It’s not often that we get to drive cars as important as this as early in their development process. But for one rather memorable afternoon, Aston Martin threw us the keys to its new DB11, months before it’s due to hit showrooms.
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The DB11 is the replacement for the excellent but ageing DB9. It’s a vital car for Aston, not least because it heralds a new era for the famous sports car company – created under a new boss, by a new engineering team, with a new set of goals.
It also happens to feature a brand-new twin-turbo V12 engine. That poses the biggest question of the DB11; has turbocharging compromised this car’s values as an Aston Martin? And has the character of the brand shifted as a result?
As far as I could tell – having spent an afternoon in the car on both wet and dry handling circuits at Bridgestone’s stunning test facility in Italy – turbocharging has in fact added to the car’s overall appeal.
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Although this is still a prototype, we’re told that, dynamically, it’s 98 per cent ready, so this is the real deal, minus some electrics and the ubiquitous camouflage paint.
This is a car that you wouldn’t guess was turbocharged, unless you were told. From its distinctive and deeply Aston Martin-like howl on start-up, to the instant throttle response, the DB11 feels just like an atmospheric Aston of old – only it’s faster, cleaner, smoother, more refined and better at everything it does, full stop.
With 600bhp on offer and just under 1,800kg to propel, the V12 does a delicious job of making the DB11 feel rapid, but without ever going over the top. This is a GT car, remember – not an out-and-out sports car – and the responses of the engine, steering, chassis, gearbox and even the ESP and traction control systems have been tuned to suit that nature. Yet it’s rapid if you bury the throttle – at which point the new V12 really does sound magnificent.
The chassis is delightful. It rides very well and there’s a remarkable absence of roll. The brakes don’t fade like they did on old Astons, either. The steering is probably the stand-out feature, though, with Aston’s chief chassis engineer Matt Becker claiming he is happiest of all with this particular aspect.
“It’s difficult to get proper feel into electric power-steering systems,” he admits. “But I’m quite pleased with the way we’ve gone with it here, and the results speak for themselves.” He’s not wrong.
In reality, the DB11 steers quite beautifully, with lovely feel and bags of feedback on what the new, amusingly named Bridgestone 007 front tyres are up to.
We’ll need to drive the DB11 on a wider range of roads to tell if it’s a true world-beater, but on this evidence, the signs of greatness are there. It even makes the £154,950 list price seem like strangely good value...
- Model: Aston Martin DB11
- Price: £154,950
- Engine: 5.2-litre V12 twin-turbo
- Power/torque: 600bhp/700Nm
- Transmission: Eight-speed auto, rear-wheel drive
- 0-62mph: 3.9 seconds
- Top speed: 200mph
- Economy/CO2: N/A
- On sale: August 2016