DB9 Volante advice
Discussion
OK, need some help please friends
Have a very good pal who is toying with swapping into a DB9 volante from his 911 turbo cab (I think it's a 996 but I may be mis remembering)
He states he has seen a 2007 car that is low miles and in budget and that he can't afford a post facelift model - I haven't asked him actual figures yet
I mentioned that IIRC, the early DB9 volantes had no chassis strengthening plates and a speed restrictor (pretty unusual for Gaydon cars or indeed any Aston, perhaps even unique ?) because the handling of the early DB9Vs was a little soft
Can anyone give a rundown of important updates & dates on DB9 Volantes. In particular if I'm right on the chassis strengthening, did that come in with the major facelift to DBS centre console or before then
Cheers
Have a very good pal who is toying with swapping into a DB9 volante from his 911 turbo cab (I think it's a 996 but I may be mis remembering)
He states he has seen a 2007 car that is low miles and in budget and that he can't afford a post facelift model - I haven't asked him actual figures yet
I mentioned that IIRC, the early DB9 volantes had no chassis strengthening plates and a speed restrictor (pretty unusual for Gaydon cars or indeed any Aston, perhaps even unique ?) because the handling of the early DB9Vs was a little soft
Can anyone give a rundown of important updates & dates on DB9 Volantes. In particular if I'm right on the chassis strengthening, did that come in with the major facelift to DBS centre console or before then
Cheers
I agree with Gdc, Grant's book is your first port of call for dates and changes.
As for chassis work, it's very simple to upgrade. Bamford offer a great chassis kit which I believe is a 2012 DBS front & rear under-tray plus re-instating rear anti rollbar. It worked wonders on my MY08 Volante (even Mrs noticed the difference on her first drive!).
Use the money saved buying MY07 to upgrade the bits/features you want.
D
.
As for chassis work, it's very simple to upgrade. Bamford offer a great chassis kit which I believe is a 2012 DBS front & rear under-tray plus re-instating rear anti rollbar. It worked wonders on my MY08 Volante (even Mrs noticed the difference on her first drive!).
Use the money saved buying MY07 to upgrade the bits/features you want.
D
.
I think the key is understanding WHY he's interested in making the switch. No DB9 is going to feel like a 911, so he needs to make sure he really wants a GT. The difference between a 911 and ANY year DB9 will be significant
I have an '06 DB9 Volante and I love it more than any other car I've ever owned. The car has a presence and sense of occasion that never gets old, but it doesn't make me feel as if I'm competing with everyone else on the road the way my Lotus did, for example.
I have an '06 DB9 Volante and I love it more than any other car I've ever owned. The car has a presence and sense of occasion that never gets old, but it doesn't make me feel as if I'm competing with everyone else on the road the way my Lotus did, for example.
Zuman said:
I think the key is understanding WHY he's interested in making the switch. No DB9 is going to feel like a 911, so he needs to make sure he really wants a GT. The difference between a 911 and ANY year DB9 will be significant
I have an '06 DB9 Volante and I love it more than any other car I've ever owned. The car has a presence and sense of occasion that never gets old, but it doesn't make me feel as if I'm competing with everyone else on the road the way my Lotus did, for example.
He uses the car as an everyday car and is not the fastest driver in the world. He'll never track the car or do a road trip for the sake of the trip. It will be used for commuting, social, pleasure, etc & the odd trip to his holiday home in the south of france. DB9 Volante is arguably the perfect car for that. He's very unlikely to go for the BR conversion, though it's useful to knowI have an '06 DB9 Volante and I love it more than any other car I've ever owned. The car has a presence and sense of occasion that never gets old, but it doesn't make me feel as if I'm competing with everyone else on the road the way my Lotus did, for example.
I've advised that for him, the various DB9 power increases won't matter. What I wasn't sure of is if the chassis strengthening came in before or at the same time as the facelift and if anyone has experience of the real world differences with & without the strengthening, plus if there are any other changes in 07/08/09 that make a big difference to the driving or ownership experience
Zuman said:
I have an '06 DB9 Volante and I love it more than any other car I've ever owned. The car has a presence and sense of occasion that never gets old, but it doesn't make me feel as if I'm competing with everyone else on the road the way my Lotus did, for example.
+1The book that many have mentioned above goes into all the specific changes between the years. I bought it and I can't recommend it highly enough.
My US-spec car is an '09 - it has the 470BHP engine, and I believe '09 was the first year for that - at least over here. The Touchtronic gearbox was also updated (I believe) and the interior was face-lifted (I know).
My car has 22k miles and in the past 8 months/1000 miles has had (needed) new plugs and coils. The brake dust is a constant b****h and my DB9V is showing signs of the passenger door locking/unlocking issue. Parts and prices can be a pain, and much patience is called for when ordering from the UK for a US car. I'm sure your mate's 911 will have had it's niggles but there are quite a few 'foibles' to be put up with, with an Aston.
But you know what? It doesn't matter what other exotic I might pull up behind at the lights, or in traffic - whether it's a Porsche, Bentley, Ferrari or whatever - my car is an Aston Martin and theirs' isn't. My badge-envy has been cured.
Your mate has to do what's right for him. Good luck!
WWFC1965 said:
But you know what? It doesn't matter what other exotic I might pull up behind at the lights, or in traffic - whether it's a Porsche, Bentley, Ferrari or whatever - my car is an Aston Martin and theirs' isn't. My badge-envy has been cured.
Fixed it for you. A Porsche is not an exotic, not to say that a couple models like the 918 and GT aren't.Edited by DB9VolanteDriver on Friday 16th October 17:03
You will find that the DBS front and rear roll bars will install straight onto the Volante as the mounting points are there. You will also need the roll bar rubbers and rear droplinks and clamps, you can reuse the front droplinks.
The DBS shocks and springs also fit if you can find a used set, other than that, there are coilover kits available for reasonable money.
I installed the roll bars and it made a noticeable difference although the coil springs are far too soft. I then assembled my own coilover kit using modified Vantage Racing Bilstein bodies and my own design springs and platforms.
I would suggest trying the roll bars, often available used, followed by DBS rate springs on the standard shocks.
Here you can just about see the DBS front and rear roll bars installed.
Hope that helps,
8Tech.
The DBS shocks and springs also fit if you can find a used set, other than that, there are coilover kits available for reasonable money.
I installed the roll bars and it made a noticeable difference although the coil springs are far too soft. I then assembled my own coilover kit using modified Vantage Racing Bilstein bodies and my own design springs and platforms.
I would suggest trying the roll bars, often available used, followed by DBS rate springs on the standard shocks.
Here you can just about see the DBS front and rear roll bars installed.
Hope that helps,
8Tech.
The 2007 MY car was introduced in the latter half of 2006. The changes mainly focused around new seat design (far more comfortable, but actually to accommodate a larger volume of side airbag for the US market) and the introduction of the Sport Pack for the Coupe variant. This was never offered on the Volante until Sport Pack Plus in 2011 which featured ADS. I digress.
The '07 MY cars do seem to be the first "facelift" point of reference buyers seek out, although, truth be told, there is little difference for Volante save for the seats. All AML did was start to include previously optional equipment as standard (sat nav, cruise, Bluetooth, memory seats). The '08 MY cars can be identified by the raised centre armrest with chrome cup holders (MP3/i-Pod connectivity, enhanced Bluetooth) but otherwise were the same as previous year. '09 MY cars were the first major engineering change. This car had the 470bhp engine, enhanced chassis stiffness, re-designed dash (a la DBS) slightly different styling (grille and wing mirror arms, more sculpted side "light catcher") and HDD sat nav. '10MY changed again with new styling, then Sport Pack Plus was added. 2011/12 was effectively the Sport/Luxury Edition cars until the new DB9 was introduced.
The Volante was always set up to be a different drive to the Coupe as AML felt that a Volante driver had a different set of priorities to the Coupes, i.e.. more of a cruiser, less sports. That said, the torsional rigidity of the Volante was still the best in class for the time, significantly more than the Ferrari 360 Spider, Mercedes SL and Jaguar XK. The 09 MY cars were a revelation though! I remember my training down at Ascari in Spain, and although the main focus was on the 4.7 litre V8 Vantage and DBS, we all commented on how different they had made the '9 Volante.
Hope this helps.....
The '07 MY cars do seem to be the first "facelift" point of reference buyers seek out, although, truth be told, there is little difference for Volante save for the seats. All AML did was start to include previously optional equipment as standard (sat nav, cruise, Bluetooth, memory seats). The '08 MY cars can be identified by the raised centre armrest with chrome cup holders (MP3/i-Pod connectivity, enhanced Bluetooth) but otherwise were the same as previous year. '09 MY cars were the first major engineering change. This car had the 470bhp engine, enhanced chassis stiffness, re-designed dash (a la DBS) slightly different styling (grille and wing mirror arms, more sculpted side "light catcher") and HDD sat nav. '10MY changed again with new styling, then Sport Pack Plus was added. 2011/12 was effectively the Sport/Luxury Edition cars until the new DB9 was introduced.
The Volante was always set up to be a different drive to the Coupe as AML felt that a Volante driver had a different set of priorities to the Coupes, i.e.. more of a cruiser, less sports. That said, the torsional rigidity of the Volante was still the best in class for the time, significantly more than the Ferrari 360 Spider, Mercedes SL and Jaguar XK. The 09 MY cars were a revelation though! I remember my training down at Ascari in Spain, and although the main focus was on the 4.7 litre V8 Vantage and DBS, we all commented on how different they had made the '9 Volante.
Hope this helps.....
Zuman said:
No DB9 is going to feel like a 911, so he needs to make sure he really wants a GT. The difference between a 911 and ANY year DB9 will be significant
I have an '06 DB9 Volante and I love it more than any other car I've ever owned. The car has a presence and sense of occasion that never gets old, but it doesn't make me feel as if I'm competing with everyone else on the road the way my Lotus did, for example.
+1I have an '06 DB9 Volante and I love it more than any other car I've ever owned. The car has a presence and sense of occasion that never gets old, but it doesn't make me feel as if I'm competing with everyone else on the road the way my Lotus did, for example.
I think of my DB9 as a true GT. It's a cruiser. It will get the job done through the mountains or down the highway but I won't be going toe to toe with anyone looking to put a notch in their belt.
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