(Aston’s newest hair dryer packs 510 hp and hits 191 mph.)
BY DAVID GLUCKMAN, PHOTOGRAPHY BY MATTHIAS KNOEDLER
February 2009
Aston Martin will use the Geneva auto show to introduce the world to its latest creation, the DBS Volante. By popping the top on the most super of its current cars (the $1.75 million One-77 will soon serve as the range-topper) Aston has reduced its structural rigidity and added more than 250 pounds to the package, while also carving out room for two more “passengers” and keeping claimed performance the same. Oh, and it still looks good, too.
The Volante’s electrically operated cloth top disappears under a handsome metal tonneau. Up/down operation can occur at speeds up to 30 mph and takes just 14 seconds. Aston has placed the top’s hydraulic pump in a special enclosure to keep nasty noise and vibration from the occupants.
When is a Seat Not a Seat?
Lowering the roof reveals a pair of “occasional” seats fitted in the rear, making the DBS Volante a 2+2, as opposed to the coupe’s two-seat layout (the DBS coupe does offer the extra seats as an option, but they’re hardly inhabitable due to the sloping rear window). The seats are intended for “younger persons or extra luggage” and will likely see more of the latter than the former.
Power comes from the same 6.0-liter V-12 that’s fitted to the hardtop DBS, generating 510 hp and 420 lb-ft of torque. Transmission options likewise include the same standard six-speed manual and optional six-speed Touchtronic automatic. Despite the aforementioned weight gain, Aston claims a 0-to-62-mph acceleration time of 4.3 seconds and a top speed of 191 mph—the very same numbers it associates with the DBS coupe. (Our testing yielded a 0-to-60-mph time of 4.3 seconds and a redline-limited top speed of 188 mph with the fixed-roof DBS.) That car’s carbon-ceramic brakes are standard here as well, as are its adaptive suspension and stability-control system, although they’ve been tuned specifically for the convertible.
Styling changes are minimal and limited to the back half of the car. It loses the fastback silhouette of the coupe, resulting in a longer rear deck that finishes with a similar lip-spoiler treatment. Like any good convertible, it looks best when the top is down. The Volante uses carbon fiber in the same places as the coupe: the hood, front fenders, and trunk lid.
Aston’s latest Volante will likely be its most expensive droptop. Pricing has not yet been announced, but we expect it to come in well above the DBS’s $265,000 sticker. Deliveries of the new car are scheduled to begin in the third quarter of 2009.
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