Instrumented Test
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I see an Aston and I want it painted black.
We understand that the Vanquish has replaced Aston’s long-running DBS as the “high-volume” flagship for 2013, but we recently had a chance for a last fling with a very special DBS. Special, that is, because it is draped in a shimmering, black hue so fetching that you may wonder why every Aston doesn’t come painted this way. The metallic flakes sparkle in the light as if saying “hello gov” and “piss off” in the same blink. Onlookers twist to catch a glimpse of the sparkling body that’s shrink-wrapped around the 5.9-liter V-12 they just heard. Aston says it takes 50 man-hours to apply the paint.
And then there’s exclusivity; a 2012 DBS Carbon Black Edition, if you were to find one still for sale, would cost you no less than $289,291. That’s with the six-speed automatic; the manual is $400 more, only because it carries lower EPA fuel-economy estimates and thus a higher gas-guzzler tax. Our test car also came with what might possibly be the most-expensive satellite-radio option on any car, at $1495, plus an uprated alarm system ($450), a suede-wrapped steering wheel ($450), and a smoker’s kit ($570).
But what does the Carbon Black Edition get you that the regular carbon-fiber-bodied, 510-hp DBS didn’t? Beyond the paint, there is a 13-speaker Bang Olufsen stereo. The rest of the DBS’s equipment list almost sounds like the Rolling Stones’ song title Paint it, Black was blaring on an iPod during the product-planning meeting: the 20-inch wheels have been trimmed in black, interior bits are black, the front grille and tail pipes are blackened, and tail lamps are trimmed in black. It’s a good song.
Drive this Aston on a hot day, and all that black attracts the heat of our nearest star and without a source of shade, the CBE cooks in the sun. Heat waves blur the background as the doors open. The heat seems to localize in a few pieces of aluminum on the center console. Contact with those hot hunks of metal activates the brain-stem reflex. Passengers may think your flailing right arm is some kind of crazy tic, or maybe an impromptu Mick Jagger impersonation.
The driving experience is nothing short of spectacular. Rolling onto the throttle with a heavy foot turns up the 5.9-liter soundtrack part way through the rev range. Stay in it and the V-12 will sing all the way to its 6850-rpm redline. The DBS’s six-speed automatic is calibrated for performance driving, but a pair of shift paddles encourage manual shifting. Be advised, however, that there is no physical redline on the tach, and the only warning that the fuel is about to cut off is in the gear indicator; it’ll turn red telling you to upshift with the right paddle.
Messing around with the manual-shift mode may be fun on twisty roads, but it’s more-or-less pointless for acceleration runs on a straightaway. The DBS storms to 60 mph in 4.3 seconds, 100 mph in 9.7 seconds, and breaks a quarter-mile in 12.7 seconds (at 114 mph) whether you shift manually or leave the transmission in automatic mode.
The steering wheel has a bit of old Porsche feel to it. By that we mean it shakes and transmits the tiniest road imperfections to the driver. Some of this information is extraneous, although we welcome the direct communication. The interior, while lush with leather, carbon, suede, and aluminum, has a cottage-industry feel—not surprising from a company that builds less than 900 cars per year. The turn-signal stalk clicks to its positions with a weak detent, not the fluid kind of sweep we’ve come to expect from quarter-million-dollar cars. It is a small oversight in an otherwise bespoke interior.
Mounting the transmission in front of the rear axle helps with weight distribution as only 51.3 percent of the DBS’s 3929 pounds is loaded on a static DBS’s front tires. We were a little surprised at this as a good bit of engine hangs out over the front axle. The DBS pulls 0.90 g on the skidpad with little understeer, surprising because on the road, the Aston feels like it has higher cornering limits than the numbers suggest.
The DBS was more of an ultra touring car than a dedicated sports car, although the chassis is plenty rigid for track work. Carbon-ceramic brakes add to the racetrack pedigree, and the DBS’s capability is only exceeded by its comfort, luxury, and craftsmanship. The 2013 Vanquish has superseded the once range-topping DBS (the limited and hyperexotic One-77 notwithstanding) and promises more of everything. Everything but black, that is.
Specifications
VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 2+2-passenger, 2-door coupe
PRICE AS TESTED: $291,806
BASE PRICE: $289,281
ENGINE TYPE: DOHC 48-valve V-12, aluminum block and heads, port fuel injection
Displacement: 362 cu in, 5935 cc
Power: 510 hp @ 6500 rpm
Torque: 420 lb-ft @ 5750 rpm
TRANSMISSION: 6-speed automatic with manual shifting mode
DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 107.9 in
Length: 185.9 in
Width: 75.0 in Height: 50.4 in
Curb weight: 3929 lb
C/D TEST RESULTS:
Zero to 60 mph: 4.3 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 9.7 sec
Zero to 130 mph: 16.5 sec
Street start, 5–60 mph: 4.6 sec
Top gear, 30–50 mph: 2.5 sec
Top gear, 50–70 mph: 3.0 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 12.7 sec @ 114 mphh
Top speed (drag limited): 174 mph
Braking, 70–0 mph: 151 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad: 0.90 g
FUEL ECONOMY:
EPA city/highway: 12/18 mpg
C/D observed: 12 mpg
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