Aston Martin DB9

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Aston Martin DB9<tr><td colspan=2>Image:SC06 2006 Aston Martin DB9 Volante.jpg</tr>
Manufacturer:	Aston Martin Lagonda Limited<tr><th>Production:<td>2003 - present</tr><tr><th>Predecessor:<td>Aston Martin DB7</tr><tr><th>Class:<td>Grand Tourer</tr><tr><th>Body style:<td>2-door coupe 2-door convertible</tr><tr><th>Platform:<td>FR Ford VH platform</tr><tr><th>Engine:<td>5.9 L V12</tr><tr><th>Similar:<td>Mercedes-Benz SL Ferrari 612 Scaglietti Bentley Continental GT</tr><tr><th>Designer:<td>Ian Callum Henrik Fisker</tr>

Image:Aston Martin DB9 - Birmingham - 2005-10-14 (2).jpg Image:Aston Martin DB9 - Birmingham - 2005-10-14.jpg

The Aston Martin DB9 is a grand tourer launched by Aston Martin in 2004 and is the first new car to be built at Aston's Gaydon facility. The name "DB" stems from David Brown, the owner of Aston Martin for a sizeable part of its history. This model, which was designed by Ian Callum and finished by his successor, Henrik Fisker, superseded the now-discontinued Aston Martin DB7 (also by Callum) which started production in 1994.

The DB9 comes in two variants; coupé and "Volante" convertible, each with a 6.0 L 450 brake horsepower (335 kW) V12 engine taken from its sister car the V12 Vanquish. The Vanquish engine produces 10 bhp (7 kW) more. In fact, this V12 engine is why Aston Martin did not call the car the DB8, which could suggest that it has only eight cylinders. One report states that Aston Martin believed that this car was such a huge leap from the Jaguar XJ-S based DB7 that it named it DB9 instead of DB8, which they thought would indicate a gradual evolution. As of 2004 production is expected be up to five thousand units a year which is roughly the same as its rivals, in particular the Ferrari F430 and Porsche 911 Turbo. This car was designed to ensure Aston Martin's continued survival into 21st century in light of its past financial troubles. Traditionally being a maker of more exclusive automobiles, CEO, Dr. Ulrich Bez assures Aston loyalists' that production numbers of the new DB9 will be slightly higher than previous models, however the Aston will still retain a small statistical percentage of the high end sport's car market.

The car has been adapted for sports car racing by Prodrive. The DBR9, as it was called, first raced at the 12 Hours of Sebring in 2005 and won the LMGT1 category, but was beaten by arch-rivals Corvette Racing in the Le Mans GT1 class<ref>Aston Returns to Le Mans, advance news article about DBR9 racing (viewed 18 June, 2006)</ref><ref>Aston Martin Racing Results (viewed 18 June, 2006)</ref>.

In 2006, Aston Martin introduced a "Sports Pack"for the DB9, which includes increased structural stiffness, lighter 19-inch forged aluminium alloy wheels with titanium wheel nuts, lower (by 6mm) ride height, revised spring and damper rates and the like. This upgrade suits the more enthusiastic driver.

Aston Martin's Rapide four-door sports car is heavily based on the DB9.

[edit] Top Gear

BBC's Top Gear raced an Aston DB9 against a TGV train from Surrey to Monte Carlo, with the DB9 winning by a few minutes. During the race, presenter Jeremy Clarkson proclaimed the DB9 to be "motoring perfection". This comment was topped when a new section had to be added to the 'Cool Wall', which rates cars from 'Seriously Uncool' to 'Sub-Zero'. A fridge was added for the DB9 as it was thought to be cooler than any other car on the wall. Since then, the DB9 has been joined in the "fridge" by the Aston Martin V8 Vantage.

[edit] In Pop Culture

In the ABC television show Desperate Housewives, one of the characters in the show, Gabriel drives an Aston Martin DB9 Volante, as a gift from her husband. This car is also featured in Need For Speed: Most Wanted. In the HBO celebrity comedy Entourage, fictional actor Vincent Chase buys each of his three friends a DB9 Volante as a gift.[1]

[edit] Trivia

The Aston Martin DB9 has an artificial neural network implemented at the hardware level to detect engine misfires, as discussed in a Ford press release.

[edit] References

[edit] External links

Aston Martin DB9 - official Aston Martin webpage
[2] - Aston Martin DB9 photos and specifications
Aston Martin DB9 Volante - Supercars.net
http://www.bbc.co.uk/topgear/downloads/aston_vs_train_broadband.ram/ DB9 vs Train] - TopGear video
[3] - Review of the Aston Martin DB9
[4] - Aston Martin DB9 Official Specs
Aston Martin DB9 vs. Ferrari F430 vs. Ford GT vs. Lamborghini Gallardo vs. Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG vs. Porsche 911 Turbo S Cabriolet - Comparison Tests

A subsidiary of Ford's PAG											Aston Martin and Lagonda road car timeline, 1948-present																																[edit]
Type	1940s		1950s										1960s										1970s										1980s										1990s										2000s
	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
Grand tourer	DB1			DB2			DB2/4			DB III										DBS/Vantage																										DB7						DB7 Vantage						V8 Vantage
												DB4				DB5			DB6				V8																				Virage/V8														DB9
																														V8 Vantage																V8 Vantage								V12 Vanquish						DBS
Supercar														Zagato																									Zagato															Zagato			AR1
4-door	2.6-Litre					3-Litre								Rapide															Lagonda																															Rapide