MORE FROM THE BRITISH OPEN (some text hidden) SECTIONED_new_astonmartindb11volante_2019

By Jonathan Crouch

Introductionword count: 57

The DB11, Aston Martin's consummate sporting luxury GT, is even more desirable in open-topped Volante form. And it was stiffer, more sophisticated and even more beautiful than its DB9 predecessor. Like its Coupe counterpart, it's primarily a consummate sporting luxury GT, but can also be dynamically rewarding whenever you need it to be. It's very desirable indeed.

Modelsword count: 4

2-door Convertible [4.0 V8]

Historyword count: 352

We've had Volante-badged Aston Martins ever since 1965. But back in 2017, the company reckoned that this DB11 Volante was the most elegant one yet. You might already know a little about the DB11. At its launch in 2016 as a coupe, it was heralded as the most important car in Aston's history, the first to use the stiffer, more sophisticated aluminium underpinnings designed to take the marque's future models into a new era. There was plenty else that brand buyers had never seen too - things like electromechanical power steering, multi-link rear suspension and torque vectoring. The car was, in Aston Martin terms anyway, a radically-orientated engineering step forward. One of the coupe model's most important roles was in introducing the 4.0-litre V8 twin turbo engine that Aston Martin could have as part of its modern-era partnership with Mercedes-Benz. Well in this Volante version, launched in the Spring of 2018, that was the only engine you could have. Arguably, it's the only one you need: 510PS is quite enough to take on this car's exotic segment rivals from this period and the powerplant's relatively light weight contributes hugely to the deft handling that was claimed to be nearly as sharp as this model's coupe stablemate - and a big step forward from the old DB9 Volante. Of course, there's much else that also accounts for the dramatic improvements in product appeal that were made here. The brand tried to re-imagine what an Aston Martin Volante should be. Hence a whole range of design and engineering improvements, including a clever new electric hood that stows more neatly into the body work, improving the looks and freeing up a small amount of extra space in the back and in the boot. The result of all this could be a car you'd want not just because it was an Aston Martin but because it's quite simply the best luxury GT convertible you can buy from the 2018-2023 period. Is that the case? Let's check out the used proposition offered by this DB11 Volante, which sold until mid-2023, when they were replaced by the DB12.

What You Getword count: 399

Back in 2018, we wondered whether this was the most beautiful Aston Martin yet made. Some would say so. Even with the roof up, a DB11 Volante will attract admiring stares. And when the hood is down? Well the top is retracted either by pressing a centre console button or by using buttons on the key. It takes just 14 seconds to lower or 16 seconds to close and on the move, can be operated at speeds of up to 31mph. The hood has 8 layers and folds into an incredibly small sandwich, which allowed stylist Miles Nurnberger to make the rear deck particularly low, short and sleek. Just as significantly, beneath the sweeping panel work sits a structure that's a massive 50% stiffer than that of the old DB9 Volante And inside? Well it's a big improvement from what was served up by previous Aston Volante models. Exquisitely-stitched leather combines with intricately-fashioned design highlights to attract your attention and the different construction of the aluminium monocoque has freed up more interior space too. As usual Aston borrowed parts from another brand - in this case its technical partner Mercedes; the stalk off the steering wheel and the 8.0-inch centre dash infotainment screen for example. There's also a digital instrument binnacle screen to replace the usual dials, with a central virtual rev counter that changes its graphics to suit the particular driving mode you've chosen from the two steering wheel buttons. You get a pair of rear seats too - the kind of thing that some segment competitors make you do without. The brand insists that these are more accommodating than the pews provided by previous Volante models (which is true) and has fitted them out with Isofix child seat attachments for the first time. But they're still pretty cramped and you get 23mm less leg room than you would in the back of a DB11 Coupe. Ultimately, as usual with a 2+2 sports convertible, this space remains suitable for small children, jackets or designer shopping bags only. Finally, let's consider the boot. The exact amount of room you get depends upon the position of the roof. When it's down, a boot separator will also be down to fence off space for the folded roof sandwich. That reduces capacity to just 160-litres. When the roof is up, you can push up the roof separator and increase capacity to 206-litres.

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