While the Vantage did bear some resemblance to the Virage, closer examination would reveal many differences - more obvious of which are the deep front spoiler, its lower stance and the flared wheel arches, which all combine to give the car a fearsome appearance, in fact only the roof and doors were common to both cars.

Priced at close to £200,000 when new, these rare and powerful cars were hand built at The Aston Martin factory at Newport Pagnell.

It was equipped with a 5.3 litre V8 engine sporting twin superchargers with the power output around 550 bhp, and the torque was equally impressive at 555 ft/lbs.

Top speed was 186 mph, with a 0-60 mph time of just 4.6 seconds - an astonishing feat for such a large car and at the time, this was the most powerful production engine in the world.

This right hand drive example, with a manual gearbox, was originally supplied by Aston Martin dealer Reg Vardy in Tyne and Wear to Mr Stephen Gibson, Chairman of Middlesbrough Football Club.

It was ...