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2018 Aston Martin DB11 Volante First Drive Review | The speed of style

If you're not a car designer, chances are you've tried to draw a sportscar, and realized just how hard it is to get those proportions just right. One false line, and the sleek coupe of your imagination looks like a kumquat. So you can imagine that transforming the striking V8-powered Aston Martin DB11 coupe into an equally stunning Volante ragtop was harder than it looked, a task which required Aston designers and engineers to nip and tuck everything past the windshield. "There were lots of healthy, heated debates," lead designer Julian Nunn says of how the DB11 Volante – fancy speak for convertible – was packaged. As it sits before us on a brisk winter morning in Southern France, the British drop-top has a sleek, fleet look thanks to the elegant rake of its nose, the sharp arc of its roofline, and the taut contours of its derriere. Aston's designers nailed the proportions – it's a stunner. How they got there was a game of millimeters, starting with a minuscule lift of the haunches to accommodate the eight-layer folding soft top. To soften the look of those lifted surfaces, the wheel arches are faceted slightly inboard, lending them more depth and dimension. The convertible loses the air vent at the rear, since there's no roof to create lift; as such, the so-called AeroBlade feature which ducts air through the C-pillar is also gone. But the rear spoiler remains, automatically deploying for downforce with a speed-dependent algorithm based on driving mode. The stack height (that is, the vertical space occupied by the folding roof) measures 10 inches, the lowest in its class, which helps the DB11 achieve its graceful looks with the added benefit of keeping the center of gravity low. The top takes 14 seconds to lower, and will drop at speeds up to 31 mph. A Volante with its top down puts Aston's typically gorgeous cabin on full display: the door's brogued leather details surrounded by an improbably shaped veneer surround; the complex curvature of the veneer around the capacitive touch-sensitive infotainment interface; the improbably generous swaths of leather and Alcantara upholstering the dashboard and A-pillar surfaces. There's even, for the first time, veneer on the backs of the front seats. The tiny rear seats come with ISOFIX car seat attachments, a first in a Volante. I could go on about the DB11's unusual and intriguing aesthetic choices, but I've also got a persistent gripe with the electronic instrument cluster.

Electric Aston Martin Rapide could be on the way

Aston Martin is looking into building an electric version of the Rapide to launch in the next two or three years. Andy Palmer, the company's new chief executive, said so to the Wall Street Journal at the New York Auto Show this week. A spokesman confirmed the plans to Autoblog. The project would bring in an as-yet undisclosed partner that could come from Silicon Valley, and while we don't know at this point just which company that would be, Palmer said it's not Tesla. Having formerly held senior positions at the Renault Nissan Alliance, Palmer has a wealth of experience with EVs that he brings with him to the British automaker that was recently infused with cash. This wouldn't be the first time that Aston would be experimenting with the prospect of electric propulsion. It showcased the DBX electric crossover coupe concept at the Geneva Motor Show, and even fielded a hybrid hydrogen-powered version of the Rapide in a 24-hour endurance race at the Nurburgring a couple of years ago. The Rapide is Aston's four-door model, based closely on the DB9. It was launched in 2010 after a concept version from 2006. After initially being produced under contract by Magna Steyr in Austria, Aston moved assembly back home in 2012. A revised Rapide S ensued the following year, upping output from its 6.0-liter V12 engine from 470 horsepower to 550 and swapping the six-speed automatic for an eight-speed. According to the WSJ, Palmer also confirmed a new crossover and large luxury sedan in the pipeline, the latter to compete with Rolls-Royce and both of which we expect will wear the Lagonda badge revived by the new Taraf launched in Dubai.

2020 Aston Martin DBX Prototype Drive | Sliding into your mentions

OMAN, Persian Gulf — The last time I got an Aston Martin this filthy was 5 years ago in dusty Anza-Borrego, California, where I ripped several illicit burnouts in a low-slung V12 Vantage S. This time around is dramatically different: Chief Engineer Matt Becker, seated alongside me, is actually egging me on to powerslide an Aston Martin DBX across an off-road trail in Oman — the first time IÂ’ve ever been encouraged by Aston brass to hoon one of their vehicles, let alone a priceless prototype, in the dirt. You wouldnÂ’t expect Becker, who spent 26 years at Lotus, to be an SUV guy. But the hardcore chassis and handling guru says the DBX project gave him a new respect for the genre because sport utes need to do far more than just go around a track quickly: TheyÂ’re required to tow, support weight on their roofs, and manage all manner of terrain, all while creating a comfortable living space for their passengers. “Once you push them and understand what they can do off-road, on-road, on-track,” he tells me while IÂ’m tackling a rock-strewn trail at highway speeds, “you really start to respect what theyÂ’re capable of.” Building the DBX will also show us what Aston Martin is capable of — capable of surviving, that is. The new decade is shaping up to be the most challenging yet for the storied carmaker, so bringing a viable sport utility vehicle to market is essential. And though weathering severe business headwinds seems to be an ongoing pastime for Aston Martin, the brandÂ’s first-ever crossover gets a rather ambitious hardware package. The DBXÂ’s bonded aluminum chassis is entirely unique to the model, as is the brandÂ’s first-ever air suspension system. While thereÂ’s no V12 available in the DBX — that honor remains reserved for Rolls-Royce's almighty $325,000 Cullinan — the AMG-sourced, 4.0-liter twin turbo V8, while similar to the mill found in the DB11 and Vantage, has also been coaxed to produce more power: 542 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque, capable of launching it to 60 miles per hour in 4.3 seconds and a top speed of 181 mph. But building AstonÂ’s first-ever SUV from the ground up enabled unique packaging opportunities in addition to the specific hardware. For instance, market research revealed female drivers were often frustrated because most cars donÂ’t have a place to stash their purse.