Aston formally lifted the covers on the long-expected replacement for its aging Vanquish model, its DBS sports car, which TheCarConnection.com first previewed in August. The newly-independent British marque also unveiled a pair of limited-edition models that could be sold out before the first car reaches the showroom.
The DBS will likely look familiar, as it should, sharing its basic underpinnings with the Aston DB9 sports car, but there are some notable upgrades to the car that was first revealed in the latest James Bond film, Casino Royale. Slightly lower and wider than the DB9, Aston's new flagship also gets bulging wheel arches to house the standard, 20-inch Pirelli P-Zero tires.
The DBS's 6.0-liter V-12 makes an impressive 580 horsepower, enough to launch you to 60 in just 4.3 seconds. That's a full half-second faster than the Vanquish, the brand's previous speed king.
"The king is dead. Long live the king," wisecracked CEO Uli Bez, adding that the new car is not only quicker, but better braking and better handling than the Vanquish. Perhaps as significant as the 0-60 times, the DBS pulls a full half-minute off lap times at the grueling Nuerburgring, in Germany, the ultimate in test tracks.
For those who aren't tapped out buying the $300,000 sports car, Aston will offer a limited-edition DBS watch for $30,000 that will substitute for the DBS's sapphire-crystal-and-stainless-steel remote keyfob.
With Aston sales expected to hit a record 7000 this year, Bez and the company's new owners are setting the stage for even more growth. They're about to open the automaker's first design studio, which will help support a product development program that has actually been stepped up since Aston spun off from Ford Motor Co. earlier this year.
2007 Aston Martin DB9 LM |
Among an assortment of new models coming, two limited-edition variants were displayed at Frankfurt. The DB9 LM is designed to celebrate Aston's recent victory in the GT1 class at Le Mans. Only one car per dealer - a total of 124 worldwide - will be produced, and only in a unique silver paint scheme.
Then there's the V8 Vantage N400, which honors the Nurburgring. In its special Carousel Orange paint, this spin-off gets a modest performance boost, going from 380 to an even 400 horsepower.
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