As a result of the new relationship between Aston Martin and Mercedes-Benz, the Aston Martin DB11 reached the market at the end of 2016. Now, the British brand presents its convertible variant: the DB11 Volante.
Remaining 4.75 meters long in its coupe version, the Aston Martin DB11 Volante has an exceptionally attractive design, loaded with a combination of curves and edges that give it an unmistakable look.
Aston Martin DB11 Steering wheel: this is the way out </ h3>
From the classic front grille of the Aston, to the sculpted rear and through the huge hood, the DB11 Volante is aesthetically a work of art on wheels. The canopy is canvas, electrically operated, and consists of 8 insulating layers that impact on a perfectly thermally and acoustically insulated passenger compartment. It takes 14 seconds to open and 16 to close, operations that can be carried out while driving up to 50 km / h. This new DB11 Volante replaces the DB9 Volante, and Aston Martin has provided a series of structural reinforcements within the battle of the vehicle so that its stiffness is affected as little as possible with respect to the Coupé. These reinforcements, which include a more resistant windshield frame, suppose an extra of weight of 110 kg with respect to the DB11 Coupé, reaching the 1,870 kg of weight with a distribution of 47:53 between the two axles.
Aston Martin DB11 Steering wheel: that’s right inside </ h3>
Aston Martin DB11 Steering wheel </ strong>
Inside, you can clearly see the influence of Mercedes-Benz. The levers of the steering column, the controls located in the central tunnel, or the multimedia system, come from some of the models of the brand of the star. By quality, the Aston DB11 is not up to, for example, a Porsche 911 or an Audi R8, but there is a remarkable care for details and many hours of work in the design department. There is plenty of interior space in the two front seats, while the rear seats are for residual use. The boot, for its part, cubic between 169 and 206 liters depending on whether the hood is folded or not.
Aston Martin DB11 Volante: this is its mechanical range </ strong>
An important part of the new model is the adaptation of the 4.0 V8 biturbo motor of AMG origin. It develops 510 CV and 685 Nm with which it can accelerate from 0 to 100 km / h in only 4.1 seconds, in addition to reaching 300 km / h of top speed. The gearbox is signed by ZF, and is an automatic torque converter and 8 relations that has a smooth and precise operation in automatic mode, and very fast when you change manually through the generous cams coupled to the column of address. The mechanical force is transferred to the rear axle exclusively, which has a self-locking differential to manage the distribution of torque between the two wheels. At the moment, Aston Martin says that the V12 engine, which is offered in the DB11 Coupé, will not be available in the DB11 Volante, although this news should not be considered disappointing, as the 4.0 V8 biturbo engine exhibits very close performance to those of the V12 and, being more compact and lighter (209 kg of weight), it puts less obstacles to the dynamic capabilities of the vehicle.
Aston Martin DB11 Steering wheel: so goes </ h3>
Aston Martin DB11 Steering wheel </ strong>
The first thing that draws attention in the DB11 Volante is that the engine exhibits a few features more than enough, in addition to a sound, conveniently tuned by Aston Martin, which can be regulated through the driving modes and which is surprisingly attractive. Another thing that you appreciate a few minutes behind the wheel is that the car feels lighter and more compact than it really is, with a very fast and quite communicative direction, and with a Bilstein suspension that is conducive to driving at a good pace on roads of curves. The suspension is adaptive, and offers three levels of hardness, the hardest being the most favorable to extract all the qualities of the good chassis, while the GT program is perfect for traveling with absolute comfort.
The response of the engine has also been tuned by Aston Martin, providing a more constant and less violent thrust than in a Mercedes AMG C 63 S, which incorporates the same engine as the Aston in identical configuration of 510 hp. The succession of explosions that emanates from the escapes when reducing gears or releasing the accelerator is music for your ears, while circulating the turbulence that is generated inside is not at all annoying, or at least not more annoying than in your rivals
On the other hand, the Aston DB11 is a car that has to be driven with extreme delicacy on slippery or in poor condition, it is a sports car much more demanding with its driver than it is, for example, an Audi R8. The motricity of the rear axle in acceleration phases is good thanks to the autoblocante, but at the exit of the curves you have to have the car almost completely straight before accelerating with forcefulness, otherwise the rear axle is very conducive to sliding Despite the good grip provided by Bridgestone Potenza S007 exclusive tires for this model. At least, thanks to the sensitive direction, correcting those oversteer turns into an intuitive and relatively simple maneuver. All in all, the DB11 Volante is a convertible sports car that is very rewarding to drive and that makes you improve as a driver as you gain confidence with it.
Aston Martin DB11 Steering wheel </ strong>
Regarding the driving modes, there are three: GT, Sport and Sport +, and the response of the engine is very elastic in any of the three, although it is a bit more violent in Sport +. The brakes, on the other hand, are the least shiny section of the car, although the 400 mm discs and six-piston monobloc calipers stop the car effectively. In general, the best thing that can be said about the DB11 Volante is that it is much better sports than its predecessor, the DB9 Volante, in all aspects. It is more exciting to drive, faster, more frugal, more rigid and, in general, it covers with better qualities that gap that Aston Martin intends to cover, which is among the most radical sports, such as the Ferrari 488 GTB Spider, and the most luxurious and refined convertibles, such as the Bentely Continental GTC. Its price, if not confirmed, will be about 230,000 euros, that is, slightly more than 20,000 euros higher than the DB11 Coupé.
The best: It is very beautiful, of good quality, and very rewarding to drive.
The worst: Its price is high compared to much of the competition.