DBS Superleggera impressions
Discussion
I was kindly lent a DBS Superleggera today by my local dealer whilst my Vantage was in for its MOT and new warranty inspection. 5 hours of fun, including city, motorway and country road driving.
First up, it looks wonderful. (in parts) The front end is simply gorgeous - even if a postman did ask me if it was the new Corvette!!
Then there is the engine. It's a beast. Not as immediately engaging as the engine in my V12VS, but nevertheless it is a great achievement for Aston.
Gearbox? Better than I thought it would be. Changes are nice and one could almost be forgiven for thinking that there was no torque converter involvement when the paddles are in use.
Chassis? GT mode is a fine compromise. Sport a bit jiggly, Sport+ too stiff for anything but the smoothest of surfaces. Steering is nice, with some feel and overall there is good balance, nice turn in and no nasty surprises as you get near the limit.
Brakes? Well, strangely 'grabby' and rather difficult to modulate, depending on their temperature.. especially when compared to the carbon ceramics on my car. But they are, as might be expected, immensely powerful.
Front seats are really really comfy, the view out is good and the wipers do their job well. Heating and ventilation seems up to the job, and the DAB radio seemed to hold on to its signal rather better than the unit in my Vantage.
The view under the bonnet is genuinely awesome, in a sort of 2019 Triumph GT6 way...
BUT! I won't be getting one.
The back end just does not look right to me - and the boot is a letterbox!
The engine sometimes decides it wants to kill you.. or at least require that you send your troos off to the laundry. The throttle pedal is short travel, so inadvertent wide positions + turbos spooling up can catch you out on a greasy road when a glob of power arrives in a hurry.
Most of the time the gearbox is fine, but every now and again it seems to get confused, holding on to a high gear for too long before dropping down a cog or two with a lurch.
And it feels bloody huge! - although you'd need your legs chopping off before you could sit in the rear (and half your arse lipo suctioning away if you're of broader beam)
Whilst those front seats feel great, the rest of the cabin is a real let down for a £250k car. I could accept it in a DB11, but it's simply not good enough for the DBS. The Mercedes bits and touch sensitive gubbins are somewhat marmite - the touch stuff in particular gets very smeary and fingerprinty too quickly. The instruments and air vents look cheap and lack any real sense of occasion. Looking at the wing mirrors showed too much 'gubbins' behind the mirror glass, and some of the fit and finish was just not what was needed - the bonnet to bumper line is awkwardly large, presumably because of the flip front.
Inside, the loan car also had 3 (count 'em!) very annoying interior rattles and I never did find out how to open the glove box
The fact is that a DB11 AMR is almost as much car for a huge amount less - and is probably all the better for it.
As I drove home in my V12VS, I couldn't help but think that, just right now, Aston does not build a car that I could see myself craving enough to swap it for.
First up, it looks wonderful. (in parts) The front end is simply gorgeous - even if a postman did ask me if it was the new Corvette!!
Then there is the engine. It's a beast. Not as immediately engaging as the engine in my V12VS, but nevertheless it is a great achievement for Aston.
Gearbox? Better than I thought it would be. Changes are nice and one could almost be forgiven for thinking that there was no torque converter involvement when the paddles are in use.
Chassis? GT mode is a fine compromise. Sport a bit jiggly, Sport+ too stiff for anything but the smoothest of surfaces. Steering is nice, with some feel and overall there is good balance, nice turn in and no nasty surprises as you get near the limit.
Brakes? Well, strangely 'grabby' and rather difficult to modulate, depending on their temperature.. especially when compared to the carbon ceramics on my car. But they are, as might be expected, immensely powerful.
Front seats are really really comfy, the view out is good and the wipers do their job well. Heating and ventilation seems up to the job, and the DAB radio seemed to hold on to its signal rather better than the unit in my Vantage.
The view under the bonnet is genuinely awesome, in a sort of 2019 Triumph GT6 way...
BUT! I won't be getting one.
The back end just does not look right to me - and the boot is a letterbox!
The engine sometimes decides it wants to kill you.. or at least require that you send your troos off to the laundry. The throttle pedal is short travel, so inadvertent wide positions + turbos spooling up can catch you out on a greasy road when a glob of power arrives in a hurry.
Most of the time the gearbox is fine, but every now and again it seems to get confused, holding on to a high gear for too long before dropping down a cog or two with a lurch.
And it feels bloody huge! - although you'd need your legs chopping off before you could sit in the rear (and half your arse lipo suctioning away if you're of broader beam)
Whilst those front seats feel great, the rest of the cabin is a real let down for a £250k car. I could accept it in a DB11, but it's simply not good enough for the DBS. The Mercedes bits and touch sensitive gubbins are somewhat marmite - the touch stuff in particular gets very smeary and fingerprinty too quickly. The instruments and air vents look cheap and lack any real sense of occasion. Looking at the wing mirrors showed too much 'gubbins' behind the mirror glass, and some of the fit and finish was just not what was needed - the bonnet to bumper line is awkwardly large, presumably because of the flip front.
Inside, the loan car also had 3 (count 'em!) very annoying interior rattles and I never did find out how to open the glove box
The fact is that a DB11 AMR is almost as much car for a huge amount less - and is probably all the better for it.
As I drove home in my V12VS, I couldn't help but think that, just right now, Aston does not build a car that I could see myself craving enough to swap it for.
Edited by andymadmak on Monday 18th November 23:05
Thanks for the detailed review!
I agree: from some angles the DBSS looks good, probably the best looking of the current range Astons IMO. But as you say the interior is a let down, both from a design and materials point of view. The current obsession with touch screens, 'glass cockpits' (Audi, anyone?) and shiny, reflective black trim everywhere is foisted on us by designers who clearly don't think about living with a car on a day to day basis. Or maybe I'm just OCD about smudges, scratches and fingerprints...
Interesting to hear about the accelerator pedal. I have not driven a DBSS. One of the things I really, really have liked about my Bez era V8V and V12VS is the relatively long travel on the pedal: it makes for a very precise yet smooth application of power. Did they shorten the travel because it is turbocharged, and is this an attempt to trick customers into thinking the car has better throttle response?
I agree: from some angles the DBSS looks good, probably the best looking of the current range Astons IMO. But as you say the interior is a let down, both from a design and materials point of view. The current obsession with touch screens, 'glass cockpits' (Audi, anyone?) and shiny, reflective black trim everywhere is foisted on us by designers who clearly don't think about living with a car on a day to day basis. Or maybe I'm just OCD about smudges, scratches and fingerprints...
Interesting to hear about the accelerator pedal. I have not driven a DBSS. One of the things I really, really have liked about my Bez era V8V and V12VS is the relatively long travel on the pedal: it makes for a very precise yet smooth application of power. Did they shorten the travel because it is turbocharged, and is this an attempt to trick customers into thinking the car has better throttle response?
I did a AM PDC at Millbrook in August in a DBSS. My experience was similar to what has been stated in this thread, but it was not necessarily reflective of normal driving conditions. On the mile straight, the car struggled for traction initially, but that was with flooring the accelerator, something you would probably avoid on a public road. There is an awful lot of torque that is difficult to harness. The brakes were really good, and the car felt extremely stable, once it gained traction. I got it to 175mph before braking on the straight, and it still felt planted. I tend to agree with the interior. It feels too similar to the DB11 and indeed the Vantage in many ways.....not special enough. I did think the car felt nimble, and smaller than it’s actual size when driving sportingly, particularly on the Alpine Circuit. The gearbox suits the car well and I also think the styling is great. It’s the best looking of the current crop imho.......but that could change tomorrow though!
Best Regards
Minglar
Best Regards
Minglar
Minglar said:
I did a AM PDC at Millbrook in August in a DBSS. My experience was similar to what has been stated in this thread, but it was not necessarily reflective of normal driving conditions. On the mile straight, the car struggled for traction initially, but that was with flooring the accelerator, something you would probably avoid on a public road. There is an awful lot of torque that is difficult to harness. The brakes were really good, and the car felt extremely stable, once it gained traction. I got it to 175mph before braking on the straight, and it still felt planted. I tend to agree with the interior. It feels too similar to the DB11 and indeed the Vantage in many ways.....not special enough. I did think the car felt nimble, and smaller than it’s actual size when driving sportingly, particularly on the Alpine Circuit. The gearbox suits the car well and I also think the styling is great. It’s the best looking of the current crop imho.......but that could change tomorrow though!
Best Regards
Minglar
"I got it to 175mph before braking on the straight, and it still felt planted" I have one - i think where this car really sings is not from a standing start (it struggles to hold it) but once it's underway, acceleration is phenomenal and it never seems to want to do anything other than get faster and faster. I drive a vanquish as well and the two cars are simply incomparable when it comes to acceleration and the solid feel the DBSS transmits under speed. I thought that the comparative reviews i've seen don't lend themselves to the cars strengths which isn't getting away at the lights to be fair... Best Regards
Minglar
RobDown said:
It pains me to say it but it feels like the DBS is a victim of the race to have more bhp and more torque between the manufacturers. At what point does it simply get too much for 2 tyres to handle putting the power down? Feels from the reviews as though DBS is really on that limit
Entirely agree Rob. It does feel that it has reached, if not crossed the limit line for just 2 wheel drive. I haven't done that many miles yet, so am still adapting/moderating my driving style to the immense acceleration the DBSS possesses but in all honesty, my opinion thus far is that unless on a completely dry road, only a split second away lurks the dreaded 180 should I lessen my concentration and push that extra 5mm too quickly on the loud pedal. Having said that, the driving experience overall is totally awesome; Would I want to go back to my DB9.2, no, not having experienced the DBSS rocket ship power,,, okay I don't need it but I still want it.
Thx for the review. Mostly for the same reasons I did not order one yet (see my earlier review, including DBSS Volante).
Let's hope the interior, tech and tranmission get a serious upgrade very soon! Since I did see the new DBX, that seems at least not that remote: the DBX has a much nicer interior, better integrated screen and the latest MB tech/infotainment (MBUX, that is 3(!) generations newer than used in the current DB11/DBS/Vantage!) as well as the new 9-speed transmission!
Let's hope the interior, tech and tranmission get a serious upgrade very soon! Since I did see the new DBX, that seems at least not that remote: the DBX has a much nicer interior, better integrated screen and the latest MB tech/infotainment (MBUX, that is 3(!) generations newer than used in the current DB11/DBS/Vantage!) as well as the new 9-speed transmission!
Edited by AWV12 on Sunday 24th November 15:38
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