The car is GORGEOUS. And it's gotten rave reviews from everyone. But just looking at numbers alone - what else do most of us have to go on at this point? - the car just seems really slow for a new car in this car market. Look, I know it's a GT. But maybe I was hoping for more of a sports car. After all, what good is a GT if you don't have really useable back seats? A CL65 is roomier and faster (granted, without any of the style.) I could even understand if it were 0-60 in low 4s, even though that would still leave a gulf between it and the 430, Gallardo and the rest. But the 0-60 is closer to 5 seconds. That's 355 territory... which is coming up on 10 years old. Look, maybe this is me just grappling once again with the category of GT cars in and of themselves - something I have never quite understood. (I have always thought of them as cars for people who can't afford both a luxury sedan and a sports car, so they have to have one car that tries to do it all, but ends up being a car of no superlatives - not as much room as a sedan, not as fast as a sports car. For a topic I started on the issue, see: http://ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=22494) But, the DB9 is so perfect in my eyes, and I want one so badly... and yet, don't it's performance figures let it down?
Closer to 5 seconds? For a 6L V12? Ick. Might as well pick up a one year old XKR, tweak it a little, and invest the other half of the cash or wait until the AMV8 comes out. I wonder what market they were targeting with that kind of performance for the money and appointments? Premier Auto Group misses the target, again. Sad, really. Sunny
http://www.astonmartin.com/thecars/db9/v12powerperformance http://www.astonmartin.com/thecars/v12vanquishs/v12powerperformance The real performance figures are equal to or less than a well designed (or modified) force fed V8. Makes me cringe too, mate! Seriously, a step back in performance and more emphasis on luxury than sport a bit contrary to the benchmarks the company has set in the past. Not to mention, in a luxury/sport 2-seater market for equal to or less than $125k already dominated by Mercedes and now Maserati, they come out with a non benchmark making car and expect the showrooms to be jam packed? What do I know, I'm just a consumer.
From a performance point of view (comfort, durability, warmth etc) some designer clothes absolutely suck, but people buy them because the look good or something. Maybe people will buy the DB9 because it looks nice? There certainly seem to be a few people who have said "Oh why doesn't the Enzo look better?"
Here's the logic of Ford... bear with me for a second. Instead of coming out with a faster Vanquish, they call it an S with some tweaks and its no faster than the one before it. They come out with the DB9 but its no faster than the car it replaces. They come out with the AMV8 concept and its never going to sell unless it performs as well as its brothers for much less cost. Ford develops a jewel of a convertible with Rocketsports Racing (which dominates the Trans-Am series, btw) which would clobber the hit out of Mercedes, Maserati, Aston Martin, and the rest of the competition with a grossly inefficient Roots blower instead of a screw compressor and obtain 3.9 0-60 times and 200mph top speed with heavy aero and decide NOT to bring it to production. http://www.fast-autos.net/jaguar/jaguarxkrs.html Thanks for selling Aston Martin down the river you fûcking idiot market analysts and bean counters at Ford! Sunny *edit* P.S. sorry for going off the deep end a little with this rant, but Ford sits on all these great ideas and lets the other manufacturers take the market share. Time to try something bold like the Ford GT for the other marques.
Is the car available with a conventional stick, or just auto? Auto trannies require power (more parasitic loss), so at sane horsepower levels they are always slower.
So, if your left foot is not controlling the clutch, and they did not include some sort of launch control, then are the poor 0-60 times a result of a poor launch? Are the 0-100 times more in line with what is expected of a 450hp car? How much does the DB9 weigh in relation to the Vanquish? Given roughly the same horsepower, layout, torque, etc (2004 and back Vanquish, that is), they should offer similar performance (Calls into question the "value" of the Vanquish, eh?)
This is what I don't get either unless its very poor gearing. The old Vanquish is a 4.5 sec car with a sub 10 second 0-100mph, impressive for a 4,000lb GT. The DB9 per the Aston Martin website is just under 3,800lbs with 90% of the power and a for sake of simplicity a 5 sec car from an engine with the same displacement. The new Vanquish S is by the factory statictics slower by several tenths of a second than the old Vanquish and barely faster than the DB9. It certainly does question the performance numbers being quoted for these cars. A 450bhp X308 XJR (modified V8) with a ZF-6 speed automatic is faster than a DB9 and weighs 4,000lbs, enough to give a Vanquish a run for the money. So unless the numbers are conservative, the cars are not very well engineered over all. I certainly hope they make up for it in the handling department besides their asthetic value considered by many to be one of the finest. BTW, it was the joint ownership of these two brands that ultimately led to the decision to discontinue Jaguar V12 engines and focus on high output V8 engine configurations. My personal opinion is that the "cat" has been domesticated in order to survive and Aston Martin is Ford's brand to challenge the Continental GT, CL65, Maser coupe crowd while the Ford GT takes the fight to the exotic sports cars. A bad thing for Aston Martin which embodied as much racing spirit in its history as Ferrari did but were not as successful. Arguably, less successful than Jaguar too. Would you be interested in an XKR convertible with aero that breaks 200mph and the 4 second barrier? It would cost as much as the Ford GT and as much as the MB and Aston, but thats contrary to the direction where Ford wants these brands to go in. A damn shame. Sunny
the db9 is only available currently with a full-auto, torque-tube tranny. it happens to have shift paddles, but they're just "tiptronic" stuff actuating the auto tranny. the tranny isn't anything to get excited about. much slower than the AMG auto trannies, for example. i believe it comes out of the jag parts bin (XKR?/XJR?) but don't quote me on that. in the spring, a six speed stick will be available. my understanding is that it's the same parts as ferrari is using. the auto tranny definitely isn't helping its 0-60 performance numbers. it'll be interesting to see if the stick drops half a second or more from the numbers. doody.
One thing funny about Aston Martin, they consider themselves more along the line of a GT Coach Builder than a sport car manufacturer. Now this is definitely odd considering the price tags they apply to their vehicles, but one thing can be said about Aston, their interiors are beyond comparison. I dont think AM is really all that worried about their cars being the FASTEST cars out there, simply being as close to the most refined rocket ships they can make. If that is truly their desire, they have succeeded. I HIGHLY doubt there is a Ford conspiracy involved, but perhaps Michael Moore's new movie Fordenheit 9/11 will clear that up ;oP Regardless, the car is gorgeous, and far better looking than damn near every single GT car on the market. The interiors are much better in the same respect as well. I can handle being .3 seconds slower than a CL 65 (which is still a benz) for the plush luxury and comfort of an Aston, as well as the exclusivity that comes with it.
All 65's are underrated from factory. A fellow with one dynoed over 600 to the wheels. In a straight the difference is nearly a second to 60.
I believe AM still has a "Bespoke" dept where they customize a car to your wishes , maybe you can ask them to strap on a supercharger. Although since it is an AM a Jato rocket pack might be more in keeping with 007 tradition Any car faster than you can just destroy with your heat seeking missiles LOL I'll get an AM Volante when I hit 50. ALthough that may never happen as I've decided to be 29 forever now
So, just off the top of my head, out go the 355, 360, 430, Carrera, Viper, Vette, Enzo, and Carrera GT. Gary
I just learned of an Aston dealer who has several unsold DB9s sitting on their lot. That's not a very good sign for a car that just made its debut.
Yeah, but its still a benz and it looks like every other CL on the street. Not everyone cares about the fastest possible car. Id take the Aston for its lushness and exclusivity. Just my opinion.
From seeing several video and mag reviews, I think the mark for the DB9 is being mostly missed here. The car is not really straight line fast, but meets the lower edge of requirements for this category of GTs. It does handle well and yet keeps a composed ride when wanted. The car to most people is gorgeous looking. (Me included from seeing it in person.) The interior is superb. Beautifully done leather, wood, and control layout. And the tachs and gauges are very much like exquisite hand made watch pieces. The car has gotten great reviews from people I respect as skilled drivers and looks great to boot. The car is an all around package that may not excel in every part of the car's dynamics but overall lays it all out pretty damn well. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
I think the AM is just fine. Its always been a sportscar for gentleman not a sex machine for delinquents like us LOL So its a little slow, strap on a supercharger & it wont be so slow anymore. Like I said before AM has always had a special dept to customize your car to make it whatever you like
i'd like to know that too. some of you guys are funny. there are hundreds of posts on this board about how a ferrari is not about speed it's about 'passion'. they say we dont care if a porshe or a lambo or z06 or viper or an sl55 or a cl55 can beat us. it's still a ferrari. then aston introduces a beautiful car that is plenty fast and some criticize them. we know aston/ford can make a faster car if they wanted- it obviously wasnt their goal to make the fastest road car or gt car out there. first year glitches aside i think it's a beautiful car and i think i will trade in my cl55 for it next year. i would take a db9 over a cl65 any day of the week and a cl65 would annihilate the db.
Ostrich skin?? William, I have been tring to get the big brakes and wheels as well as built in child seats in the back of my DB9Vol since I put my deposit down. I was told the stock brakes are fine, I don't need the big brakes, yada,yada. BMW and Ferrari are much more accomodating. I tried to get the Vanquish S motor too, but that was a waste of breath. Bespoke my a$$. They only seem to do bling, not real hardware. DB9V is gorgeous, but the buying experience has left LOTS to be desired too. No info unless I complain, and the build/intro date has been pushed back multiple times to a June/July 05 build for the 1st allocation(mine).
