Belle heir: the Aston Martin DB11 ignites raw passion and maintains family values

Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Thank you for signing up to Wallpaper. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
As the first comprehensively new production Aston Martin in over a decade, the DB11 is a critical machine. Not only must it bear comparison with some of the most acclaimed cars of all time, in terms of aesthetics at least, it is also a showcase for the British company’s new technology.
Under new CEO Andy Palmer, Aston Martin has committed to several years of frantic intensity. A steady flow of concepts and bespoke cars, such as the track-only Vulcan, have kept the company in the public eye, while behind the scenes, the focus has been on shaping the cars that will define Aston Martin’s second century of production. The majority of the world got their first glimpse of the DB11 at the Geneva Motor Show, but a select group has been enjoying private previews of the all-new GT for months. Wallpaper* can count itself among these lucky few, with our big reveal taking place under the guidance of Aston Martin’s design director Marek Reichman at the manufacturer’s HQ at Gaydon.
Of all the lineages in modern car design, the DB bloodline is one of the most evocative, dating back to David Brown’s acquisition of Aston Martin in 1947. The first car to bear the ‘DB’ nomenclature was the 1950 DB2. The DB10 (2015) was custom built for a certain fictional secret agent, while the DB9 was a sales success that remained uncompromised and highly desirable right up to the last model to leave the production line.
The DB11 has a lot to live up to. The new car builds on the Aston aesthetic yet still looks defiantly forward. Those all-important proportions are spot on, yet the detailing is also first rate, from the anodised aluminium Aston Martin wings set into the bonnet to the strong feature line that runs from the headlights to the tapered rear. ‘Every single line has been conceived to be consequent with the next,’ says Reichman, and adds, ‘beauty is enabled by technological innovation’.
The duck-tailed rear is where the car departs most dramatically from its forebears, thanks to an aerofoil system that scoops in air and vents it out to generate a vertical blast of invisible downforce on the back of the car. Aerodynamics also guide the air intake on the flanks via Aston Martin’s signature ‘side strake’. Shaped like an unsheathed dagger, the attention to detail is such that the underside of this piece of brightwork is hand-finished with a tactile knurled pattern, invisible to all but those in the know.
Inside, the longer wheelbase means much improved interior accommodation. There’s a new multimedia and navigation system (a benefit of Aston Martin’s technical partnership with Mercedes-AMG), thin-film transistor dashboard and 5.2-litre twin turbocharged V12, Aston Martin’s first foray into forced induction. The DB11 has to navigate the strident demands of its clients, for whom a V12 is a signature component, and legislators, for whom a V12 is a thunderous anachronism. ‘The beauty of a V12 is that it’s perfectly balanced,’ says Ian Minards, Aston Martin’s product development director, who guided the DB11 from sketch to reality. Minards describes the car as a continuation of the DB lineage, but also ‘as clean a sheet of paper as you can get at Aston Martin’.
As originally featured in the April 2016 issue of Wallpaper* (W*205)
Pictured left: Marek Reichman, Aston Martin’s design director, at the DB11’s duck-tailed rear. Right: the model features a digital dashboard, bespoke interior and active aerodynamic bodywork
Aerodynamics also guide the air intake on the flanks via Aston Martin’s signature ‘side strake’
INFORMATION
Price to be confirmed, first deliveries expected late summer 2016. For more information, visit Aston Martin’s website
Photography: Benedict Redgrove
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox
Jonathan Bell has written for Wallpaper* magazine since 1999, covering everything from architecture and transport design to books, tech and graphic design. He is now the magazine’s Transport and Technology Editor. Jonathan has written and edited 15 books, including Concept Car Design, 21st Century House, and The New Modern House. He is also the host of Wallpaper’s first podcast.
-
Brooklyn furniture studio Stillmade unveils its first collaborative design series
Stillmade brings to life the designs of four New Yorkers – Pat Kim, Danny Kaplan, Michele Quan and Mignogna Studio
By Pei-Ru Keh Published
-
Toyota and Jun Takahashi create a limited edition Aygo X
Toyota Aygo X Undercover edition is a city car spliced with a high-end streetwear brand
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Daniel Arsham debuts new work in Paris and New York
Daniel Arsham and Perrotin mark 20 years of collaboration with New York and Paris exhibitions
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Aston Martin Valour celebrates 110 years of the British sports car manufacturer
Unashamedly macho, the limited-edition Aston Martin Valour is a birthday gift for moneyed enthusiasts of old-school driving sensations
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
The Little Car Company’s garage of pocket exotics are small, speedy and beautiful
The Little Car Company specialises in bespoke ‘junior classics’, exacting, scaled-down reinterpretations of iconic (and expensive) automobiles injected with electric driving delight
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Aston Martin’s Q New York showroom blends classic modernism with cutting-edge technology
Q New York is an invite-only space on Park Avenue, Aston Martin’s latest foothold in the American market
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Aston Martin DB12 makes its debut, offering new interiors and a muscular look
Aston Martin gets the fundamentals right. The DB12 may look like a gentle evolution of the DB11, but under the skin it’s a very different car, a ‘Super Tourer’ with classic style and high technology
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
Aston Martin waves goodbye to its grandest of tourers with the DBS 770 Ultimate Edition
Power, beauty and control: we drive the Aston Martin DBS 770 Ultimate Edition, a final slice of V12-powered automotive muscularity
By Jonathan Bell Published
-
BMW Motorrad brings out the big guns for its newest cruisers
BMW Motorrad R 18 Bagger and Transcontinental set the tone for high-voltage cruising with a brand collaboration with speaker specialist Marshall
By George Chapman Last updated
-
Is McLaren’s GT a sports car, a tourer, or the best of both?
The McLaren GT is a capable all-rounder dressed up in svelte supercar clothes. It might also be the last of its type
By Jonathan Bell Last updated
-
The Cupra Formentor is a dark star for bright minds
For all its moody styling, the Cupra Formentor – from the SEAT spin-off brand – is a compact, swift and fun-to-drive crossover
By Jonathan Bell Last updated