One Luxurious Ride - The Aston Martin DBS Volante

The new Aston Martin DBS Volante is more than sleek and stylish, it is one refined high quality vehicle. With high quality, however, comes a high sticker price. The DBS Volante’s base price can run anywhere from $282,500 to $286,500. This is a typical price for a top-of-the-line sports car. Although this car is expensive, its complete quality makes it worth the price.

The Volante has front and rear chassis sheer panels to help maintain its structure. Additionally, the body structure of the car gets its strength from a carbon-fiber tub underneath. The bodywork of the Volante consists of largely aluminum body panels and a few carbon fiber bits.

The interior contains hand-stitched leather and milled-aluminum trim. The new DBS Volante is only about two hundred more pounds than the DBS coupe with the curb weight being approximately four thousand pounds. The wheelbase is 107.9 inches. The length x width x height is 185.9 x 75.0 x 50.4 inches.

The location of the Volante’s fuel-door button is above the footwell. With the fuel-door button being used frequently, this is not the most ideal location. The DBS Volante also has ceramic rotors which deliver fade-free braking performance. This makes this car extremely quiet with high performance and smooth stopping.

The Volante packs a punch with it’s 5.9-liter, 510-horsepower V-12 engine! It delivers an impressive 420 lb-ft. of torque. The transmission is either a Graziano six-speed manual or ZF six-speed automatic. It also has transaxles. The DBS engine sits up front and it has passenger seating of 2+2. It is a two-door convertible, delivering a very glamorous look and spectacular curb appeal. Not only is it glamorous, but it is fast.

The DBS Volante cranks from zero to 62 mph in only 4.3 seconds. It has top end speed of approximately 191 mph, but if you need to stop quickly, its carbon-ceramic brakes will make sure that you do. If you push hard on the accelerator, the car has alacrity. An auxiliary flap in the exhaust will open to reduce backpressure and releases a deep and impressive sounding throaty tone.

Additionally, the Volante provides a sharper steering response with less assist.

Now what makes this car any different from the DBS coupe? The answer is the roof. This vehicle is a soft-top convertible, which helps to save weight. The roof is automatic, only taking fourteen seconds to retract, and it can be operated at speeds up to 30 mph. When the top is down, it is hidden by a special tonneau cover to preserve the car’s sleek style and appearance. Interspersed in the fabric of the roof is a layer of Thinsulate material, which reduces cabin noise and adds protection from the outside elements.

But why talk about bad weather? Put the top down and enjoy the 1000- watt Bang and Olufsen’s BeoSound DBS audio system. This audio system has been retuned to deliver an ear pleasing performance even with the top down. There are also an integrated iPod connector, a USB connector and a Hard Disk Drive satellite navigation system. This car is built for the digital world. If you have discerning taste for fine cars, the money to go along with it, and the patience to wait until fall of 2009 when it hits the showrooms, then the new Aston Martin DBS Volante should be right up your alley.