Something called DB11… Aston Martin DB11. Aston-ishing!
Something called DB11… Aston Martin DB11. Aston-ishing!
Something called DB11
The Aston Martin DB11 brochure reads: “History could have clipped our creative wings, but we used it to our advantage. To honour the ‘DB’ legacy we distilled Aston Martin design down to its very essence and used to create something evolved, bold and fresh. Something called DB11.”
Aston-ishing!
DB11 lineage
The Aston Martin DB9 is a clear example of automotive art, as beauty with longevity. Now the DB11 has to take Aston Martin into a new design direction, where some have said that their cars are too look-alike… the new Aston Martin DB11 designers managed to, somehow, melt into 1 car the elegance of a GT with the sleek lines of sports car. An authentic, dynamic sporting GT car in true Aston Martin tradition.
The iconic Aston Martin DB lineage cars are usually followed by sequential numbers: DB4, DB5, DB6, DB7, but then skipped DB8 to bring us the long-serving DB9. Now, the even number was skipped to name the DB11. The DB10 name was used for the movie Spectre, and could it be that the smaller and super-modern sinewy DB10 could be the mould to replace the current Vantage range?
The Aston Martin DB11 is the first product to be launched under the sports/luxury car company’s Second Century plan. To commence with this plan, the car had to enter a new design phase. It does. DB11 is Aston Martin’s most significant model introduction since DB9.
Re-assessment of the relationship between form and function
Some of the design headlines include a clamshell forward-hinging bonnet (like some sports cars of years gone by) to offer a panoramic view of the engine, a bonded aluminium platform, clever pioneering aerodynamics, and a new V12 5.2 twin turbo (arrival of the first Aston Martin turbo engine was just a matter of time).
Innovative aerodynamics play their part in this aesthetic revolution – clever management of airflow over and “through” the bodywork improves stability, while preserving the DB11’s uncluttered surfaces.
Front-end lift is reduced by the gill-like “Curlicue” – those side inserts on the front fenders. This time these are not the traditional insets into the fenders, but stop abruptly as if to give a new floating and draw more attention to these side gills. This is a great example of the form-function solution, as these gills are visually interesting, but also serve a purpose, to release high-pressure air from inside the wheel arch via a concealed vent within this redesigned side-strake.
Rear-end lift is reduced by the Aston Martin AeroBlade – this is a virtual spoiler fed by discreet air intakes located at the base of each C-pillar. Air is ducted through the bodywork, before venting as a jet of air from the aperture in the rear decklid.
The sloping decklid smoothly blends into a re-interpretation of the u-turn style taillights as seen on the Aston Martin One-77 supercar.
The front-end retains (has to) the signature Aston Martin grille, but updated into a subtly new yet still clearly AM face. The new LED headlights with some stylish close-up detailing add a new LED driving light signature.
21st century DB11
Being the latest model from this top-end marque means it needs to be up to speed, in many ways.
An Aston Martin has to have speed. Is the Aston Martin DB11 fast? The 5.2 twin-turbocharged hand-assembled V12 develops a strong 600bhp (that’s 447kW) at 6500 revs. 700Nm is also plenty, especially as this V12 spreads it wide, from 1500 to 5000rpm. The numbers? 0-100km/h in 3.9 seconds, and a nice round 200mph (320km/h). So yes, it is. But it is also, crucially, properly powerful without being too supercar-ry. That is not this GT’s position. Drive is to the rear wheels, through the best-in-the-business 8-speed ZF automatic. Driver modes are “GT”, Sport and Sport Plus.
Celestial perforation
The interior is completely new. Rest assured, the slanted centre console still flows into the raised centre console between the main seats, and the roof still tapers to the rear… Aston Martin DB11 is still a proper Aston Martin DB.
To give that e(xc)lusive super-designer interior, the Aston Martin DB11 “Nexus quilting and Celestial perforation add layers of beautiful complexity and intrigue, while ornate leatherwork, such as brogue detailing, creates areas of visual and tactile delight”. Just have a look at the special interior images, and you’ll see meticulous detail went into it.
The interior user interface also sees it adapt to the latest high-tech tools, as necessitated by the increasing technology / controls / information count: the analogue dials had to go, and in comes an instrument cluster in full-colour 12-inch TFT LCD display to feed car information to the driver, while an 8-inch TFT screen is on the centre console, dedicated to infotainment.
A new rotary control will take hand commands from humans, while an optional touch-pad allows character recognition (you can write by hand), multi-touch and gesture support.
Aston Martin in South Africa
Deliveries of the Aston Martin DB11 are scheduled to begin the fourth quarter of 2016 in main markets, and with Daytona Group being the importers and appointed Aston Martin dealer for South Africa, the DB11 will also become available here through both Aston Martin Sandton and the Cape Town dealer at V&A Waterfront.
See also:
www.astonmartin.com
db11.astonmartin.com
sandton.astonmartindealers.com
capetown.astonmartindealers.com