The V8 Vantage Roadster is simply a cabriolet version of the successful V8 Vantage with a triple-layered fabric hood that folds flat in 18 seconds.

The design is notable particularly for the way the interior rolls out of the car as two separate blisters sitting on the rear trunk deck behind each occupant, a condition emphasised by the way the deck runs forward between them. On both of the cars presented at the show the interior leather stitching is the same colour as the exterior which adds a further subtle dimension to this interior-exterior interplay.

In the survey Car Design News carried out at the end of last year with over a thousand participating CDN readers, the V8 Vantage coupe was voted the favourite production design. With the roadster being arguably more attractive than the coupe V8 Vantage (unlike that of the cabriolet version of its closest competitor; the Porsche 911) this LA debut is perhaps most significant just because the design is so attractive