White-knuckle the squared-leather tiller and mash the accelerator, and that top-speed integer becomes very real as this road-legal weapon fires to 60 seconds in 3.5 seconds and the massive heap of torque keeps you pinned against the seat. Those 715 available horses and a lightly-tweaked suspension for improved road manners help provide a top speed of 211 mph, regardless of the roof’s position. The DBS stems from the DB11, which lies a step down in the Aston hierarchy as such, the Superleggera Volante borrows the fabric-and-metal roof system from the DB11 convertible. Heat and smoke plumes be damned with a 5.2-liter twin-turbo V12 at your disposal, you can outrun the fires and drop the top to make your own cooling breeze. So chosen because of the nation’s impeccably maintained serpentine roads, the assembled automotive media wound up being welcomed by triple-digit temps and a slew of wildfires dotting the countryside. Review: The backdrop for the DBS Superleggera Volante test drive was Tarragona, Spain, a picturesque mountainous region not terribly far from Barcelona known for its vineyards. It’ll win all of the V12 drag races, catapulting you to 60 in 2.8 seconds. Lastly, there’s the Ferrari 812 Superfast, a $363,730 stunner from Maranello that gas 788 prancing horses on tap. The Lamborghini Aventador S Roadster, which begins at $421,321, churns out 730 horsepower (15 more ponies than the Aston), and the sprint to 60 happens in an eye-watering 2.9 seconds. The Winged B’s luxe interior also trounces the DBS Superleggera Volante’s, and it all clocks in $100,000 under the Aston’s base price. ![]() You’ve got the W12-powered Bentley Continental GT convertible, which, while heavier at 5,019 pounds, bests the DBS Volante to 60 mph by 0.2 seconds. Speaking of weight reduction, the use of Superleggera - Italian for “superlight” - is a giant misnomer, as the Superleggera Volante tips the scales at a hefty 4,450 pounds, though the addition of 220 pounds (for the drop-top) only mildly dulls the scream to 60 by 0.2 seconds over its hardtop sibling.Īlternatives: Only a handful of 12-cylinder super-steeds exist. Trunk capacity is limited, given the addition of the roof mechanism owners intending on using the Volante as a road-tripper best practice packing light. However, no adult humans will be able to contort their bodies as to utilize the rear seats for any real period of time. ![]() Watch Out For: The Volante is a two-plus-two, so there technically is a backseat. Who It’s For: Anyone who believes V8s are child’s play, who finds 715 horsepower and 664 pound-feet of twist appealing, and who yearns to feel the wind ripping his hair out with the top - and accelerator - down. A plush interior provides maximum comfort on long hauls, making it an ideal grand tourer. The rear haunches have been enlarged, which is most noticeable when you spend extra time moving the side mirrors to see past them you’ll need that view unobstructed given the frequent rearward glances before you rip past all the lesser machines during your travels. Subtle Easter eggs abound, such as the way the front quarter panel side vents match the angle of the hood vent strakes. ![]() ![]() From first glance at the menacing mustached-grilled face - elongated and widened to help shovel air to that ginormous engine - to the completely new hindquarters that house the folding roof and it’s mechanisms, the DBS Superleggera Volante is sexy, aggressive and commanding. The Good: It’s an Aston Martin, so the exterior is as beautiful as they come. This must be defended to our dying breath.” And after those 12 glorious cylinders roar to life, all horrorshow and delightfully demonic noise, you realize, “We can never give up the V12. Then you fire up the 2020 Aston Martin DBS Superleggera Volante. The future of transportation seems to have found many replacements for displacement. Most automotive companies are unveiling hybrid and electric powertrains, or yanking insane power out of tiny engines witness how the mechanical wizards over at Mercedes-AMG have managed to coax a staggering 416 horses out of a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder. A V12 engine is wholly unnecessary these days.
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