Something truly radical has happened with this Aston Martin
It will set you back $455,000. But for the first time ever, if you buy this Aston Martin, I won’t think you’re the kind of poncey pretender who rates style over substance.
Now take a deep breath, because this didn’t happen, it just nearly did. You still have me to brighten your Corn Flakes, but a few years ago a man with big plans and bigger pockets insisted he was going to turn me into a watch writer. I really hoped he was going to ask me to watch TV and write about that, because I’ve done that job and it really appeals to my inner jam donut La-Z-Boy persona. Unfortunately, he wanted me to write about what collectors prefer to call “time pieces” and I was sent to Switzerland to review one.
I was so moved by the experience that I honestly can’t remember what brand it was (I do remember describing the name as sounding like a Frenchman clearing his throat, so it might have been Hublot). The hardest part was knowing what to do, or say, once they’d strapped it to my wrist and I’d confirmed that it could tell the time. It was handy for recording how long the awkward silences that followed were. What I do remember is noting that expensive watches feel very, very heavy, and thus I’ve always been reminded of them when driving Aston Martins. Like Rolexes, Astons have long been weighty, beautiful to look at, capable of making strangers gasp – and, to me at least, a bit dull.
I have very much loved the look of every Aston Martin I’ve ever sat in, and I’ve luxuriated in their classy cabins, which make it feel like you’ve been zipped up in Louis Vuitton luggage, but I can’t remember ever enjoying the driving experience, until now.
The new Aston Martin DB12 Coupe is a GT, or Grand Tourer, but Aston claims it has lifted this car to such spectacular heights that “Grand is not enough; this is the world’s first Super Tourer”. It’s certainly stunning to behold – particularly when wearing this Iridescent Emerald paint, which was so gorgeous I kept going outside just to watch the sun dancing with it. I would go so far as to say it’s one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.
There are lashings of leather loveliness inside, and the steering wheel feels fabulous; only the cheap, plastic stubby gear selector lets the side down. The indicators make a unique, quiet thrumming noise, which sounds like a banker tapping his fingers on a very expensive leather-topped desk as he ponders whether to lend you the money to buy an Aston Martin.
The Bowers & Wilkins stereo is also great, yet not quite as spectacular as the noises from the 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 – which sounds like an angry dinosaur howling in protest about the impending electrification of the motoring world. (Unfortunately, the car also makes an unpleasant beeping noise every time you exceed the speed limit, which, in a car like this, is the equivalent of your ski jacket having an alarm that goes off to tell you it’s cold.)
Up to this point, this super Coupe is typically Aston, but the unusual thing is that I’m not about to spend the rest of this review telling you how disappointing it was to drive. Something truly radical has happened, a combination of new intelligent adaptive dampers, a greatly improved Electronic Power Assisted Steering system, stiffer anti-roll bars and, I suspect, the hiring of some Germans to work on this great British brand.
Yes, the DB12 still feels supremely solid on the road, like you’re driving that banker’s big desk (1788kg is a lot for a sports car), but for the first time ever this is an Aston that somehow manages to feel light on its feet, and reactive to your hands via beautifully calibrated steering.
It has poise and precision as well as plenty of visceral excitement from that V8 engine, which makes a hairy-handed 500kW and 800Nm and will send you to 100km/h in 3.6 seconds on the way to a shouty top speed of 325km/h. It’s the kind of car that’s so physical to drive, you end up huffing, happy and slightly sweaty when you reach the top of your favourite hill.
Its weight means it’s not as intensely sporty, nor as quick through a series of bends, as a supercar, or a proper Porsche (and all those kilograms work the brakes hard, with the pedal in my car starting to go slightly soft after some intense efforts), but its advantage is that you can switch the DB12 into its Comfort settings and it will deliver silent, effortless long-distance cruising with a level of ride quality that’s closer to Bentley than back-breaking.
And then you can stop, get out and just stare it for a while, which will make you almost as fizzingly happy as driving it fast around corners.
Unfortunately, the Aston Martin DB12 Coupe will set you back $455,000. But for the first time ever, if you buy one I won’t think you’re the kind of poncey pretender who rates style over substance and probably spends way too much money on watches as well.
Aston Martin DB12 Coupe
ENGINE: 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 (500kW/800Nm)
FUEL ECONOMY: 12.2 litres per 100km (I saw closer to 20L/100km)
TRANSMISSION: 8-speed automatic, rear-wheel drive
PRICE: $455,000 (Aston won’t say what the options cost)
RATING: 4/5
