Aston Martin DBS Superleggera 2018 Review

Aston Martin's revival is now in full-swing. Rejuvenated with the birth of the DB11, the small British sports car maker has proved it's no one-hit wonder with its Vantage replacement. And, now, there's the arrival of the wonderfully-named DBS Superleggera.

Created to rival cars like the Ferrari 812 Superfast, Lamborghini Aventador S and Porsche's fastest 911 Turbo S, Aston's DBS Superleggera has an unenviable task.

It must somehow match the straight-line speed of the Ferrari, the theatre of the Lambo and the blistering unflappable, cross-country pace of the Porsche.

Designed in collaboration with the famous Italian design house Touring, which styled the iconic 1960s DB4, DB5 and DB6 Superleggera, the large Aston coupe demands your attention in the flesh.

Deliberately styled to look different from other vehicles in the British car-maker's range, the Aston Martin DBS Superleggera — unlike the Vantage — won't be mistaken for a fast Mazda MX-5 or even a DB11.

Lacking the flamboyance of the Aventador but, mercifully, the ugliness of the 812 Superfast, the latest DBS Superleggera recaptures the visual aggression of the wonderful Aston Martin One-77 hypercar with its gaping one-piece grille, wide hips and hunkered-down proportions.

Trying but ultimately failing to live up to its Italian 'superlight' name, the DBS shares its bonded and extruded aluminium chassis with the DB11 but, in a bid to extract more performance, sheds some weight.

Plentiful use of carbon-fibre for the bonnet, front and rear fenders and roof helps to cut the kilos.

Altogether, the DBS Superleggera is 72kg lighter than the V12 DB11, but this Aston Martin is far from svelte with a total kerb weight of 1693kg (dry). Add fluids, a couple of passengers and bags, and the Aston remains a two-tonne brute.

Helpfully offsetting all that mass is the famous British sports car maker's wise choice of equipping the DBS with its flagship twin-turbo 5.2-litre V12 -- except here it has much more power than its DB11 counterpart.

Under the bonnet of the big Aston Martin DBS Superleggera, thanks to an ECU tweak or two, it now produces an astonishing 533kW (86kW more than the DB11) and, wait for it, an even more impressive 900Nm of torque (+200Nm).

That's enough to overshadow even the 812 Superfast Ferrari's measly 718Nm.

Better still, unlike its naturally aspirated Italian rival, the Aston Martin DBS Superleggera delivers all that pulling power from just 1800rpm.

It’s no surprise then that performance is in another league to the DB11. From standstill the DBS can hit 100km/h in just 3.4sec sand 160km/h in 6.4 on its way to topping out at 340km/h.

Sounds plenty, until you realise the Porsche and Ferrari can both hit the magic 100km/h marker in a neck-snapping 2.9sec. But remember, both the German and Italian rely on fancy dual-clutch transmissions, launch control systems and, in the Porsche's case, all-wheel drive to gain a performance advantage.

The Aston, meanwhile, has rear-wheel drive and a good old-fashioned eight-speed automatic.

Actually, the last bit is a lie. The ZF-sourced gearbox is actually new for the DBS, as the DB11 tranny would chew itself to pieces trying to deal with all that torque.

Behind the wheel, Aston Martin’s engineers have been keen to give the DBS a distinct character compared to the DB11 with which it shares oily bits. Hence the Superleggera comes with 15 per cent stiffer springs, completely recalibrated adaptive dampers and firmer suspension bushes from its little Vantage brother.

Maximising grip and traction for the powerful rear-wheel drive coupe are 21-inch rims with wide 265-section front tyres and huge 305-section rubber at the rear. There's also an uprated limited-slip differential.

Reining in all that power are carbon ceramic brake discs that measure in at an enormous 410mm up front and still-substantial 360mm at the rear.

Those new looks also mask a comprehensive update to the DB11's aero. Careful air management moves air out from the front wheel-arches and sends it to the rear C-pillars, which then channel it through the body to exit via the car's trademark aeroblade.

Combined with a small duckbill rear spoiler and an underbody F1-inspired double diffuser, the DBS Superleggera produces an impressive 180kg of downforce at its top speed -- more than any production Aston Martin this side of the track-only Vulcan hypercar.

All the more impressive is that all this is achieved without any increase in drag over the regular DB11.

Inside, if you're familiar with the standard DB11 you'll feel right at home. Aside from a new steering wheel and sports seats, it's business as usual, although there's a far more impressive mix of convincing carbon-fibre, aluminium and leather than in the original DB11.

With all this talk of prodigious power, towering torque and big aero, you'd be wise to feel intimidated the moment you stab the start button and hear the hard-edged V12 erupt.

Thing is, select drive and we're willing to wager any anxious thoughts of spinning the DBS Superleggera into the next state the first time you breathe on the throttle will evaporate.

Not that the Aston isn't quick. Remember, untether the traction control and this V12 coupe can spin up its rear tyres in first, second and third. No, the first surprise of the DBS Superleggera is that it does slow down exceedingly well.

The Aston Martin DBS Superleggera rides well too and, aside from an occasional drivetrain shunt and clunk, the engine and transmission feel like they could have been lifted from a luxurious limo.

Thanks to noise-cancelling speakers, both road and tyre roar are both less than in the DB11 and any notion of having an uncomfortable crack at setting Nurburgring lap records disperses, given the surprising ease the big Aston soaks up the kilometres.

And then when you leave gridlocked towns or congested highways and find a quiet, open country road where you can flatten the throttle, the Aston Martin DBS Superleggera shatters any preconceptions that it’s just a big, fat comfortable cruiser.

The instant thrust takes some time to compute from a car that moments earlier felt more S-Class Coupe competitor than Ferrari basher. It's almost as if you're watching a movie of the horizon hurtling towards you, rather than experiencing the real thing in real time.

For most, the charge to 4500rpm will be enough (and it is for multiple car overtakes) but if you ever find yourself behind the wheel of the DBS Superleggera I urge you to push further. If anything, things begin to feel even more vigorous as the rev needle rapidly winds its way towards the 7200rpm engine cut-out.

If you hadn't seen the graph of a completely flat torque peak you'd swear VTEC had just kicked in.

It's both brutal and addictive.

The dual personality of the Aston Martin DBS Superleggera continues to emerge as we climb up a sinuous stretch of road.

Sitting 5mm lower, the DBS Superleggera has body control of which the original pre-AMR DB11 could only dream, yet there's still some suppleness to the ride that allows the dampers to cope with nasty mid-corner bumps or surface changes.

The steering is simply better too. There's more accuracy and better weighting and communication that gives you confidence to carry speed and trust the Superleggera’s front-end to grip.

Push the old Vanquish and by now things would be very busy while the older-still DBS (2007) would be downright wayward.

The combination of the DBS's steering, suspension, incredible traction and unflappable electronics make it easy to carry serious cross-country speed, without the need for a Daniel Ricciardo skillset.

In other words, the DBS Superleggera is easy to drive very quickly in a way the knife-edge, sweaty-palmed Ferrari 812 Superfast will never be on a bumpy back-road.

Of course, the limiting factor is weight, which eventually hampers agility.

Lacking its Italian opposition's four-wheel steering, the Aston Martin DBS Superleggera’s weight penalty is felt mostly in slower corners, but the grip offered by the bespoke Pirelli tyres is nothing short of staggering.

Another gripe that it almost feels cruel to complain about is the twin-turbo 5.2-litre V12. It might have heroic power and torque and an almost total lack of lag, but it doesn't have a hope of matching the theatrics of the Ferrari 812’s normally-aspirated bent-12.

That said it certainly has more character than the DB11. In 'sport' or 'sport+' mode it pops and bangs on the overrun but, alas, it also winds up the transmission to its most frenetic nature.

You'll soon become bored by the 'box's rabid enthusiasm for downshifts.

Shift to manual and you reveal another quirk of not just the Aston's ZF self-shifter but all traditional autos — their resistance for downshifts in the heat of battle. The DIY method is still satisfying. We just wish it was possible to keep the noise from the sports modes while in normal 'GT' mode, without the ‘smarter’ shift pattern.

Next complaint is the brakes. At the top of the pedal stroke they can be hard to modulate, making it hard to avoid unwanted jerkiness.

For $517,000 (plus on-road costs), you could also argue the Aston Martin DBS Superleggera doesn't quite draw a crowd in the same way as something sporting the prancing horse or charging bull brands do.

But after a day behind the wheel it's clear the Aston has distanced itself from cars like the 812 Superfast -- and not just dynamically. The Aston Martin DBS Superleggera’s price-tag is almost $100,000 less than the Ferrari’s, and that cost gap is likely to almost double after options. Even for well-healed supercar buyers, that’s hard to ignore.

A closer rival for the DBS Superleggera then is Porsche's 911 Turbo S ($461,600 plus ORCs), but in comparison, the German super-coupe (despite being even quicker and more capable to drive) can't match the pretty Aston where it counts, the desirability stakes.

Before we drove the Aston Martin DBS Superleggera we thought it would verge on the unhinged — possibly a manic GT3-style racer for the road.

We couldn't have been more wrong. Aston Martin's faster, lighter take on the DB11 is nothing of the sort Instead it's an exceptionally fine GT that you'll want to drive every day.

How much is the 2018 Aston Martin DBS Superleggera?
On sale: December 2018
Price: $517,000 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 5.2-litre twin-turbocharged petrol V12
Output: 533kW and 900Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel: 12.3L/100km (NEDC Combined)
CO2: 285g/km (NEDC Combined)
Safety rating: N/A