It’s not every day you get handed the keys to one of the hottest cars on the planet, a tank full of gas and the chance to play James Bond for a couple of days. Everyone has their own dream but no can argue that having an Aston Martin DB9 to play with is something special. With its scintillating V12 engine, beautiful lines, and an elegant interior that’s steeped in luxury and exclusivity, it becomes easy to understand why motoring pundits the world over have proclaimed the DB9 as a slice of automotive heaven.
Read ahead to see what we thought of the Aston coupe, and be sure to look out for our review of the V8 Vantage in the following month or so.
The British automotive sector has been undergoing a renaissance of sorts in recent times, riding a wave of foreign capital and technology that’s lead to numerous UK carmakers being sold to international groups left, right and center. Aston Martin was bought out by Ford, who also picked up Jaguar. The Germans took over the ultra-luxury brands Bentley and Rolls-Royce. MG Rover was split between two Chinese conglomerates, and even TVR, the maker of some of the world’s craziest cars, was bought out by a 23-year old Russian millionaire. But now the Blue Oval is in the process of selling Aston Martin, and the number of bidders that were vying to own the luxury label speak loudly of the brand's reputation in the automotive arena.
With all this changing of hands, it’s difficult to determine what constitutes a truly British car these days. Have the new owners kept with the brand’s tradition, the essence that made it what it is today? Is it simply having one of the finest interiors of any car in the world, powerful yet understated styling or an engine howl that would put a lion to shame? If it is, the Aston Martin DB9 is more British than warm beer, gloomy weather and Page 3 girls. It’s the type of car that makes people want to talk to you at a set of traffic lights. Unlike the brashness of a Ferrari or Lamborghini, or the indifference that’s felt towards a Porsche or an AMG Mercedes, the DB9 will have people giving you way as though the floodgates have opened and cleared a path for you.
At first glance, however, it’s hard to classify the DB9 as a blue-blooded Brit. The CEO of the company is a manic German engineer, whose involvement was a key factor in establishing the performance leap of the new coupe over the previous DB7. The car’s lines were penned by another German, BMW design works Chief Henrik Fisker, after the initial designer, Ian Callum, was transferred to Jaguar. The heart of the DB9, the 5.9L V12, is produced in Cologne, Germany, along with the six-speed auto transmission, which comes from gearbox specialist ZF. Even the car’s electronic and safety features were developed in conjunction with the Swedes over at Volvo.
At least its styling is in keeping with Aston Martin’s of old, an evolution of the DB7, which itself was reminiscent of the DB models from the 60’s and 70’s. Its taut skin and sleek yet muscular body allude to its athletic prowess, and hides a high-tech structure that’s almost completely made out of aluminum. The lightweight metal is also used for the subframes and coil-over dampers as well, which is rare, even for top-end race cars. Attention to detail abounds at every corner, from the solid metal grille insert to the wraparound LED taillights and even the signature of the engineer who signs off on the motor, an age-old Aston Martin tradition, and one that hints at the car's bespoke qualities. Special thanks goes to Martin Askell for the fine craftsmanship of the V12 powerplant on our test car. Other nice touches include the 12 degree ‘swan-wing’ doors that open to one of the finest cabins I’ve had the grace of sitting in.
The interior is modern and unfussy, not too ornate like a Bentley but not lacking any flair as you’d expect for a car in this price range. Backlit LEDs accentuate the machined aluminum instrument cluster and a modern 950w Linn stereo with a silver Hi-Fi-style center console ads to the cabin’s modern but luxurious feel. Connolly leather, used by the likes of Bentley and Rolls-Royce, was deemed too uncouth, and the designers instead opted for Scotland’s finest Bridge of Weir hand-stitched hides. Aston Martin claims the DB9 is a genuine 2+2 coupe, but don’t for a second think you’ll fit anyone taller than a toddler in the back. The rear pews have a good chance of being nominated for bring the world’s most elaborate parcel shelves. At the top of the dash is a glass starter button that glows red with intent when the ignition is turned on. Push it and the big V12 kick-starts into a flurry of revs before settling into quiet submission.
The specs read 450hp at 6,000rpm and 420lb-ft. of torque at 5,000rpm, which sounds good when read in isolation but falls short in comparison with its rivals. It doesn’t matter. The DB9 is not about numbers, it’s about evoking emotions, the passion, and the heritage of one of Britain’s oldest automotive brands. In this high-tech world of turbo and supercharged engines that rev well past the 8,000rpm mark, you could be forgiven for thinking that Aston’s venerable V12 mill wouldn’t stand a chance against the competition. But you’d be wrong. At idle, the motor is refined and civilized. Cruising around at less than 2,000rpm the car gently rolls without any fuss or harshness from up front. Plant the throttle and a loud, brutish bellow fills the cabin and you’re reminded that this is one of the sweetest sounding engines in the world. The engine revs smoothly to its 6,800rpm rev-limiter, but it doesn’t need to be worked to within an inch of its life to show results. The throttle is responsive at any engine speed, especially when the tacho needle is held at the 4,000rpm mark and you floor the pedal.
Though Aston Martin’s flagship Vanquish featured an auto-shift manual gearbox only, the DB9 comes with a paddle shift automatic gearbox or an optional stick-shift manual. For the self-shifter, driving modes are selected via round buttons located at the top of the dash, with additional cast-magnesium paddle-shifters located behind the steering wheel. To handle all the thrust from the big V12, engineers at ZF designed a specially modified version of the 6HB26 six-speed auto. In “Drive”, it behaves like a normal auto, with gear changes that are smooth and predictable. Use the paddle-shifters and the engine willingly revs until the red warning light turns on. When shifting gears manually, the engine tends to hold the revs up higher for longer when you lift your foot off the pedal leaving the motor at its optimal power band. The throttle feels more alert and responsive, and the engine management even blips the throttle during downshifts. The 0-100km/h takes about 5.5 seconds, which is slower than the manual but the convenience and smooth gear changes of the auto gearbox are worth the extra time it takes to reach the ton. During straight-out acceleration, the reversed rpm tacho needle matches the speedo point for point. Unfortunately, the road always seems to come to an end before the Aston has reached its last legs. In fact, the coupe reaches illegal speeds so quickly that the digital readout is too slow to keep up, often lagging the real speed by up to 20km/h.
The ride feels amazingly planted, no doubt thanks to the rigid aluminum structure that’s more than double the torsional rigidity of the steel frame used in the older DB7. There’s barely a hint of road and suspension noise thanks to the double wishbones at the front and independent set-up at the rear. There was some tramlining from the 19in low profile series rubber, and it can be difficult to keep control of the car over major undulations in the road when driving hard. Otherwise, the ride was smooth and comfortable, testament to the DB9’s extensive development program. The direct steering has a slight heft to it that leaves you feeling you’re in control. It doesn’t give the impression of being fast, but when you steer with some effort you realize that the big coupe can still be very quick through the corners. The weighty feel also masks the kickback that feeds through the wheel when launching hard, but it still requires a firm grip on bumpy b-grade roads.
The handling is accurate and precise, offering perfect mid-corner balance, however, the front will start to understeer slightly when pushed hard. The DB9 is fitted with a rear transaxle to help achieve the ideal 50:50 weight distribution. The front mid-mounted engine is connected to the rear gearbox by a cast aluminum torque tube, inside which is a carbon fiber drive shaft. We only had the DB9 for two days to see how it all rolled out on the road, and on the second day it just had to rain. Coming up to a sharp corner in the wet and braking late saw the big coupe push wide as it came out of the bend. I was surprised at the amount of body roll, but the DB9 remained composed and managed to maintain its pace. It doesn’t always enter the turn eagerly, but when pushed the DB9 turns in sharply, squats and then exits like a wildcat leaping onto its prey. Aston Martin has since released a 'Sports Pack' for the DB9 with modifications to the chassis that addressed some of the original car’s dynamic shortcomings. The most obvious change are a new set of forged alloys that shed 1kg from each corner. Ride height is reduced by up to 6mm and the spring rates have also been increased.
It doesn’t feature truckloads of electronic gizmos like auto-leveling air-suspension, electronic damper control or active steering, but instead relies on proven old fashion engineering. Vented and grooved brakes fill up the multispoke rims, and look impressive but don't feel very strong until they've properly warmed up. There is some bite but the pedal is heavy, making it hard to adjust the pressure gracefully. With the traction-control switched off, the big coupe offers up sideways action hilarity with ease. Of course, most owners are unlikely to do this. It’s simply not the gentleman’s way.
The Aston Martin DB9 is the perfect blend of bespoke quality with modern technology. This is one of the best-sorted GT coupes around, featuring decent performance combined with an exquisite appearance and an interior that surpasses all others. It may not be able to beat the Italian’s in the performance stakes or the Germans in its engineering but what owners of the DB9 get is the latest iteration of a true British supercar
