In 2006, Aston Martin was still linked with Jaguar and Ford. But it was still a luxurious GT car that featured a different approach to its customers and to a different market segment. At the 2006 Los Angeles Auto Show, the roadster version for the Vantage was unveiled. It was based on its platform, named VH from the second generation. The car featured a twin grille design, with the upper side in the traditional Aston Martin shape and a wide one on the lower part of the bumper. The headlights featured the daytime running lights on the inside, with a twin bulb design for the low and high-beams. Two air-vents were noticeable on the hood, closer to the windshield. The rear design showed the muscular arches of the quarter panels. The two, round exhausts were going through the lower side of the bumper. The horizontal V-shaped taillights were a specific styling element of the car. The Volante (roadster) was heavier by 100 kg (220lbs) than the coupe. The luxurious GT offered leather-covered sport-bucket seats. The dashboard used the same unusual tachometer that went counter-clockwise. But, with some buttons carried over from some Ford models. Under the hood, there was a 4.3-liter engine hand-built in Cologne-Germany by Aston Martin engineers. It featured a dry-sump lubrication system so the engine would support hard driving conditions. The powertrain was tested for 12.000 miles in Dubai. A 6-speed automatic gearbox was offered from the launch and it was mounted in the rear, in a transaxle system.