Released for the 1990 model year, the Virage was a new model in the V8 engined run of handbuilt Aston Martins. These flagship grand tourers went through a few names over the course of production. Known as the Virage until 1996, the cars were rebadged V8 Coupé, while the high performance variant was known simply as the Vantage. Both coupe and convertible body styles were produced, with the convertibles designated with the name 'Volante.' The main powerplant for the Virage was a 5.3L V8 engine, although a factory Works conversion was available that enlarged the engine to 6.3L. Both manual and automatic transmission options were available for the Virage, which was built until 2000. In 2011, Aston Martin briefly reintroduced the Virage name for the 2nd Gen Virage.