Aston Martin Rapide Luxury 2011 video

THEY say all Aston Martins look the same and that makes sense. When you spot one of these, you immediately know it's an Aston - they're so distinctive - but was it a DB9 or a DBS? V8 or V12? You rarely see the two together, so it's hard to say.

However, I am at Phillip Island Speedway surrounded by over 40 cars representing every aspect of the lineup. This is the company's first track day in Australia and could be the biggest Astons gathering in Australia.

Many owners came here in their interstate cars, and some flew in from New Zealand. When they're all together like this - cars, not owners - it's amazing how striking the differences are. They are at least as different from each other as, say, a Porsche.

Aston's range has just been expanded by one car, and it's the most unusual of them all. The Rapide is Aston's first four-door sports car since joining the race to design sleek sedans. This segment, pioneered by the Mercedes-Benz CLS and Maserati Quattroporte, is growing rapidly. The Porsche Panamera is another novelty, while Audi and BMW intend to make "four-door coupes".

Design

So far, the Rapide is the one that made the transition from two-door to four-door with the fewest compromises in form. The Panamera is more spacious in the back, but looks ugly and bulky in the back. Aston found a different balance.

The Rapide sticks to the concept that surprised the 2006 Detroit auto show and looked like a stretched out DB9. There was obviously a little more than that nearby.

It's larger in every way than the signature 2+2 pin-up, but is decidedly longer by 30 cm. The Rapide retains all of its signature features, including the swan doors that tilt up slightly to lift them off the curbs. But each panel is different, and elements like the headlights and side stripes are longer. It also gets a unique face with a grille on the lower air intake and high beam headlamps adorned with a chain of LEDs.

Aston says it's the prettiest four-door sports car, and it's hard to disagree. Some of the effects are based on visual tricks. The rear doors are much larger than the actual openings; part of what they hide is structural. It's a squeeze to get in, and once there, it's cramped but bearable for full-sized ones, better for kids. The rear seats fold down to carry long items, which is also a good thing because cargo space is a relatively meager 317 liters.

One question mark concerns the assembly of the car, which is carried out outside the English Midlands at a special facility in Austria. Transplanting the brand's artisan tradition seems to have worked; the car I drove was beautifully hand finished to a high standard. As usual, what appears to be metal is actually metal, including the Bang & Olufsen speaker grilles and magnesium alloy shift paddles. The Rapide just feels a little more luxurious.

TECHNOLOGY

There is nothing superfluous here, although the center console, borrowed from the DB9, has awkward buttons, and the control system is rudimentary compared to the best Germans.

From a technical standpoint, the Rapide follows the DB9 with the same engine and a six-speed automatic transmission located on the rear axle. As with the two-door, much of the Rapide is made from aluminum, and Aston claims the chassis has been stretched without sacrificing stiffness. The weight gain is a penalty: the Rapide is 230kg heavier than the DB9 while weighing less than two tons.

The Rapide has several firsts for the brand, including an electronic parking brake and twin cast iron and aluminum brake discs. He also installs DBS adaptive dampers on a double wishbone suspension.

DRIVING

The Rapide is not only the biggest and heaviest Aston, but also the slowest. Acceleration to 5.2 km / h takes 100 seconds, which is 0.4 seconds less than the DB9. It also gives up earlier, reaching a top speed of 296 km/h, 10 km/h less than the DB9. However, among four-doors, these figures are not a shame.

With a starting price of just $13,000 more than the automatic DB9 Coupe, Aston chief executive Marcel Fabris expects to sell the 30 Rapid by the end of the year. Worldwide, the company will deliver 2000 vehicles per year.

My first trip is a kind of delivery. The night before the day the Rapide track needs to be transported from the brand's showroom in Melbourne to Phillip Island so it can be shown to owners and a host of invited potential customers. I have done those 140 km before and they are not very exciting. It's already dark and it's raining, so I'm focusing on arranging how to get home in Melbourne and getting there without drama.

It is easy to get comfortable, the steering wheel immediately makes a favorable impression. It's direct, precise, and terribly weighted. This allows you to easily navigate this 5-meter, highly visible piece of exotic in hectic traffic.

Interior quietness and ride quality are also better than expected, and the days of Astons being shipped without cruise control are long gone. It has all the amenities and comfort, including heated seats. If there's an annoyance, it's the control system and its small buttons that make finding the right radio station a chore.

This is not a problem on the track the next day, when the weather has cleared up and the Aston owners are sitting patiently at briefings with the drivers. More than just a chance to test your cars at speed, this event is modeled after races in the UK, Europe and the US where professional racers ride shotgun with owners to teach them how to get the most out of their car. The three instructors are from the UK, where the brand has been offering professional driving courses for a decade. The rest are locals with years of motorsport experience.

Under the expert guidance of Briton Paul Beddoe, I am the first to ride the Rapide. I had never driven an Aston on a circuit before and the experience was something of a revelation for me. The Rapide doesn't feel like a sedan, but like something smaller and more nimble - you could almost end up in one of the coupes. The steering I liked on the road is even better here, and the brakes are great and the gears shift faster than expected. This V12 engine is a beautiful piece of equipment that doesn't mind working hard. It may not be the fastest Aston, but the Rapide doesn't feel slow.

During the day there is the opportunity to try the rest of the Aston range and when you ride them back to back, when you see them side by side, the differences are striking. The Rapide is a refined and civilized member of the lineup, surprisingly relaxing to drive even on the track, yet strong and capable at the same time. Grip levels and cornering speed are high.

VERDICT

Rapide is completing the upgrade that started with DB9. This car helped Aston break the habit of borrowing parts from a previous Ford owner and trading in a reputation that was part racing history, part Hollywood action hero.

Following the expansion of the lineup with the less expensive Vantage V8, Aston ownership increased significantly. It is now large enough in Australia to make events such as those on Phillip Island possible. Most owners tested their car on the track for the first time. And most of the people I spoke to would do it again in a heartbeat.

Rapide should further expand Aston's capabilities. The least likely warrior in the lineup will make future track days more likely, not less. And when owners show up to test the Rapide, they will be pleasantly surprised.

Whereas for Aston trainspotters, there is finally an easy choice.

ASTON MARTIN FAST – $366,280 plus travel expenses

VEHICLE: Luxury sedan

ENGINE: 5.9-liter V12

OUTPUTS: 350 kW at 6000 rpm and 600 Nm at 5000 rpm

TRANSMISSION: Six-speed automatic, rear-wheel drive

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