look. Perfect for someone who enjoys low profile life style with combination of luxury, comfortable and performance.
    • Purchased a Used car
    • Used for Having fun
    • Does recommend this car
    Comfort 4.0
    Interior 4.0
    Performance 5.0
    Value 5.0
    Exterior 5.0
    Reliability 5.0
    1 person out of 1 found this review helpful. Did you?
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  • 2003 Aston Martin DB7 Vantage

    Is an amazing car! ts 6.0L 420 horsepower V12 really kicks butt! But economy is horrible at just 11 mpg in the city and 17 on the highway, on premium fuel. Fillups are really expensive, especially considering today's gas prices, much more expenisive then they were back in 2003. Ouch. But this car is extremely agile around corners, with perfect steering, lots of grip, and wonderful shifting from the 5 speed automatic manual trans! The exterior styling is super sexy and beautiful! Interior is lavish, with loads of comfortable leather and wood, and seemless built quality! The best car Ihave ever driven is this DB7! Really wish they didn't discontinue them after 2003.
    • Purchased a Used car
    • Used for Commuting
    • Does recommend this car
    Comfort 4.0
    Interior 5.0
    Performance 5.0
    Value 5.0
    Exterior 5.0
    Reliability 5.0
    0 people out of 0 found this review helpful. Did you?
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FAQ

What trim levels are available for the 2003 Aston Martin DB7 Vantage?

The 2003 Aston Martin DB7 Vantage is available in 1 trim level:

  • Vantage (4 styles)

What is the MPG of the 2003 Aston Martin DB7 Vantage?

The 2003 Aston Martin DB7 Vantage offers up to 12 MPG in city driving and 19 MPG on the highway. These figures are based on EPA mileage ratings and are for comparison purposes only. The actual mileage will vary depending on vehicle options, trim level, driving conditions, driving habits, vehicle maintenance, and other factors.

Is the 2003 Aston Martin DB7 Vantage reliable?

The 2003 Aston Martin DB7 Vantage has an average reliability rating of 4.4 out of 5 according to cars.com consumers. Find real-world reliability insights within consumer reviews from 2003 Aston Martin DB7 Vantage owners.

Is the 2003 Aston Martin DB7 Vantage a good Coupe?

Below are the cars.com consumers ratings for the 2003 Aston Martin DB7 Vantage. 100.0% of drivers recommend this vehicle.

4.6 / 5
Based on 5 reviews
  • Comfort: 4.4
  • Interior: 4.2
  • Performance: 5.0
  • Value: 5.0
  • Exterior: 5.0
  • Reliability: 4.4
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