2007 Aston Martin Db9 Volante Convertible 2-door 6.0l on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Aston Martin to display first DB4 GT Zagato Continuation at Le Mans

Aston Martin has announced its new DB4 GT Zagato Continuation series will officially debut at this year's 24 Hours of Le Mans. The race is this weekend, June 15-16, and the first completed vehicle of the 19-car continuation production will be displayed at Aston's premises trackside. The DB4 GT Zagato Continuation #1 wears Rosso Maja paint, a hue which is not that common on classic Astons, but suits its flanks well. The interior is done in black leather, and the car comes with full FIA-specification roll cage. It takes Aston's Heritage Division some 4,500 hours to build one of these cars, so the words "artisan craftsmanship" aren't lightly thrown around. But like Aston Martin announced earlier, it is using modern technologies such as a digital body buck to help build these cars, even if traditional aluminum panel beating methods are also still in use. The body of this first car was readied in April. The car's engine is a 390-horsepower, 4.7-liter straight six that is coupled to a four-speed manual transmission and a limited-slip differential. The manufacturer remarks that the DB4 GT Zagato Continuation is the most expensive new Aston Martin on sale, and that can't be far from the truth: Prices for the "DBZ Century Collection" start from 6 million pounds, or $7.6 million, and the price will include a matching DBS GT Zagato delivered in the fourth quarter of next year. Customers will receive their DB4 GT Zagatos during Q3 of 2019. Featured Gallery Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato Continuation View 19 Photos Image Credit: Aston Martin Aston Martin

Looking for a deal? Check out your nearest Acura dealer

For the fourth time in the last year, an Aston Martin out-discounts all other automakers by offering the largest monetary savings off the retail price of an automobile in America. This time, though, the discount isn't on the aging (though still beautiful) Rapide sedan or range-topping DBS Superleggera, it's for the DB11 sports car. For those keeping track, the DB11 also led this discount list back in May of 2020. This time, though, the price is even lower than before. Right now, buyers of the Aston Martin DB11 are seeing discounts of $24,330. That's a 12.1% cut off the car's average retail price of $201,820 and it means buyers are paying an average transaction price of $177,490. Still expensive, but really not bad for a drop-dead gorgeous machine with as much as 630 horsepower. Next in line is a familiar face, the Acura NSX. As impressive as the Japanese hybrid supercar may be, Acura has been running big rebates on the NSX for as long as we've been running these lists. This month, the NSX buyers are seeing discounts of nearly 14% for an average transaction price of $138,648. The third biggest discount this month shows up on the most expensive vehicle on the list. The Rolls-Royce Phantom carries an average sticker price of $537,500. But buyers are getting about 4% off that for an average transaction price of $516,333. It may not be a massive discount when measured by percentage, but when the asking price is so high, even a small discount equals big bucks. Related Video:

Movie Review: Spectre

I had only been sitting for two minutes in the screening of the twenty-fourth installment of the James Bond franchise, Spectre, before I met a fanatic. Sporting a James Bond 40th Anniversary Omega Seamaster ("number 007 of only 1007 made", he told me, beaming with pride), he boasted of his travels to the Furka Pass in Switzerland, to visit the location of the Goldfinger car chase, and of his Silver Birch Aston Martin DB5, the same car Sean Connery piloted around those treacherous roads just over fifty years ago. He bought it a while back for $125,000, and foolishly sold it a few years later for $160,000 (a mint 1965 DB5 will easily fetch over $1 million at auction today). The discussion of his Aston Martins continued, including his current Vantage and DB9, until the theatre started to fill up and the lights went down. This kind of automobile and movie culture is unique to Bond. 007 may have his signature drink, "shaken, not stirred," but just as famous are his cars, which, for a great number of films, are Aston Martins. This started fifty years ago, in the aforementioned Connery flick, Goldfinger, and the tradition has continued in Spectre, with a bespoke two-door coupe fittingly tagged the DB10. This latest Bond car is more concept than production. Built around the current V8 Vantage VH platform, the DB10's handsome styling is a look into the future for the British manufacturer. Perhaps outshining Bond's chariot are the cars of the villainous organization after which the movie is named, a highlight being the beautiful the Jaguar C-X75, driven by the eye-gouging villain, Hinx (Dave Bautista). The Jag is introduced when Bond infiltrates a Spectre meeting. His attendance doesn't go unnoticed, leading to a C-X75 vs DB10 race around Rome's midnight streets. Those who are going to see Spectre for the great car cinematography, prepare to be disappointed. The scene ends early on when – spoiler alert – 007 dumps the DB10 in the bottom of a river. Spectre is the longest of the 24-film canon, and due to an overstuffed second act, it feels like it. The first hour is fantastic, revealing enough of Bond's backstory to get the audience hooked, but somewhere in the second act we lose our way, torn between two predictable story lines.