Aston Martin DB9 (2004 - To Date)
BY ANDY ENRIGHT
The Aston Martin DB9 is a car that creates a physical ache of envy. Its effortlessly beautiful, still reasonably rare and is a car thats far from an obvious choice. All of these factors have boosted its desirability and make well looked after used examples worth tracking down. Its a car at a vintage stage in the companys development, retaining a lot of character of the older Astons but adding a welcome dose of quality control and 21st century technology.
Underneath the sleek bodywork resides Aston Martins VH platform, upon versions of which the V8 Vantage and the eventual Vanquish replacement will sit. Its a mixture of extruded, stamped and die-cast aluminium, bonded together into an extremely light, yet rigid superstructure. Whats more, experience with the Vanquish enabled Aston Martin to develop the chassis in a cost-effective manner; essential when dealing with relatively low volume production runs. Most of the exterior panels are aluminium, bonded into position by Astons sole robot assistant, nicknamed James Bonder.
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As well as the aluminium, wood and leather, theres even a glass starter button on the centre console. A satellite navigation system is secreted in a pop-up dash top panel. In the unlikely event that you should tire of the majestic engine note, theres a 1300 watt Linn stereo system to keep you entertained. Everything about the car feels substantial.
Take a good look around the cabin and you wont find the quality wanting. Aston Martin have engineered the steering to feel meaty with a decent amount of heft to the helm. The ride is firmer than you might expect, especially if you opt for the Michelin Sport rubber rather than the preferable Pirelli P-Zero Rosso tyres but body control is reported to be superb as a result, the Aston by no means left struggling against some of the best handling cars in the class. With power being directed to the rear wheels, the British car cant match the all-wheel drive grip of the Porsche 911 Turbo or the Lamborghini Gallardo but a whole host of electronic trickery ensures that power is deployed cleanly on all but the greasiest surfaces.
Where the DB9 does differ significantly from its predecessor is in terms of production volumes. During the first decade of DB7 production, a mere 5,000 cars rolled from the gates at Newport Pagnell. Fully 2,500 DB9s are built every 12 months which, coupled with the fact that it only has one genuine competitor car in the Bentley Continental GT, means that according to simple supply and demand, depreciation is going to be significant. Early DB9 coupes are currently retailing at around £90,000 with later 2005 model year vehicles fetching around £115,000.
Volantes tend to add another £10,000 to those prices.
The switch to a more modern manufacturing plant at Gaydon has done wonders for the consistency of output, especially where the DB9 is concerned. These cars are relatively sturdy for a vehicle with supercar performance and appeal, years of expertise in V12 engine production giving Aston a serious amount of experience to fall back on. Some of the early 2004 cars did have some niggling paint issues but these have largely been ironed out under warranty and the paintwork on later cars should be mirror smooth. Brake squeal is an issue some DB9 owners have identified and in a few cases brake pads have needed to be replaced in as little as 4,000 miles.
Its worth asking the keeper of any prospective DB9 if they have uncorked the exhaust valve. This is a job that takes a few minutes and makes the car sound noticeably sportier and consequently louder without affecting the fuelling. If you want drama and a magnificent exhaust note, its definitely recommended, although if youre a higher mileage driver who does a lot of motorway work, youll find it a little wearing. Otherwise theres not a lot to look for.
The alloys are prone to kerbing, and the front end can pick up stone chips and spoiler scrapes very easily but the interior is hard wearing. One issue that has proved a common fault is the top-spec Linn stereo not releasing CDs and there have been gripes about electric window reliability, faulty dash sensors and juddering steering, all ironed out on later cars.
(approx based on a 2005 V12 coupe) Most services will cost around £700 with the big expense of any enthusiastically driven DB9 being rear tyres. The rears are usually sourced at around £450 a pair although prices can vary. Some report being charged up to £750 for a set of identical rear boots. Brakes also take a hammering with pads being around £400 a pair.
The bumper, bootlid and front wings are all lightweight composite parts and are very expensive to replace. Finally, a tip about replacing wiper blades. When the wiper is in its rest position, it sits in a lip behind the leading edge of the bonnet making it impossible to change the blade. To make this replacement possible, turn the key to the second detent and depress #'s 7 and 8 on the infotainment center and the arms will come up half way on the windshield. It wont work if the bonnet is open.
In these days of super coupes pumping out five or six hundred bhp, the DB9s 450bhp output may not seem initially outstanding, but the engine that does the cranking is a thing of beauty. Its essentially an uprated version of the DB7 Vantages V12 and it sounds utterly intoxicating courtesy of revised cams, inlet and exhaust manifolds and an exhaust tuned for the enthusiast ear. Although a little more discreet than the banshee wail of the Vanquish, the DB9 is still a car that will have you dropping the windows a few millimetres when you spot a tunnel approaching. In truth, it leans towards the more sporting end of the spectrum, thrusting to 60mph in just 4.
8 seconds and on to a top speed of 186mph. Although the Touchtronic 2 gearbox that accompanied the first production DB9 models may not seem overtly sporting, featuring as it does an automatic-style torque converter, the change is slick and positive enough to please keen drivers via steering wheel paddle controls. It actually handles automatic changes a whole lot better than sequential manual units. In manual mode, it holds onto gears throughout corners, never shifting up and leaving the car wallowing mid-bend without drive as some less intelligent units are wont to do.
It matches downshifts with a sharp blip of the throttle and has a neat trick up its sleeve as well. Knock the left paddle to downchange a little too early and the engines electronics will remember this input and only downchange when the speed drops to an acceptable level.
The Aston Martin DB9 is a car that rewards careful consideration when buying used. Our tip is to speak to as many current owners as possible and buy as late a model as you can sensibly afford, sticking to the classic colours.
