Monday 21st December 2015
New Aston sports cars - what we can expect
'Sophisticated' DB11 launched in March ahead of 'scalpel-sharp' Vantage and 'bad boy' Vanquish
As we get closer to the launch of the new Aston Martin DB11 at the Geneva motor show in March, Aston is starting to talk more about how it will differentiate its core model from the Vantage below and Vanquish above in the all-important sports car range.
Expect many more DB10 hints in future Astons
It's been said many times on here that the current range, although still head-turning, is pretty hard to separate. Aston agrees, especially betweenand. Customers lured to the dealer were "cross shopping" between the two, Aston CEO Andy Palmer told a group of us journalists at Gaydon recently.His plan therefore was to assign each of the new cars an incredibly detailed 'proxy' customer, in the DB11's case 'Philippe', a cultured financier who lives in London, loves the theatre and is so self-confident that he might even wear a bowler hat.
This might sound whimsical but it gave Aston a clear idea of how to design the cars. "When we came to the natural compromises we have to make, rather than talk about what Marek [Reichman, head designer] and Ian [Minards, chief engineer] would prefer we could talk about what Philippe would like. Would he prefer a beautiful drop-away roofline or a bit more space in the back?," Palmer said.
PistonHeads talked to Reichman about these imaginary customers and came away with a clearer idea of the cars themselves. The DB11 is the sophisticated one, rather like ol' Philippe himself, according to Reichman. "I can tune it for the track if I wish but most of the time I won't." he said, slipping easily into the Philippe persona.
Vulcan influence will also be evident
You'll be able to spec of lot of the same technology from high-end Mercedes-Benzes too, thanks to Aston's arrangement, not only on V8 engines but also electrical architecture. Again, this appeals to Philippe. "He's probably stepped out of his Mercedes S-Class daily drive. It drives itself more or less and if you want you can have that on your DB11," Reichman told us.The Vantage guy is cockier, American, very techy and works in Silicon Valley. "He's never overt but a bit more hedonistic," said Reichman, who didn't name him. If he does wear a suit he probably pair it with trainers. In club-land he'd be a member of Soho House rather than joining Philippe in the RAC or Travellers Club. As a result the Vantage is "much more dedicated to purist performance, a scalpel," Reichman said.
As to how the Vantage will look, he says it'll have similar proportions to James Bond's. The grille won't be entirely in "shadow" as it is on the DB10, but it won't be far off. "You'll probably have to search more for the grille on a Vantage thank you do for the DB11," he said. The DB11 face is "much prouder" he added. As to how it drives, we're told that our Vantage proxy buyer will "accept a little more of a harsh sound, a bit more feedback of the engine and feedback from the gearbox, because it's about driving".
Bring on Geneva 2016!
Then there's, expected to be the last of the trio to arrive. "It starts at bad boy and gets worse," Reichman says of the Vanquish's driving demeanour and particular the noise. The customer for the most powerful of the three sports cars is quite the character. Again we weren't told his name, but he's in Germany and has an "insane amount of confidence", according to Reichman. He wants the most extravagant wing, the widest wheels, but won't buy a Lamborghini "because everyone will look at me and say, tasteless", says Reichman. Styling-wise, Reichman points to thelimited-run hypercar as a clue.You'll hear plenty more about the DB11 when it launches in March ahead of sales toward the end of next year. Until then, Philippe, if you're reading this (of course he's a member), we hope the bonus is good.