In the later years, Aston Martin was barely making a living. We're not necessarily talking about the company's financial revenue here, but the actual market presence that its products had. The overall impression was that the current range of Aston Martins was outdated and that something had to be done if the British brand had any ambitions of remaining competitive.
Since the ultra-luxury market was probably the only one that wasn't really affected by the financial crisis the world has been struggling with for the past seven years or so, Aston Martin had all the reasons to plan for a spectacular comeback, but such an undertaking takes time as there are no second chances.
The model chosen to embody this dramatic moment in the brand's history was the iconic DB series. With the DB9 currently on sale and the DM10 busy doing Bond things, the name of the new generation was DB11, and the car had its official launch today in Geneva.
Aston Martin built a completely new vehicle from the ground up, and the result was the most powerful, most efficient and most dynamically potent DB model in the company's history. All this was possible thanks to a blank sheet of paper approach, but without forsaking the heritage that comes with the name.
Everything solid starts with a good foundation, and the DB11 is indeed built on a new bonded aluminum structure that is lighter, stronger and more space efficient. The list of novelties continues with what is probably the most important aspect of the new car: its engine. The DB11 is powered by a new 5.2-liter twin-turbocharged 12 engine that was developed in-house. The unit develops 608 hp and 700 Nm (516 lb-ft), enough to propel the Aston Martin to a top speed of 200 mph (322 km/h), the first 62 mph (100 km/h) of which come in just 3.9 seconds.
There to take advantage of this enormous power on offer are the newly updated chassis, suspension, steering and electronics. The DB11 comes with driver-selectable multiple driving modes - GT, Sport and Sport Plus - that alter the response of the ZF eight-speed automatic transmission, the electric power steering and the Torque Vectoring system, while also modifying the damper settings.
On the inside, Aston Martin works together with Mercedes-Benz for the technological part, but takes care of the design, materials and fittings on its own. The dashboard is centered around the all-digital instrument cluster that features a 12" TFT LCD, four inches larger than the second one, located on top of the center console. The dashboard does have a Benzy feel about it (if the font looked familiar...), but it doesn't reach a level where it becomes irritating.
The DB11 brags about plenty of cargo space as well as mounts for two child seats, so it could double as a weekend getaway car for a medium-sized family. Still, we doubt that is going to be this model's USP, as with a $211,995 (€204,900) price tag, it will target the kind of people who have different cars for different occasions.
So what occasion will the Aston Martin DB11 be suitable for? Well, to find the answer to that question, all you need to do is look at the car's exterior. The designers did their best not to tinker too much with the clean lines of the existing model range, and they've done a great job. However, the DB11 is a much more aggressive car than what the DB series had to offer until now, and there's even a bit of Porsche 918 hints to be found at the rear, but only if you insist. And if you do, there are a lot of neat little trinkets such as the AeroBlade, a virtual rear spoiler fed by discreet air intakes on the C-pillars.
So you don't really need a special occasion to use the new Aston Martin DB11 because it will turn it into one. It's one of those one-of-a-kind cars that has this kind of power, and the discreet Mercedes-Benz infusion isn't enough to take that away from it.
"Boy meets car, boy loves car, boy gets journalism degree and starts job writing and editing at a car magazine" - 5/5. (Vlad Mitrache if he was a movie) Full profile
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